Split Payment Pricing
This page explains how the POS works out what each person owes on a split bill. For how to run a split, see Split Payment.
A person's share is the sum of their items
Each item is priced first - discount, charges and tax all worked out across the whole order - and only then assigned. A person's total is simply the prices of the items they hold, added up.
Nothing is divided twice, and nothing is re-divided when someone pays. Add up what every person was charged and you get the order total, to the cent.
The cash discount is earned per person
A cash discount is not a property of the goods. It depends on how the bill is settled, so on a split it is earned per person, on their own items.
| Situation | Result |
|---|---|
| One person pays cash, others pay card | The cash payer gets the discount on their own share only |
| A person pays part cash, part card | No discount - the share must be settled wholly in cash |
| Everyone pays cash | Each earns the discount on their own share |
Example - two $100.00 items, 5% cash discount:
Each person earns 5% of their own $100.00 - $5.00 each, $10.00 in total.
WARNING
A cash discount is worked out on the items a person actually holds, never as a share of an order-level figure. Working it out the other way gave the first customer the whole $10.00 and the second another $5.00 - $15.00 of discount on a $200.00 bill.
The discount also relieves the tax on that person's goods. A $64.00 item at 10% GST with a 5% cash discount:
| Amount | |
|---|---|
| Item | $64.00 |
| Cash discount (5%) | − $3.20 |
| Goods | $60.80 |
| GST on $60.80 | + $6.08 |
| Charged | $66.88 |
The relief follows the taxed goods. Someone holding only tax-free items gets the goods discount but no tax relief - there is no tax on their items to relieve.
When the order changes after someone has paid
This is the part that surprises people most, so it is worth understanding properly.
A flat discount or charge is a fixed pot shared across the cart. Add more items and each item's share of that pot gets smaller. That is correct while nobody has paid - but once a customer has paid and left, their goods are sold. They cannot be re-billed.
So the POS holds a paid customer's share at what they were charged, and shares only what is left over the items still to be paid for.
Worked example - items added after a payment
Two items at $100.00 each, $20.00 off the order. Each item carries $10.00 of the discount, so each is worth $90.00.
Customer 1 pays $90.00 for their item and leaves. Two more $100.00 items are then added.
| Before | After | |
|---|---|---|
| Items on the order | 2 | 4 |
| Customer 1's item | $90.00 | $90.00 - held |
| Each remaining item | $90.00 | $96.66 / $96.67 / $96.67 |
| Order total | $180.00 | $380.00 |
Customer 1 keeps the $10.00 they were given. The remaining $10.00 of the discount is shared across the three items still to be paid for, so those cost slightly more than they would have.
INFO
The discount pot is still exactly $20.00. What changes is who gets it. Customer 1 received $10.00 because they bought when the cart was smaller; the other three share the remaining $10.00. Nobody is charged twice and nothing is lost.
The same applies to a flat surcharge, delivery charge or service charge - a person who has paid keeps the charge they bore, and the rest is carried by the items still to be paid for.
Percentages behave differently, and should
A percentage discount or surcharge is worked out from the value of the cart, so it is supposed to grow as the cart grows. It is never held.
| Flat $20 surcharge | 10% surcharge | |
|---|---|---|
| Cart of $200 | $20.00 | $20.00 |
| Cart grows to $400 | $20.00 | $40.00 |
Holding a percentage would mean collecting $20.00 on a $400.00 cart - half the fee.
Items removed after a payment
If items are voided after someone has paid, the discount concentrates onto what is left, and the person who already paid may turn out to have overpaid.
The POS never silently keeps that money. The order reports what it actually holds, and the overpayment shows as change due on the payment that made it.
WARNING
Items assigned to a customer who has already paid are locked and cannot be deleted. Voiding other people's unpaid items can still change what the paid customer's goods are worth - the POS reports the difference rather than hiding it.
Per-person receipts
Each person's receipt shows the relief they received and the charge they bore - not a share of the order-level figure re-divided at print time.
On the four-item example above:
| Customer 1 | Customer 2 (three items) | |
|---|---|---|
| Goods | $100.00 | $300.00 |
| Discount | − $10.00 | − $10.00 |
| Total | $90.00 | $290.00 |
Each receipt adds up on its own, and the two discounts together come to the $20.00 that was applied to the order.
Common questions
I added items after someone paid and the remaining customers are paying more each. Why?
A flat discount is a fixed pot. The person who already paid keeps the share they were given, so the rest of the pot is shared across more items - which makes each of those items a little more expensive. The discount you gave away is still exactly what you set.
Can I apply or change a discount after the split has started?
You can, but think about who has already paid. Anyone who has paid keeps what they were charged, and the change affects only the people still to pay. If you want everyone on the same terms, set the discount before anyone pays.
The order total went up by more than the items I added. Is that right?
Yes, if a flat discount is on the order. The new items add their own price, and they also take a share of a discount pot that no longer stretches as far - because part of it is held by someone who has already paid.
A customer paid and then we voided other items. They seem to have overpaid.
They may have. Removing items concentrates a flat discount onto what is left, which can make the paid customer's goods worth less than they paid. The POS shows the overpayment as change due rather than absorbing it - refund the difference.
One person is paying cash. Do they get the cash discount even though the others are paying by card?
Yes. On a split the cash discount is earned per person, on their own share, regardless of how anyone else pays.
A person paid part cash and part card. Why did their cash discount disappear?
The discount is earned by settling that person's share wholly in cash. As soon as a card or other tender is put against their share, they owe the full amount.
Do the split totals still add up once someone takes a cash discount?
Yes. Each person's discount comes off their own share only, so it never changes what anyone else owes. Add up what every person was actually charged and it comes to the order total.