Hostel mess
A hostel mess fund app the whole mess can trust
Run your hostel or PG mess from one shared cashbook. Record every contribution and every grocery bill, keep a running balance everyone can see, and stop arguing about where the money went.
The trouble with a notebook mess account
Most hostel messes run on a notebook, a WhatsApp group, and one tired mess secretary. Members pay their monthly share in cash or by transfer, the secretary buys vegetables, rice, milk, and gas cylinders, and the totals live in someone’s handwriting.
When the month ends and the fund is short, questions start. Did everyone pay? Was the gas refill really that much? Without a shared record, the secretary has to defend every rupee from memory, and members have no easy way to check. A shared digital cashbook fixes both sides: members can see the numbers, and the person handling the money has proof.
Features
What a shared mess cashbook gives you
Money in, money out
Record each member’s contribution and each purchase. The running balance updates for everyone at once.
Roles that fit a mess
Make the mess secretary an Admin, the people who shop Writers, and everyone else Readers who can see but not edit.
Receipts on every bill
Attach up to five photos to an entry, so every vegetable bill and gas receipt has proof behind it.
Instant alerts
Members know when someone adds an expense or joins the book, without anyone posting in the group chat.
Monthly statements
Export a PDF statement or CSV report for any date range and share it at the end of the month.
In your language
Use the app in 13 languages, including English, Hindi, Bengali, Tamil, Telugu, and Gujarati.
How a month in the mess looks
At the start of the month, the mess secretary opens a cashbook called “Mess Fund” and shares the invite code in the hostel group. As members pay their share, each payment goes in as money in. When the cook’s helper buys vegetables or the gas cylinder is refilled, a Writer adds it as money out and snaps the bill.
Because entries saved offline sync later, the person shopping at the local market can add the bill right there, even with weak signal. On the last day of the month, the secretary exports a PDF statement for the month and posts it for everyone. No more recounting notebook pages.
How it works
Set up your mess fund in three steps
- 1
Create a cashbook
Tap “+” on the Cashbooks tab and name it after your mess or hostel block.
- 2
Invite members with roles
Share an invite code. Choose who is an Admin, a Writer, or a Reader.
- 3
Record and share
Add contributions and purchases as they happen, then export a statement at month end.
Common questions
Yes. Add them as Readers. They can see every entry and the running balance, while only Admins and Writers can add entries.
Entries added offline are saved on the phone and sync automatically when the device reconnects to the internet.
Yes. Open the cashbook and export a PDF statement for any date range, or download CSV reports from Profile → Download Data. Files can be shared straight from the app.
Data is encrypted in transit (TLS) and at rest (AES-256), stored in India in the AWS Mumbai region, and is not sold to third parties.
More ways to use BalanceMitra
Launching soon on Android and iOS.
Leave your email and we will tell you the day BalanceMitra is out on Google Play and the App Store.