It shouldn’t come as a surprise, but managing a group’s expenses on a trip has to be one of the most annoying human experiences. You forget who paid for what; there is a lot of math involved, and it gets even more complicated when some costs don’t have to be shared equally across the group. Thankfully, apps like Splitwise have become one of the most popular tools for managing group expenses during the holidays.
PayPal has announced that it is introducing an easy and convenient way to collect or deposit money in the app. Starting today, users can set up a pool and add people to it. Pool members can use that to manage group expenses on a trip, so you and your friends don’t have to spend an hour doing all the math on the last day. The company says it should also be useful for gifting where everyone needs to enter to receive a community gift. The factor should also apply to fixed costs such as rent and utilities shared among partners.
Here’s how to set up a pool in an app. Go to the App Menu and select “Pool Money” or look for the “More Options” menu under the “Send/Request” tab to create your own pool. Next, give it a title, description, target date, and goal amount of your choice. Then, share the pool link with your group text, email, or WhatsApp, among other options. Your team can donate directly to the pool through your link. Once the funds are sorted, press “Transfer” on the pool page to transfer them to your PayPal balance.
Splitwise has long been a popular app for this purpose, but it has limitations. First, it is built on a freemium model, which means you can use its basic functionality without paying but you have to sign up for a paid plan for advanced features. It’s annoying that “advanced features” include something as basic as adding more than three charges to a group per day. PayPal’s new feature is absolutely free.
Second, third-party apps like Splitwise require you to sign up for an account. PayPal’s integration features also work for non-PayPal users. The pool organizer is the only person with an account, but can invite anyone to join the pool.
Also, money in your PayPal app can be used without calling your bank. You can make in-app purchases through a long list of participating retailers. In dedicated integration apps, the money transferred to you is not valid until you transfer the funds to your linked bank account.
The new PayPal feature starts today in the US, Germany, UK, Italy and Spain.
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