What to Put in a Roommate Agreement (With a Checklist)

A roommate agreement is just a written version of a conversation you should have anyway. It’s not a courtroom document and it doesn’t need a lawyer’s signature. It’s a plain-language note that says, “Here’s how the four of us agreed this house will run.” The value isn’t in the paper — it’s in forcing the conversation while everyone still likes each other, before the dishes and the rent and the overnight guest turn into simmering resentment.

Here’s what actually belongs in one, and why.

Who, where, and for how long

Start with the boring facts so there’s no confusion later:

Everyone’s full name.
The address and which bedroom each person has.
The date the agreement starts.
The term you’re all committing to — often the length of the lease, or a rolling month-to-month arrangement.

This matters most when not everyone is on the lease. If one person is the leaseholder and the others are subletting from them, say so plainly. The people involved should know who has which relationship with the landlord.

Rent: amount, split, and timing

The single most argued-about topic. Write down:

The total rent and exactly how much each person pays.
Whether the split is even or uneven, and — briefly — why (a bigger room, a private bathroom, one person moving in later). Recording the reason stops “wait, why do I pay more?” three months in.
The due date, who collects it, and how it reaches the landlord.
What happens if someone pays late.

If your split isn’t a simple even divide, a one-line explanation now saves a long argument later.

Utilities and shared bills

Decide how each recurring bill is handled: electricity, gas, water, internet, streaming, and whatever else is shared. For each one, note whose name it’s in, how it’s split, and how the others pay their share. Fixed bills like internet usually split evenly; variable bills like electricity can too, or you can agree that the person who runs the AC all summer chips in more. The point is to decide once, in writing, rather than renegotiate every month.

The security deposit

Money that’s easy to forget until move-out, when it suddenly becomes the biggest fight of the tenancy. Record who paid what into the deposit, so that when it’s returned, each person gets back what they put in. Also agree, in principle, how deductions for damage will be handled — damage caused by one person comes out of that person’s share, shared wear-and-tear is split. (There’s a whole post on this; the key is to write down the starting numbers now.)

Chores and shared supplies

You don’t need a military rota, but you do need a shared expectation. Decide:

How shared spaces (kitchen, bathroom, living room) get cleaned and how often.
Whether you rotate tasks, assign them, or split a cleaner’s cost.
How shared basics — toilet paper, dish soap, trash bags — get bought and paid for. A shared kitty or a rotating “you buy this month” both work.

The goal is a standard everyone signed up to, so that “it’s not my mess” has an answer.

Guests and overnight partners

The classic slow-burn conflict. Be specific and unembarrassed about it:

How many nights a guest can stay before it’s a conversation.
Whether guests can use shared space freely.
The point at which a frequent overnight partner is effectively a fourth roommate — and what happens then (a share of rent and bills is the fair answer).

Naming this early feels awkward for five minutes and prevents five months of tension.

Quiet hours and shared space

A short section on noise, music, calls, and how common areas are used. If someone works nights or studies for exams, say when quiet matters. If the living room doubles as someone’s remote-work desk by day, note that too.

Moving out and replacing a roommate

Future-you will be grateful for this one. Agree:

How much notice someone gives before leaving.
Whether the person leaving helps find a replacement.
Who approves a new roommate (usually everyone, plus the landlord).
How the deposit is settled when one person swaps out.

How you’ll change the agreement and settle disputes

Life changes. Add a line saying the agreement can be updated when everyone agrees, and that changes get written down and re-dated. A simple tie-breaker — a house meeting, or a majority vote on house matters — beats letting things fester.

The quick checklist

Copy this and fill it in together:

Sit down together, talk through each line, and write the answers in plain words. Everyone keeps a copy.

One caveat: a roommate agreement is general housekeeping between the people who live together — it isn’t legal advice, and it doesn’t replace your lease or override the law where you live. Your lease with the landlord is the binding contract; this sits alongside it. If money or moving out gets contentious, check your lease and local rules, and get proper advice. See the About page for the full note.