CLEERSPLIT
transparent payments, zero stress
Project type
UX/UI Case Study – Mobile & Web App Design
Project Duration
May 2025
Timeline
May 2025 - Present
Category
Product design
Mobile engineeing
Role
Product Designer
IOS Engineer
Software engineering
Responsibilities
User Experience
User Interface
User Research
Interaction Design
Prototype
Usability Testing
Visual Design
Frontend Engineering
Backend Engineering
Tools:
Figma
Google forms
SwiftUI
Github
Xcode
Overview
Cleersplit is a social expense management application helping groups split shared expenses with clarity and simplicity. I designed the user experience from the ground up, focusing on streamlining group expense management and making it easy to track and make payments.
Add Expense
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Group Overview
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Figma full protototype (View Only)
Problems
Users struggle to track individual contributions and balances within a group.
Money discussions often create tension among friends, roommates and family members.
Not every group member is involved in every expense, which complicates splitting.
Large totals and balances can feel intimidating or discouraging to users.
Manually re-entering the same expenses wastes time and increases errors.
As groups add more expenses and members, the interface can become cluttered and hard to manage.
Users often doubt whether splits are correct when calculations are done manually.
Solutions
Provide a clear expense breakdown that automatically calculates each person’s share based on participation.
Use neutral, system-generated calculations and summaries instead of manual reminders or confrontations.
Allow users to select exactly who is included in each expense at the time of creation.
Focus on per-expense clarity and individual responsibility rather than displaying large cumulative totals upfront.
Design reusable expense patterns and support recurring or repeated expense flows.
Build a component-based UI and structured information hierarchy that scales with usage.
Automate calculations and present transparent breakdowns for every expense.
Goals
Eliminate mental math and reduce misunderstandings around shared expenses.
Reduce social friction and make expense tracking feel objective and fair.
Support flexible, real-world group dynamics without adding complexity.
Keep the experience calm, approachable, and non-judgmental.
Design reusable expense patterns and support recurring or repeated expense flows.
Save users time while maintaining consistency and accuracy.
Ensure the app remains usable and maintainable as complexity increases.
User Research
User Interviews
To better understand the needs of groups managing shared expenses, I conducted qualitative user interviews with individuals who frequently travel or share financial responsibilities with friends and family. Going into the research, I assumed most users simply needed a budgeting tool to track shared costs. However, the interviews revealed deeper pain points around uneven contributions, communication discomfort, lack of accountability, and the need for customizable participation. Many users expressed a strong desire for privacy-respecting reminders, flexible contribution options, and transparent goal tracking. These insights significantly shaped the direction of the product.
User Research
Personas
I developed user personas based on the research findings. These personas highlighted the need for features like gentle reminders and simple interfaces to ensure equal participation in budgeting.
Ifeoma Edwards
21
Single
Marketing Intern
Saskatoon, Canada
Biography
Every summer, Ifeoma and her friends plan a group trip. She's the group organizer who books accommodations, plans the meals and fronting costs. But the tricky part isn't just the planning, it's the money talk. One friend opts out of groceries, another doesn't want to go bowling and someone always forgets to pay their share.
Ifeoma craves a tool where each person can vote on what they want to join, contribute only to those items, and get quiet reminders if they miss a payment. No awkward chats, no judgement, just clarity and calm.
If we’re all clear on what we’re joining and paying for, everything feels easier.
Persona 1:
Ifeoma - The Empathetic Organizer
Goals
Coordinate group trips with minimal stress
Let people contribute only to the activities they want
Respect everyone’s privacy while maintaining transparency
Frustrations
Dislikes reminding friends to pay her back
Can’t track payments privately and fairly
Faces confusion when friends have different financial preferences
Motivations
Coordinate group plans without tension
Give people the freedom of choice.
Protect friendships.
Brenda Rojer
28
Single
Project Coordinator
Ontario, Canada
Biography
Brenda shares a house with three roommates. Every month, she fronts the electricity or Wi-Fi bill, and every month she has to chase people for their share. The group chat is chaotic, receipts are scattered, and someone always insists they paid when they didn’t.
Brenda wants a smart app that tracks all payments, shows who owes what, and reminds people quietly and automatically. One that keeps her from feeling like the nag, and helps her roommates stay accountable.
Persona 2:
Brenda - The Overgiver Roommate
If the app handles the reminders, then I don’t feel like I’m nagging and when payments are clear, there’s no arguing.
Goals
Ensure utility bills are paid on time and fairly
Avoid conflict with housemates over money
Keep a clean record of who paid what
Frustrations
Constantly covers more than her share
Feels guilty asking to be reimbursed
No visibility into who’s behind on payments
Motivations
Avoid awkward payment reminders
Keep shared bills transparent and fair
Reduce mental load around recurring payments.
Brenda Rojer
41
Married
Sales Manager
Alberta, Canada
Biography
Marcus is planning a beach trip for his family of five. He’s keen to involve his children in setting savings goals for food, transport, and fun activities but spreadsheets bore them and budgeting apps feel too formal.
What he dreams of is an app where they can see their progress in real-time, get high-fives or virtual badges when they complete their part, and celebrate small wins together. A fun, family-friendly space that makes learning about money a shared adventure.
Persona 3:
Marcus - The Empowering Dad
If I can involve my kids in the journey, then every small win becomes a family moment.”
Goals
Save for family vacations.
Include his kids in the budgeting process.
Celebrate when saving milestones are reached.
Frustrations
Unsure how to teach budgeting in an engaging way
Kids lose interest or don't understand financial tools.
Existing apps feel to adult for family use.
Motivations
Make saving fun and engaging
Involve family in money goals
Celebrate progress together
User Research
User-Centred Value Propositions
Each persona brings unique needs, and the strength of the app lies in addressing them with focused, meaningful features. Instead of overloading users with options they didn’t ask for, the design delivers one clear feature that directly matches each persona’s core challenge.
Brenda
Automated bill-splitting with quiet reminders.
Marcus
Interactive and fun savings goals with family rewards
