A SplitKin guide
The app to split the cost of caring for an aging parent
The real cost of caring for a parent is almost never shared equally. The sibling who's local pays the pharmacy, the groceries, the aide, the parking at the hospital. The others transfer money sometimes. Resentment lives in the gap. SplitKin logs every expense from the chat the way you already have it, shows what's owed, and lets you settle up once a month.
Last updated November 1, 2026
What caregiving actually costs
Nobody tracks the real cost of caring for a parent until they’re a year in and quietly furious. By then, one sibling has absorbed thousands of dollars of not-quite-reimbursed expenses and the others sincerely have no idea.
A rough snapshot of a typical month, with a parent still at home and reasonably independent:
- Prescription copays and over-the-counter supplies: $80 to $300
- Groceries and household goods bought specifically for your parent: $200 to $600
- Transportation to appointments (gas, parking, rideshares): $40 to $200
- Home-care aide or part-time help: $0 to $2,000+
- One-off expenses · a doctor’s copay you forgot, a new walker, a replacement thermometer: $50 to $300
That’s $370 to $3,400 a month, before any big-ticket items (dental work, hearing aids, home modifications, unreimbursed hospital stays). Most of it lands on one sibling’s card. Most of it is forgotten by the end of the week.
A number worth facing
Three ways families actually split the cost
Pick the one that fits your family. The important thing is picking one explicitly and writing it down. Default “we’ll figure it out” is how one sibling ends up carrying the whole thing.
1. Equal split
Three siblings, three equal shares. Simple, uncontroversial, and often how families start. Fine if your incomes are roughly similar and nobody is doing dramatically more time. Breaks down if one sibling earns four times what the other does, or if one is already contributing 20 hours a week of care that nobody is counting.
2. Proportional by income
Each sibling’s share scales with their income. If one of you earns $200k and another earns $55k, their shares aren’t 50/50 · they’re roughly 80/20. This often lands as fairer, especially long-term, but it requires the uncomfortable conversation of actually naming your incomes.
3. Hybrid · time offsets money
The sibling who’s local and doing most of the hands-on work pays a smaller share of the money. This is the most honest model for most families, because hands-on caregiving is itself a huge contribution. It’s also the hardest to get right without tracking, because the hours and the dollars both drift. This is where SplitKin’s Contributions view earns its subscription · everyone sees time, money and decisions in one place.
How SplitKin handles the splitting
Everything hinges on expenses being captured without anyone having to think about it. Here’s what that looks like in practice.
1. You chat the way you already do
“Picked up mom’s meds, $127.” “Just paid the aide for the week · $340.” “Took her to the dentist, parking was $18.”
2. SplitKin’s AI logs the expense
The AI reads the message, extracts the amount, the category, who paid, and files it in the Expenses tab · in seconds, no form. If it gets anything wrong, you tap to correct it and it learns.
3. The split applies automatically
You set your split rule once (equal, proportional, hybrid, or custom per category). Each new expense gets the right share instantly. Everyone sees the running balance.
4. Settle up once a month
At the end of the month, you see “Ana owes Luis $342.60.” One Venmo, Zelle or bank transfer, done. SplitKin logs that the settle-up happened and starts the next month at zero.
What SplitKin doesn’t do (on purpose)
We don’t move money. SplitKin tracks what’s owed · you settle up using whatever you already have (Venmo, Zelle, Wise, your bank). We chose this on purpose:
- No payment-processing fees eating into your settlements
- No linking bank accounts, no additional compliance risk
- Works across borders if one sibling lives abroad
- If something ever goes wrong, your real money is in a real bank, not stuck in our system
Try SplitKin with your siblings
One sibling signs up and invites the others · one subscription ($4.99/month or $49.99/year) covers the whole family. Fourteen days free. The AI starts picking up expenses from the next message you send in the circle.
For the full theory on fairness vs equality in family caregiving, read our long-form guide.
Common questions
Should siblings split caregiving costs equally?
Not always. Equal (everyone pays the same dollar amount) is one option, but most families end up using something closer to proportional (each sibling contributes a share based on income) or hybrid (one sibling pays more in money, another pays more in time). What matters more than the formula is that everyone agrees to it in advance and sees the real numbers each month.
Does SplitKin actually move money between siblings?
No. SplitKin tracks what's owed · it doesn't process payments. You settle up at the end of the month with whatever you already use (Venmo, Zelle, Wise, a bank transfer). We don't take a cut and we never see your bank information. We chose this deliberately: payment processing adds fees, compliance risk, and failure modes, and your family already has a way to send each other money.
What caregiving expenses should we actually be tracking?
Medical copays and prescriptions. Groceries and household supplies if you're buying for your parent. Transportation (gas, parking, rideshares to appointments). Home modifications (grab bars, raised toilet seats, stair rails). Professional help (aides, cleaners, lawn care). Any travel you make specifically to care for your parent. If someone is seriously carrying it, their meals and gas during that time too. If in doubt, log it · better to see the real number than to pretend.
What about non-monetary contributions · hours spent, decisions made?
Those count, and SplitKin tracks them too. The Contributions view separates time, money and decisions · one sibling might contribute less money because they're doing 20 hours a week of in-person care. Seeing all three dimensions is what prevents the "I pay for everything" / "I do everything" fights. Fair means visible.
How do we actually agree on who pays what?
In SplitKin, you can set a split per expense (e.g. 3-way equal, or 50/30/20 by income) or per category. One sibling adds a $127 pharmacy run to the chat; the AI logs it; the split applies automatically. If the split needs to change (someone's income shifted, one sibling is now carrying more time), you can renegotiate anytime. The log is what matters, not the formula.
SplitKin
Start a circle for your family. 14 days free.
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