Roommate agreement template
A roommate agreement is the deal between the people who share a place: who pays which share of the rent, how the internet bill gets split, who cleans the bathroom and what happens when someone moves out early. The landlord's lease doesn't answer any of that. This template does, in plain English. Read it below, then fill in your numbers and send it to everyone in the house to sign.
Updated November 5, 2026 · 4 min read
The contract
Gray blanks are yours to fill in before you send. Each signer fills in the blanks in their color.
- You, before sending
- Roommate 1
- Roommate 2
Roommate Agreement
This Roommate Agreement (the "Agreement") is made on Agreement date between Roommate 1 name and Roommate 2 name (together, the "Roommates"), who share the home at Home address (the "Home").
1. The lease comes first
The Roommates rent the Home from Landlord or property manager under a lease that ends on Lease end date. This Agreement only sets out how the Roommates share the Home and its costs between themselves. It does not change the lease and does not bind the landlord. If the two conflict, the lease controls. Each Roommate will follow the lease and understands that the landlord may be able to hold any tenant responsible for the whole rent and for any damage.
2. Rooms and shared space
- Roommate 1 will use this bedroom: Room for Roommate 1.
- Roommate 2 will use this bedroom: Room for Roommate 2.
- Shared by everyone: Shared areas.
A Roommate's bedroom is private. No one enters another Roommate's bedroom without permission, except in an emergency or when the landlord gives proper notice of entry under the lease.
3. Rent
The total rent for the Home is Total monthly rent a month. Each Roommate pays a fixed share, set in dollars rather than percentages:
- Roommate 1 pays Roommate 1 rent share a month.
- Roommate 2 pays Roommate 2 rent share a month.
Shares are paid to Roommate who pays the landlord by day Day rent shares are due of each month, so the full rent reaches the landlord on time. A Roommate whose share is late pays any late fee the landlord charges because of it.
4. Security deposit
The security deposit held by the landlord is Total security deposit. Roommate 1 put in Roommate 1 deposit share and Roommate 2 put in Roommate 2 deposit share. When the landlord returns the deposit, any deduction for damage one Roommate or their guest caused comes out of that Roommate's part first. The rest is shared in proportion to what each Roommate put in.
5. Utilities and household costs
These accounts are shared: Shared utilities and services. They are split this way: How shared costs are split.
Whoever holds an account shares each bill with the others within Days to share a bill days of receiving it, and each Roommate pays their part within Days to repay a bill days after that. Supplies everyone uses, such as cleaning products, toilet paper and dish soap, are bought and split as follows: Household supplies arrangement.
6. Cleaning and chores
Each Roommate cleans up after themselves in the kitchen and bathroom on the same day. Shared areas are cleaned on this rota: Cleaning rota. Trash and recycling go out on Trash and recycling days.
7. Quiet hours, smoking and conduct
Quiet hours are from Quiet hours start to Quiet hours end. During quiet hours, music, calls and television are kept to a level that can't be heard in another bedroom. There is no smoking or vaping inside the Home. Each Roommate keeps their food labeled or agrees with the others before using theirs.
8. Guests
A guest may stay overnight for no more than Guest nights in a row nights in a row, and no more than Guest nights per month nights in a month, unless every Roommate agrees. A guest who stays longer is treated as an extra occupant, which may need the landlord's written consent under the lease. Each Roommate is responsible for their guests' conduct and for any damage they cause.
9. Pets
Pets in the Home, if the lease allows them: Pets allowed and whose they are. A pet's owner pays for any damage, cleaning or fee the pet causes.
10. Moving out early
A Roommate who wants to leave before the lease ends gives the others at least Days of notice to move out days' written notice. They keep paying their rent share and their part of shared costs until a replacement takes over that share or the lease ends, whichever comes first. A replacement needs the remaining Roommates' approval, which they won't unreasonably refuse, and the landlord's approval where the lease requires it. The leaving Roommate removes their belongings and leaves their room clean.
11. Disagreements and governing law
The Roommates will try to settle any disagreement by talking it through first, and may ask a neutral mediator to help before going to court. This Agreement is governed by the laws of the state of State.
12. Changes
This Agreement can be changed only in writing signed by every Roommate. When a new roommate moves in, everyone signs a new agreement. Electronic signatures on this Agreement count as original signatures.
Contact details
Roommate 1 phone: Roommate 1 phone Email: Roommate 1 email
Roommate 2 phone: Roommate 2 phone Email: Roommate 2 email
I have read this whole Agreement and understand it doesn't change the lease.
I have read this whole Agreement and understand it doesn't change the lease.
Roommate 1
Roommate 2
Opens it in SignMaster as a template you can edit and send.
A starting point, not legal advice. Have a lawyer review it for your state and situation.
On this page
What a roommate agreement does, and what it can't
Most leases make every tenant on them responsible for the whole rent, not just their share. If one roommate stops paying, the landlord can ask any of you for the missing money. A roommate agreement doesn't change that. What it does is put the side deal in writing: each person's share in dollars, when it's due to whoever pays the landlord, and who owes what if the deposit comes back short.
It also can't override the lease. If the lease bans pets, smoking or subletting, a vote among roommates doesn't make them allowed. Section 1 of the template says so, which saves an argument later. The landlord doesn't sign it and isn't bound by it.
Sign one whenever two or more people split rent: friends renting together, a new roommate joining an existing lease, or a couple moving in. The best time is move-in week, while everyone still agrees on everything.
What the template covers
- The lease comes first: the landlord's name and the lease end date, and a line that the lease wins any conflict.
- Rooms: who has which bedroom, which spaces are shared, and a privacy rule for bedrooms.
- Rent: each roommate's share as a fixed dollar figure, the day it's due to the person who pays the landlord, and who covers a late fee.
- Deposit: what each person put in, and a rule that damage one roommate caused comes out of their part of the refund first.
- Utilities and supplies: which accounts are shared, how they're split, and deadlines for sharing and repaying each bill.
- Cleaning, quiet hours and smoking: a cleaning rota, trash day, quiet hours and a no-smoking rule.
- Guests and pets: a cap on overnight stays per stretch and per month, and who pays for a pet's damage.
- Moving out early: a notice period, and paying your share until a replacement takes it over or the lease ends.
Mistakes that start roommate fights
- Splitting the rent evenly when one bedroom has its own bathroom. Agree the shares as dollar amounts before anyone unpacks.
- Putting every utility in one name with no repayment date. The account holder ends up lending everyone money each month; the template sets a deadline.
- No guest rule. A partner who stays five nights a week uses the hot water, and may count as an occupant the lease doesn't allow.
- Letting someone leave with a week's notice. Without a written notice period and a duty to keep paying, the people who stay cover the gap.
- Writing house rules that contradict the lease. Check the lease's pet, smoking and guest clauses before you fill in sections 7 to 9.
Shared bills between friends are still money owed
If a roommate leaves owing their share, a signed agreement with the amounts in it is your best evidence in a small claims case. Keep the bills and payment records with the signed copy.
How to send it with SignMaster
- 1
Open the template
Choose Use this template above and it's added to your SignMaster account, set up for two roommates. Three or four of you? Add a role for each extra roommate in the template editor and give each a signature field.
- 2
Fill in the house numbers
The gray blanks are yours as the sender: the address, total rent, each person's share, the deposit split, the rota and the guest limits. Everyone signs the same figures.
- 3
Add each roommate
Type their name and email. Each roommate fills in the blanks in their own color (their name, phone and email) and ticks that they've read it. If you're a roommate too, add yourself as one of the signers.
- 4
Sign at the kitchen table or from anywhere
Set the signing order to all at once, so nobody waits on anyone else. If you're all in the living room, pass your phone around with Sign in person.
- 5
Everyone keeps a copy
When the last roommate signs, each of you gets the signed PDF by email with its certificate of completion, showing who signed and when.
Running a co-living house or student building
If you manage several shared houses and want every household to sign the same agreement at the start of term, bulk send makes one envelope per row of a spreadsheet. Give each row the roommates' names and emails, plus columns named after the gray blanks, like Home address and Total monthly rent, and each house gets its own copy. Save the sheet as CSV UTF-8 if it starts in Excel.
Questions? Answers.
Is a roommate agreement legally binding?
It's a contract between the roommates, so money promises in it, like rent shares and bill splits, can usually be enforced in small claims court. Chore and quiet-hour rules are harder to enforce, but having them signed settles most arguments before they start.
Does the landlord have to sign it?
No. It's an agreement among the tenants. The landlord isn't a party and isn't bound by it, and it can't change anything in the lease. If you're renting out a room in a home you own, use the room rental agreement instead.
What happens if a roommate moves out early?
Under section 10 they give written notice and keep paying their share until a replacement takes it over or the lease ends. The landlord may still need to approve the new roommate, so check the lease.
Can roommates e-sign it on their phones?
Yes. Each roommate opens the link from their email on any phone or computer and signs without creating an account. See are electronic signatures legal for the few documents that need ink.