no account · no download · no email
split expenses without making anyone sign up.
count is a shared ledger you start in two fields and send as a link. the four people on the ski trip do not install anything, do not make an account, and can still add what they paid.
free. nothing to confirm and nothing to download.
01 · the argument
a signup is a favour you ask of five other people.
the person who starts a shared ledger pays for it once. everyone else pays again: an app store trip, an email, a password, a verification code. then a notification setting to turn off. most of them do not bother, so the ledger holds one person's spending and nobody else's.
count removes the ask. a count is a name, some first names, and a link. whoever opens the link sees the balances first and can add an expense in two taps. there is no wall in front of the number, because the number is the whole point.
| the difference | the usual app | count |
|---|---|---|
| to start | install, sign up | two fields |
| for the others | an account each | a link |
| email required | yes | never |
| on a phone | an app store trip | the browser you are in |
| price | free, then pro | free |
| notifications | on by default | none |
02 · what you get
a ledger, and the one email you asked for.
balances in a right-aligned column that reads like a printout. equal splits by default and uneven ones when you want them, to the cent — count never rounds a split away. a 10-minute undo instead of an “are you sure”. settlements recorded as facts, not as payments: count records who owes whom and never moves money.
the only message count sends is the sunday count, and only if someone gives an email: one line per member, who owes whom. no badges, no streaks, no reminder to come back.
where this is the wrong tool
count has no charts, no receipt scanning, no budgets and no currency converter, and will not grow them. it records who owes whom and stops. splitwise is the better answer if you actually want the app.
03 · the part that is unusual
the ledger can also be operated by your agent.
this is what count was built for. one person pastes a single url into claude, chatgpt or cursor. no repo, no local process, no api key to mint. from then on they say “i paid $184.20 for groceries, split three ways” to an agent that was already open. the answer comes back as every member's new balance, to the cent.
it is the same count either way. start one in the browser now and connect an agent to it in a month, or never. the people who arrive on your link are not asked to do either.
04 · questions
so how do you know it is my count
the link is the account. whoever holds it can read the ledger and add an expense, and your browser quietly remembers which member you are. any member can replace the link from the count page if it reaches someone it should not have.
what happens if i lose the link
add an email on the count page and we can send it back. it also gets you the sunday count: one line per member, who owes whom. that is the only reason we ask, and we ask once.
is there a catch
count spends almost nothing to run, because the work of understanding a sentence happens in your agent, not on our servers. up to 3 counts are free. beyond that there is a one-time $29.00 licence and no subscription. the flatshare stays free.
what is the agent part about
count was built to be operated by an ai agent. you paste one url into claude, chatgpt or cursor, once. after that you say “i paid $184.20 for groceries, split three ways” instead of opening anything. get your key if that sounds better than a form. the browser and the agent write to the same ledger.
two fields
name it, list the names, send the link.
start a countfree. no account for you and none for them.