Owed?
A dead-simple app for tracking who owes you money and whether they’ve paid.
Tagline
Stop forgetting who owes you back
The simplest private IOU tracker for one-to-one debts
A cleaner alternative to notes and spreadsheets
Track repayments without turning it into accounting
The simplest private IOU tracker for one-to-one debts.
The product is explicitly not a group expense splitter; its core value is a minimal ledger for personal debts, with no setup complexity.
An alternative to notes, spreadsheets, and mental math for money people owe you.
The dashboard, total owed summary, and payment recording directly replace the messy workaround most people use today.
Track repayments without turning it into accounting software.
It focuses on just three actions—add person, log debt, record payment—which makes it appealing to users who want clarity without bookkeeping overhead.
Primary user
Solo person who regularly lends money informally to friends, family, roommates, or clients and needs a private ledger
ICP #1
Freelance contractor who occasionally fronts small costs for clients
Pain
They forget who still owes them for ad hoc expenses, partial reimbursements, or cash advances, and the follow-up gets messy across texts and notes apps.
Why this solves
Owed? gives them a private running balance per person and a simple way to mark payments, so they can chase only the right people with exact amounts.
ICP #2
Roommate or house manager handling informal shared expenses
Pain
They end up doing mental math to remember who has repaid for groceries, utilities, or shared purchases, which creates awkward conversations and missed paybacks.
Why this solves
The app’s at-a-glance dashboard and overdue indicator make it obvious who still owes what without building a full split-bill workflow.
ICP #3
Parent or family member who lends money to relatives in small amounts
Pain
They track family IOUs in their head or in random notes, then lose track of partial repayments and outstanding balances over time.
Why this solves
Owed? is private, simple, and designed for one-to-one debt tracking, which fits recurring personal lending far better than generic budgeting apps.
Strengths
- +The value prop is instantly understandable in one sentence: track who owes you money.
- +The product promise is backed by a concrete workflow: add a person, log debt, record payment.
- +The page shows the actual dashboard UI with total owed, people, and overdue counts, which makes the product feel real.
Weaknesses
- −It is extremely sparse on differentiation; it sounds close to a notes app or spreadsheet unless the user already cares deeply about debt tracking.
- −There is no proof of trust, security details, or data handling explanation beyond a vague "Private to you" claim.
- −It does not explain edge cases like partial payments, due dates, reminders, currency support, or deletion/export.
- −There is no emotional hook or scenario-based copy to help users self-identify beyond a generic money-owed use case.
- −The landing page never says why this is better than Splitwise, a spreadsheet, or simply texting people
Fix these
- Add a sharp comparison section: "Unlike Splitwise, Owed? is for debts between you and one person, not group expenses."
- Show a concrete use case with numbers, like lending $120 to a friend and tracking two partial payments.
- Add trust and privacy details: account isolation, encryption, and whether data can be exported or deleted.
- Introduce a lightweight reminder or overdue follow-up feature if it exists; if it does not, be explicit that this is tracking-first, not collections software.
- Rewrite the hero to speak to a scenario, not a category, such as "Stop forgetting which friends still owe you back."
Drop-in replacement copy
Headline
Stop forgetting who owes you
Track debts, payments, and overdue balances in one private place.
See every balance at a glance
Add a person and instantly know what they owe. The dashboard shows total owed, individual balances, and overdue amounts without digging through notes.
Record partial payments cleanly
Log repayments against any outstanding debt and keep the running balance accurate. No spreadsheet formulas, no manual recalculations.
Built for one-to-one debts
Owed? is not a group expense splitter. It is designed for the small, awkward loans and reimbursements that happen between you and one person.
Private by default
Your debt data stays tied to your account and is not shared with other users. Use it on web or mobile whenever you need a quick answer.
FAQ
Is this for splitting bills with a group?
No. Owed? is for one-to-one debts, not group expense splitting. If you want a private running balance for a person, this is the right tool.
Can I record partial payments?
Yes. You can log payments against an existing debt and see the remaining balance update automatically.
Is my data private?
Yes. The app is account-only and designed so only you can see your debt records. If you need stronger security detail on the page, add it directly and plainly.
Do I need a credit card?
No. It is free to use and does not require a credit card to start.
Can I use it on mobile?
Yes. Owed? works on web and mobile so you can log a debt or payment the moment it happens.
I built Owed? because I was tired of chasing money in texts, Notes, and half-broken spreadsheets. Add a person. Log the debt. Record payments. Now I can see who owes what in 5 seconds. Free, private, web + mobile.
Splitwise is for group trips. Owed? is for the awkward little debts you actually care about: - friend borrowed $40 - roommate owes for groceries - client still owes a cash advance Private, simple, done.
I kept losing track of repayments, so I built the thing I wanted: - one person = one balance - payments reduce the balance - overdue amounts are obvious No budgeting clutter. No split-bill nonsense.
Started as a spreadsheet replacement. Ended up being the smallest possible app for one job: track who owes you money. That’s usually the right product shape. Smaller surface area. Less confusion. More use.
That awkward "did they pay me back yet?" text usually means I already lost the thread. Owed? keeps the balance, partial payments, and overdue amount in one place. So you can ask for the exact number.
Mental math is a terrible ledger. Especially when someone pays back half today and promises the rest next week. Owed? tracks the running balance so you don’t have to.
Watch a $120 debt turn clear: 1. Add Sara 2. Log $120 owed 3. Record a $40 payment 4. See $80 remaining 5. Mark the rest paid That’s the whole product. That’s the point.
No spreadsheet formula needed. Owed? shows total owed, each person’s balance, and what’s overdue at a glance. If you’ve ever used Notes app bullets to track money, this is the upgrade.
The best feedback so far: "This is exactly what I was doing in Notes, but less annoying." That’s the market. People don’t want clever accounting. They want to know who still owes them.
A lot of people track informal IOUs for family, roommates, clients, or side work. They don’t need another finance app. They need a private list with balances that stays accurate.
Angle: replace notes and spreadsheets
I built Owed? because I kept seeing the same pattern. People tracking informal debts in Notes apps. People using spreadsheets for one-to-one IOUs. People relying on memory and then having awkward follow-ups later. The product is intentionally small: - add a person - log what they owe - record payments - see balances and overdue amounts That’s it. No group expense splitting. No accounting complexity. No subscription. The opportunity is in being more specific than the generic finance tools. If someone only wants to track who owes them back, they should not have to learn a whole system just to answer one question. Would love feedback from people who currently track repayments in messy ways.
Angle: personal lending use case
A lot of informal lending happens in ways software ignores. A freelancer fronts a client small costs. A parent lends a relative money. A roommate pays for groceries and gets repaid later. These are not full accounting workflows. They are small, recurring, easy-to-forget debts that live in texts, screenshots, and memory. Owed? exists for that exact job. It gives each person a running balance and makes partial payments easy to record. It also keeps the data private to the account owner, which matters when the debt is personal. I think there is a real gap between "use a spreadsheet" and "use enterprise finance software."
Angle: why it is not Splitwise
One thing I learned building Owed? is that positioning matters more than features. If you sound like Splitwise, people assume you’re for group trips and shared dinners. That is not what this is. Owed? is for one-to-one debts. The product is basically a private ledger for money people owe you. That distinction sounds small, but it changes the entire user intent. The product stays simple because the problem is simple. People do not need another place to manage everything. They need one clear answer to: who still owes me money, and how much? That’s the wedge. Simple, narrow, useful.
No visuals for this kit yet.
Tagline
Track who owes you money, privately
Description
A dead-simple private IOU tracker for one-to-one debts. Add a person, log what they owe, record payments, and see exactly who still owes you — on web or mobile, free to use.
Maker's first comment
I built Owed? out of personal frustration, not market research theater. I kept losing track of small debts in Notes, texts, and spreadsheets — the kind of money people owe you after a loan, a grocery run, or a client expense. I wanted the smallest possible tool that answered one question: who owes me what right now? So I stripped it down to the basics: add a person, log a debt, record a payment, and see the remaining balance. I did not want this to become a group-expense app or a finance dashboard. It’s intentionally private and intentionally narrow. If that sounds like your workflow, I’d love to hear what’s missing or what would make you trust it enough to use daily.
Pinned maker comment
Would love feedback on the trust layer, overdue handling, and whether the product feels distinct enough from spreadsheets or Splitwise.
Meta
Stop losing track of small debts.
Hypothesis: people who regularly lend money informally will convert if the app makes balances obvious in under 10 seconds. Owed? is a private tracker for one-to-one debts. Add a person, log what they owe, record payments, and see overdue balances without a spreadsheet.
Google Search
Track who owes you money.
Hypothesis: searchers looking for Splitwise alternatives or a simple debt tracker want a narrow product, not a full finance app. Owed? is built for private IOUs, partial payments, and overdue balances on web and mobile. No group expenses. No setup mess.
Reddit Promoted
Using Notes app for IOUs?
Hypothesis: people in side hustles, freelancing, or roommate management are already manually tracking who owes them and want a cleaner way. Owed? is a dead-simple private ledger for one-to-one debts. It replaces messy notes and spreadsheet math with a balance per person.
Subreddits
r/SideProject
Show the actual problem: replacing Notes/spreadsheets for personal IOUs with a tiny private ledger.
Rules: Share what you built, be transparent, no spam, include screenshots or a demo, avoid generic promotion.
r/indiehackers
Build story: why a narrow debt tracker beats a generic finance app for one-to-one repayments.
Rules: Founder stories do best, be specific, no low-effort self-promo, engage in comments.
r/microsaas
Position it as a micro tool for a very specific job: tracking who owes you back.
Rules: Keep it concise, show the niche, include product details, avoid broad SaaS language.
r/EntrepreneurRideAlong
Document the launch process and the pain of chasing small repayments in real life.
Rules: Story-first posts, no hard sell, share lessons and process, participate in discussion.
r/freelance
Target freelancers who front costs for clients and lose track of reimbursements.
Rules: Be useful, avoid direct promo-first framing, discuss the workflow problem and how you solved it.
Communities
Post the build story and reply to every comment with specifics. Mention the exact workflow and why it is not Splitwise.
Share short daily progress clips, screenshots, and one real customer problem per post. Quote-tweet feedback and turn replies into feature ideas.
Spend the week before launch commenting on other launches and making genuine feedback. Then launch with a sharp niche position, not a broad finance pitch.
Freelance communities
Find freelancer Slack groups, Discords, and LinkedIn groups where reimbursements are a real annoyance. Lead with the pain of fronting client costs, not the app.
Cold outreach template
Hey {firstName} — saw you mentioned {context}. I built Owed? because I kept losing track of small debts in texts and notes. If you ever track who owes you money, I’d love to send you access and get your honest take.
Product Hunt timing
Launch Tuesday or Wednesday at 12:01am PST, then stay active for the full day in the comments. Midweek launches tend to get better sustained traffic, and an owner-led comment thread matters more than the exact hour.
Indie Hackers post ideas
- 01I built a private IOU tracker because spreadsheets were annoying
- 02Why Owed? is not another Splitwise clone
- 03How I narrowed a finance idea into one simple use case
Competitor alternatives
Current tone of voice
Minimal, reassuring, and plainspoken. The page says, "The simple way to track money people owe you" and "No fuss way to track money people owe you," which signals zero jargon and low-friction utility.
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