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Unmerging separates a table from a merged group. The bill stays with the primary; the unmerged table returns to its own state.

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Overview

Unmerge is the inverse of Merge, but it is not symmetric:
  • The primary table keeps the merged bill and all its items.
  • The unmerged (secondary) table returns to the floor plan as an empty active session — an open table with no items.
  • If the unmerged table had a session before the merge, that session is not restored. Merging is a one-way absorption; unmerging just detaches.

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Unmerge a table

  1. Tap any table in the merged group. The Table Session modal opens.
  2. Scroll to the Merged Tables panel.
  3. Beside each secondary table, tap Unmerge.
Unmerge from panel

Merged Tables panel with per-row Unmerge button

  1. The table detaches immediately. The Merged badge disappears on both cards. The floor plan updates.

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What happens to the bill

Everything on the merged bill stays with the primary. Items that originally came from the unmerged table are not moved back automatically. If you need to split items back onto the unmerged table:
  1. Unmerge first (this frees the target table).
  2. Use Item Transfers to move specific items from the primary to the now-detached table.
Item transfer targets must be active, unsplit, and unmerged. If you want to move items to a table that was just unmerged, do it immediately — before that table is closed or someone else opens it.

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Offline safety — the auto-cleanup rule

When a device is offline and merges/unmerges happen on other terminals, the local cache can drift out of sync. DishInk handles this automatically:
  • On the next online event (the browser detecting network is back), the app re-fetches merge state and auto-cleans stale merges from the local cache.
  • If a table you thought was merged is actually detached on the server, it silently un-merges locally with no action needed.
You may briefly see a table with a Merged badge that isn’t actually merged anymore. This resolves within a second or two of reconnection. Don’t force-refresh — let the cleanup run.

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Unmerging the last table

If a group of 3 tables (A primary, B and C secondary) is unmerged one by one — first C, then B — the group dissolves. A becomes a normal active table with all the accumulated items. Its Merged badge disappears.

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Split lock and unmerge

Unlike merge, unmerge is not blocked by an active split. You can detach a table even while the merged bill has a split payment configured — the split stays with the primary.

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Tips & best practices

Unmerge as soon as groups decide to pay separately. This is faster than trying to configure a complex split across a merged bill.
If a table was accidentally merged, unmerge and use Item Transfers to send its items back rather than re-merging in reverse.

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Common mistakes

  • Assuming items follow the unmerge. They don’t. Use Item Transfer.
  • Panicking when a stale Merged badge appears offline. Wait for reconnection — it auto-cleans.
  • Unmerging the primary. You unmerge secondaries from the primary. To dissolve the whole group, unmerge each secondary one at a time.
Last modified on July 19, 2026