Same goal, opposite approaches. One person handles it vs. everyone participates.
The real difference isn't platform—it's philosophy.
splitty: one person handles it in 30 seconds. Tab: everyone participates collaboratively. Neither is wrong—just different approaches.
Two philosophies of bill splitting
splitty and Tab both split restaurant bills fairly. Both handle item-by-item assignment. Both work on iPhone. But the way they work couldn't be more different.
It's not about which is "better"—it's about which approach fits your situation. Let's break it down.
How it works
Side-by-side workflow comparison
splitty 30 sec 
Tab 2-5 min splitty: One person handles it
With splitty, the person with the receipt does everything. You hold your phone over the receipt and tap capture. The app reads every line item automatically—no typing required. You tap items to assign them to people by name. Tax gets distributed proportionally. You send Venmo requests directly from the app.
Your friends don't need splitty installed. They don't need to do anything except accept the Venmo request that arrives with a clear description of what they owe. They might not even know an app was involved.
"Only one person needs the app. Everyone else just gets a Venmo request.
The splitty difference
Tab: Everyone participates
Tab takes a collaborative approach. You photograph the receipt and share it to your group. Everyone opens Tab on their phone, sees the receipt image, and claims their own items. It's democratic—nobody assigns items to anyone else.
This requires everyone to have Tab installed. If someone at the table doesn't have it, they need to download it. If they don't want to, the whole workflow breaks down.
The upside: transparency. Each person verifies their own items. No one can complain you assigned something wrong because they chose it themselves.
Two valid approaches
splitty
Centralized- Speed first One person, 30 seconds, done
- No app required Friends just get a Venmo request
- Auto-reads receipt No typing required (manual entry available too)
- Integrated payment Venmo requests sent directly
Tab
Collaborative- Participation Everyone claims their own items
- Transparency Each person sees the receipt photo
- Verification No "you assigned me wrong" complaints
- Democratic No single person controls the split
The Scorecard
Feature-by-feature. No spin. Just facts.
splitty Tab The coordination problem
Tab's collaborative model has one significant friction point: everyone at the table needs Tab installed and ready.
Picture this: You're at dinner with 8 people. You want to use Tab. But 2 people don't have it installed. Now you're waiting for them to download it, create an account, figure out how it works. Meanwhile, the waiter is hovering.
With splitty, this doesn't happen. Only you need the app. You scan, assign, send Venmo requests. Everyone else just accepts their payment request. Done before the waiter comes back.
"The best app is the one that doesn't make your friends download anything.
Choosing the right approach
Choose splitty when...
- You want to handle the split yourself
- Not everyone wants to download an app
- Speed matters—30 seconds, done
- You want to send Venmo requests directly
- It's a one-time dinner (not a recurring group)
Choose Tab when...
- Everyone already has Tab installed
- Your group prefers collaborative claiming
- Transparency and self-verification matter
- You eat with the same group regularly
- No one wants to be "the person who handles it"
Pick the right tool
Different situations call for different solutions
Use splitty when...
- Friends don't want to install another app
- You want to handle the split yourself
- Speed matters—done in 30 seconds
- You want Venmo requests sent automatically
Use Tab when...
- Everyone already uses Tab
- Your group prefers collaborative claiming
- Transparency is more important than speed
- You eat with this group regularly
Questions & Answers
Everything you need to know about splitty vs Tab
01 What's the main difference between splitty and Tab?
The approach, not the platform. Both apps work on iOS. The key difference: splitty lets one person handle the entire split (scan, assign, send Venmo). Tab requires everyone at the table to install the app and claim their own items collaboratively.
02 Do my friends need to download Tab?
Yes. Tab's collaborative model requires all participants to have the app installed. Everyone views the receipt photo and claims their items. With splitty, only you need the app—you assign items yourself and send Venmo requests to anyone, app or no app.
03 Does Tab have receipt scanning like splitty?
Different approach. Tab takes a photo of the receipt and shares it with the group—everyone sees the photo and manually claims their items. splitty uses camera technology to read the receipt automatically, extracting every line item without anyone typing anything.
04 Which is faster—Tab or splitty?
splitty is faster for the person doing the split. You scan, assign, and send Venmo requests in ~30 seconds. Tab requires coordinating everyone: they all need to open the app, view the photo, and claim items—collaborative but adds time.
05 Can I use Tab if my friends don't have the app?
No, that's the key friction point. Tab's collaborative model means everyone needs it installed. In mixed groups where some people don't want to download another app, splitty works better—only you need it.
06 Does Tab work on iOS?
Yes, Tab works on both iOS and Android. The platform isn't the differentiator—both apps are available on iPhone. The real difference is the approach: collaborative (Tab) vs. centralized (splitty).
07 Which app is better for large groups?
Depends on your group. If everyone already has Tab and enjoys participating, Tab's collaborative claiming works well. If you want to just handle it yourself without coordinating 12 people to open an app, splitty is faster and simpler.
More comparisons
See how splitty stacks up against other bill-splitting apps.
