Inflation Has Us Splitting Bills on Payment Apps — How to Do It

Runaway inflation has been changing our behavior — how we shop, where we eat, what we buy.

It’s also changing the way we’re using mobile payment apps like Venmo, PayPal, Cash App and Zelle. Thanks to inflation, many Americans are becoming more assertive when it comes to bill splitting and asking to be reimbursed by friends, family and acquaintances.

That’s the main finding of a survey by Forbeswhich learned that you’re more likely these days to be asked to split a tab on a popular peer-to-peer payment service like Venmo or Zelle.

With things changing so quickly, how are you supposed to handle yourself in this new era of payment apps? What’s the etiquette?

Don’t worry! We have some expert advice for you from Venmo — and from Martha Stewart.

‘Venmo Vultures’ and Other Modern Annoyances

Forbes took an online survey of 1,000 Americans who use payment apps. The survey found that nearly half of them are using the apps to split up restaurant tabs, grocery bills, rent and other expenses.

Here’s what else the survey found:

• Nearly half of the apps’ users have started to split bills in ways they normally wouldn’t, and it’s because of inflation.
• Most respondents — 86% — think any total under $5 is a petty amount that isn’t worth requesting.
• One in 4 app users has to deal with a “Venmo vulture” who nickel-and-dimes them with requests for small payments.
• Unsurprisingly, the younger you are, the more likely you are to actively use these apps. Among millennials and Gen Z, nearly 60% split bills at least once a week, and nearly 30% say they split bills on an everyday basis.

The Fast Rise of Payment Apps

These mobile payment apps are obviously becoming more popular as more young people go cashless.

A 2022 survey by the Pew Research Center found that the following percentages of…