Roommate agreement template: a free money agreement

A roommate agreement template is a short written page where everyone in a shared home agrees how money works: rent, bills, groceries, supplies, the deposit and what happens when someone leaves. The version below is free, written in plain words, and ready to copy, edit and sign off over a cup of tea.

The most common mistake: agreeing out loud and writing nothing down

Almost every flat starts with a friendly chat. "We'll just split everything, it'll be fine." Three months later nobody remembers what "everything" meant.

The fix is not a legal battle. It is one page that says who pays what, by when, and what happens at the edges. Writing it down also makes the awkward bits easier, because you are all arguing with a page, not with each other.

A note before you start. This is a plain-language template for house money, not legal advice and not a tenancy contract. Your lease and local rules (including how deposits work) come first, so check them. If the stakes are high, ask a local tenants' service or a lawyer.

The free roommate agreement template (copy and paste)

Copy each block, replace the brackets, and delete what does not apply. Keep the whole thing under one page.

1. Who and what this covers

This is our money agreement for [address or flat name]. It covers [names of everyone]. It starts on [date] and we review it every [6 months] or when someone moves in or out. If it disagrees with our lease, the lease wins.

2. Rent

Total monthly rent is [amount]. Our split is: [name] pays [amount], [name] pays [amount], [name] pays [amount]. Each person pays their share by the [day] of the month, to [landlord / the person who holds the tenancy]. If someone will be late, they tell the group before the due date and say when they will pay.

Rooms of different sizes? See how to split rent fairly with unequal rooms before you fill in the numbers.

3. Shared bills

We share these bills: electricity, gas, water, internet, [other]. Each is split [equally / by the amounts in the table]. The account holder pays the provider and logs the bill within [3] days. Everyone else pays their share within [7] days of it being logged.

4. Groceries

Groceries are [separate / shared]. If separate, we label our own food. If we share a basics list (milk, oil, coffee, [other]), we split it equally and whoever buys it logs the receipt. We do not mix the two systems.

5. Household supplies

Cleaning products, bin bags, toilet paper and dish soap are bought in rotation. This month it is [name]'s turn, next month [name]'s. If someone buys out of turn, they log it and the cost is split equally.

6. Deposit

The deposit is [amount]. Each person paid [amount], and we keep proof of that. If money is deducted at the end of the tenancy, we split it by who caused the damage, and equally if nobody can tell. A person who leaves early gets their share back from the person who replaces them, or when the full deposit is returned.

7. Moving out

Anyone leaving gives [30 / 60] days' notice to the group. They keep paying rent and bills until the date we agree, or until a replacement moves in, whichever comes first. Before leaving, we settle all balances, and the remaining people re-split the fixed costs.

8. How we settle up

We keep one shared record of who paid what. We settle once a month, on or near the [day]. Balances are paid by [bank transfer / app of our choice], and the person who is paid confirms they received it. If we disagree, we talk within [a week] and look at the record together.

Worked example: three flatmates, one page

Priya, Tomas and Hana share a flat in Manchester. Rent is £2,400 a month, split by room, and the shared bills are split equally. Here is what each person owes for the month.

The bills are energy £120, broadband £30 and water £24, which come to £174. Once this table is in the agreement, nobody has to ask what they owe.

How to bring the agreement up without it being weird

Pitch it as a house-keeping chat, not a trust issue. Say "I would like us to write down how we split things so I never have to guess." Most people are relieved.

Fill it in together, in the same room or on one shared call. If someone is dragging their feet, send the blocks above and ask them to change anything they disagree with. For the harder conversations that come later, here is how to bring it up when a roommate owes money.

Keeping the agreement alive

• Pin it somewhere everyone sees it: a shared note, the group chat or the fridge.
• Review it when someone moves in or out, or every six months.
• Change it by agreement only, and put the new date at the top.
• Keep the record of who paid what in one place, so settling up is a check, not a debate. Our guide on splitting bills with roommates shows a simple system.

Evens, our shared-expense app, is built for exactly this: flat groups repeat monthly bills, rotate who buys supplies, and keep a history behind every balance.