You paid for the group — and now you're waiting
You put your card down at dinner expecting everyone to transfer their share, but one person keeps forgetting. You booked a vacation rental for the group and now you can't remember who's paid you back and who hasn't. You covered a wedding gift on behalf of colleagues and the reimbursement money arrived, but you've lost track of whether it matched what you spent.
These situations are more common than you'd think. The real problem is that these receivables don't appear anywhere in your budget. The payment shows up as an expense, but the money owed back to you isn't recorded as an asset — so your net worth looks lower than it actually is.
Recording an advance payment
When entering an expense in 4W1H, switch on the advance payment toggle and the total amount splits into two parts automatically. The amount you're personally responsible for is recorded as an expense. The amount others owe you is recorded as a receivable — an asset on your balance sheet.
Say you paid $100 for a group dinner and your share is $30. The entry becomes $30 expense plus $70 receivable. Your net worth stays accurate because that $70 is still your money — you just haven't collected it yet.
Split evenly with one tap
When recording an advance payment, enter the names of the people involved and choose split evenly. 4W1H divides the total by the number of people automatically. Four people, $120 total — each person owes $30, and $90 is recorded as receivable after subtracting your own share.
Because names are attached to each split, the settlement screen later shows exactly who owes what. "Jane owes $30" — specific, trackable, and easy to follow up on.
Tracking receivables
The settlement management page shows all outstanding receivables in one view. Each entry shows which transaction it came from, who owes you, and how much.
You can also view receivables grouped by person. If someone owes you from multiple occasions, you can see the combined total at a glance before you send a reminder — no mental math required.
Collection and write-off
When someone pays you back, select collect on the receivable, choose the date and account where the money arrived, and the receivable closes. The amount is logged as income to that account and your bookkeeping updates automatically.
If you decide to let it go, select write off. The receivable converts to an expense, as if you'd covered the full amount from the start, and your net worth adjusts accordingly. If you ever collect or write off by mistake, deleting that transaction restores the original advance payment to its pending receivable state.
Uncollected income
Income transactions can also be marked as pending receivables — not just advance payments. Useful when you've completed freelance work and are waiting for the invoice to be paid, when you're expecting a rental deposit back, or when you've sold something and are waiting for the transfer.
Toggle the pending income option when entering an income transaction, and the unpaid amount is tracked alongside your advance payment receivables. Everything you're owed — from shared dinners to freelance invoices — visible in one place.
Get started
Advance payment and settlement features are fully available during the free trial. Start 4W1H now and try the advance payment feature at your next group outing. See what it feels like to have your receivables organized and your net worth accurate.