Roommate Agreement Template (Free) and What to Include

What a roommate agreement is (and is not)

A roommate agreement is a written document where everyone in the apartment agrees on rent, bills, chores, guests, noise, and how to handle problems. It is different from your lease: the lease is between you and the landlord, while the roommate agreement is between the people living together. Its main job is to make expectations explicit before anyone is annoyed.

This template is a practical starting point, not legal advice. Laws on roommate agreements differ by country and state; if you need an enforceable contract, check local rules or talk to a tenant organization.

The 10 sections every roommate agreement should cover

1. Rent and deposit: amount, due date, how it is split, and who pays the landlord.
2. Utilities and shared bills: which bills, whose name they are in, and how they are split.
3. Shared supplies and groceries: what is shared and how it is paid for.
4. Chores: the system, the schedule, and what "clean" means.
5. Quiet hours and noise: times for weeknights and weekends.
6. Guests and partners: overnight limits and when a heads-up is needed.
7. Shared spaces and belongings: borrowing rules and what can be left in common areas.
8. Pets, smoking, and safety: including keys and locking up.
9. Conflict resolution: how and when issues get raised.
10. Moving out: notice period, replacements, and the deposit.

Free roommate agreement template

Copy this into a shared doc, fill in the blanks together, and have everyone sign and date it.

ROOMMATE AGREEMENT

Address: ______________________________
Roommates: ____________________________
Start date: ________   Review date: ________

1. RENT AND DEPOSIT
- Total monthly rent: $______, due on the ___ of each month.
- Split: ______________________________ (e.g., hybrid split by room size)
- Who pays the landlord: ________. Others reimburse by the ___ of each month.
- Security deposit split: ______________________________

2. UTILITIES AND SHARED BILLS
- Bills included: electricity / gas / water / internet / streaming / other: ______
- Split method: ______________________________
- Account holder for each bill: ______________________________

3. SHARED SUPPLIES AND GROCERIES
- Shared items (cleaning supplies, toilet paper, staples): ______________
- How we pay for them: ______________________________
- Personal food is labeled and not shared unless offered.

4. CHORES
- Chore system (rotation / ownership / zones): ______________
- "Clean" means: ______________________________
- Chore chart lives: ______________________________

5. QUIET HOURS AND NOISE
- Weeknights: ___ to ___   Weekends: ___ to ___
- Headphones / music / calls in shared spaces: ______________

6. GUESTS AND PARTNERS
- Overnight guests: max ___ nights per week without asking.
- Heads-up required for: ______________________________
- Parties or gatherings: ______________________________

7. SHARED SPACES AND BELONGINGS
- Items in shared spaces: ______________________________
- Borrowing rules: ask first unless agreed otherwise.

8. PETS, SMOKING, AND SAFETY
- Pets: ________   Smoking/vaping: ________
- Locking doors, spare keys, and who has them: ______________

9. CONFLICT RESOLUTION
- Raise issues directly and privately within ___ days.
- Monthly house check-in on: ______________________________
- If we cannot agree: ______________________________

10. MOVING OUT
- Notice required: ___ days.
- Finding a replacement: ______________________________
- Deposit and final bills: ______________________________

Signatures: ____________________   Date: ________

Tips for making it stick

• Fill it out together in one sitting, ideally before or right after move-in.
• Be specific. "Keep noise down" causes arguments; "quiet after 11pm on weeknights" does not.
• Set a review date one to two months in, then review whenever someone moves in or out.
• Keep it somewhere everyone can find it, such as a pinned shared doc.

How Rumy helps

Instead of a document nobody rereads, Rumy turns your agreement into a living system. Each roommate privately shares preferences on cleanliness, quiet hours, guests, and chores; Rumy finds common ground, suggests fair house rules, and sends gentle nudges when expectations drift. For the money side, see how to split rent fairly, and for chores, see how to split chores with roommates.