How Much to Tip in These 20 Common Scenarios (and 2 Times You Should NEVER Tip)

Tipping culture is in a unique state in the United States of America right now. With inflation being largely out of control, people are looking to get greater tips to make up for the lack of traditional wages paid to tipped employees in the country. Restaurant-goers might see suggested tips being as high as 20% or 25% in some places when the standard tip used to be just 10% of the cost of the meal. Knowing how much to tip is a crucial way to build a strong relationship with the employees at your favorite restaurants. Here’s how to determine how much you need to tip and how to calculate that easily, with or without your phone’s assistance.

To determine the different use case scenarios for tipping, we consulted financial literacy experts’ advice to see what financial experts say the proper tipping etiquette is for different types of restaurants and services. There are also situations where you absolutely shouldn’t’ tip, and knowing these can help you avoid awkward situations where an employee can’t accept a tip or it could even be considered rude to try and do so. We consulted information from the Emily Post Institute, which focuses its studies and information on understanding proper etiquette for all scenarios.

Servers in Sit-Down Restaurants

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It’s crucial to remember that most servers that serve patrons in sit-down restaurant environments get paid very little with the expectation that they make the remainder of their wages in tips. The federal minimum wage for tipped employees is just $2.13 per hour. Some states force employers to pay their employees more than that, but one should never assume that an employee is making more than the minimum an employer is required to pay them when tipping.

For sit-down restaurant service, experts recommend that you pay at least 15% of the total cost of the bill and up to 20% or even 25% for exceptional service. To calculate a 20% tip, move the decimal one place to the left and then double that amount. To calculate a 15% tip, move the decimal one place to the left then add half of that total to it. So a $50 restaurant bill would warrant a tip that falls somewhere between $7.50 and $12.50 depending on how you liked the service.

Prepared Food and Baristas

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Someone who prepares your food for you to pick up at the counter, such as a barista or a food prep employee at a restaurant like Chipotle should also receive a tip. However, the tip they should receive is not as much as a sit-down restaurant as there is less service involved. If the restaurant is a traditionally sit-down establishment where you picked a takeout order, 15% is a standard amount to tip. Remember that the employees still had to prepare the food, bag it, and bring it out to you, even if you didn’t sit down in the restaurant. However, for counter service and baristas, $2–$3 up to 15% is acceptable.

Bartenders

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For bartenders, you should anticipate tipping $2–$5 per drink, depending on how upscale the bar is, or 15%–20% of the total bill, whichever is higher. Remember that bartenders must prepare the drinks, which can be quite strenuous compared to some other food preparation. Bartenders may also employ theatrical skills that improve the overall experience by turning the creation of drinks into a beautiful performance that guests can enjoy. Base the tip on the type of service, how much you enjoyed it, and whether or not the bartender employed additional skills that go above and beyond the serving of drinks.

Food and Grocery Delivery

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A gratuity of 15% is pretty standard for a delivery driver who is picking up a restaurant or grocery order for a customer. Remember that the driver has to maintain their car and buy gas to perform their job duties. These things aren’t cheap and can’t be foregone by the employee to save money. Tip extra if the restaurant is particularly far away from your home as the driver will be using more gas. Additionally, tip extra if the order contains a large amount of items. A loaf of bread and a carton of milk is pretty easy to carry, but a large order may need multiple trips to unload. Finally, consider tipping extra if your order needs to be temperature-controlled. Running the air conditioner in a car is an expensive venture that the driver would need to employ if your order requires constant refrigeration.

Rideshares

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15%–20% of the total bill of the ride is a typical tip for rideshare services. Like delivery drivers, rideshare drivers have an exceptionally high maintenance cost for their jobs compared to other service employees. It’s crucial that they be able to afford the maintenance and upkeep of their car. If the car is immaculate and includes additional amenities like bottled water or entertainment, consider adjusting your tip up even if you don’t personally use these features. Finally, give your driver a good review unless they’ve done something egregiously wrong. Reviews are crucial for maintaining a driver’s business and help the rideshare app operators weed out drivers who are damaging their overall business.

Valet Parking

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Valet parking services and other valet services typically warrant a tip of around $2–$5 or 15%–20% of the total cost of the service, whichever is higher. These services are not as taxing as other car-related services as the valet doesn’t need to maintain their own car as a basic function of their job. However, valets do need to know how to drive and feel comfortable operating hundreds of different types of cars without issue. These skills take time to learn and should be rewarded.

Beauty Services

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Services focused on beautifying your skin and hair are specialized services that require a great deal of training and knowledge. They typically require a license to remain in operation as well. Thus, it’s customary in countries where tipping is considered normal to toss your beautician or cosmetologist a tip on the way out. Experts recommend that you tip between 15% and 20% of the total cost of the services.

Massage Therapists

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Whether or not you need to tip at all depends on where you get your massage done. Massages done at spas, resorts, or parlors typically expect the recipient to tip between 15% and 20% of the total cost of the service. However, chiropractic and physical therapy clinics don’t typically operate under a gratuity-based model. So, you may not be expected to tip in such a scenario. However, in the case that tip is appropriate and expected, you should budget to tip around 15%–20% of the service cost for a massage therapist.

Baggage Handlers

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Tipping can help ensure that skycaps, bellhops, and other luggage handlers continue to handle the belongings of others with the care they show you. If you expect that you’ll be in a situation where someone will be handling your luggage for you, get some small bills and tip them around $2–$5 per bag handled by them. Tipping your bellhop or skycap is customary as they provide a personal and often strenuous service for you to improve your traveling experience. However, although they handle luggage, you don’t need to tip the gate attendants and check-in counter staff at the airport.

Hotel Housekeepers

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The Emily Post Institute suggests that you tip your housekeeper between $4 and $5 per night of housekeeping. Naturally, if you reject the housekeeping service, you don’t need to tip. However, if you’re having the housekeepers clean your room daily, it’s good practice to leave a few bills for them to take with them for their care and services.

Concierge

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If your concierge goes above and beyond to make your trip unforgettable, consider tossing them a tip that falls between $5 and $30, depending on the services rendered. For instance, if they book dinner reservations for you at a normal restaurant, a $5 tip might be acceptable. However, if the concierge manages to get you tickets to a sold-out concert? $30 will really show your appreciation for their assistance.

Home Cleaning Services

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Before you tip your house cleaner, ensure that tipping doesn’t violate their company policy if they work for an agency. Some agencies don’t allow their cleaners to accept tips or they take the tips written into the checks and distribute them to all of their cleaners equally instead of giving the full tip to the employees that rendered the services. If tipping is appropriate and doesn’t violate any policies that could affect their employment, it’s not uncommon to tip your house cleaner somewhere between 15% and 20% of the bill’s total cost.

Carpet Cleaning

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It’s not necessary to tip the people who clean your carpet, but it can be a nice thing to do that helps them understand that their services are valued and appreciated. If you decide you’d like to tip your carpet cleaner, aim for a figure between 15% and 20% of the bill’s cost.

Window Cleaners

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Sources indicate that window cleaners don’t typically receive tips at all. So, it isn’t necessary to tip your window cleaner if you don’t want to. However, if your window cleaner really made your windows shine, slipping them a tip of 15% to 20%, typically somewhere between $5 and $20 on most services, will let them know they did a great job.

Appliance Installation

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Those who deliver and install home appliances don’t typically rely on or expect tips from their customers. So, if you can’t or don’t want to tip, you don’t have to worry about coming across as rude or snooty in this situation. However, it’s worth noting that appliances can be quite heavy and may need to be moved upstair or in bad weather, which might warrant a few extra bills for the trouble. However, it’s worth noting that some larger appliance retailers like Best Buy don’t allow their installation teams to accept tips. Thus, it’s crucial to check whether tipping is appropriate before you try to do it.

Carpet Installation

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Getting someone to install carpeting in your home can be pricey, easily approaching $2,000 for the service. So, a 15% to 20% tip might not be feasible as it could approach a $400 tip and there may be multiple installation techs working on your home at once. Instead, experts recommend a flat tip rate of $10 to $20 per person involved in your carpet installation.

Window Installation

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People who install windows don’t typically expect or rely on tips. So, it isn’t necessary to tip them if you can’t or don’t want to. However, if the installation is exceptionally smooth, a small tip of 10%–20% is often appreciated. It’s also possible to show your appreciation in non-monetary ways, like providing snacks and drinks for your window installers to consume while working.

HVAC Installation

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It’s important to check the website of the company installing your HVAC system before offering a tip to their employees. Like appliance installers, some companies forbid their employees from accepting tips, which can lead to an awkward situation where the employee has to reject your kindness to retain their job. If your HVAC installers can accept tips, feel free to offer 20%, which is the standard for this service according to experts, or $20–$30 per employee involved.

Exterminators

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Pest control employees don’t always get tipped. So, it’s not always necessary to do so. However, it’s important to show your appreciation as they have a dirty and gross job that is both physically and emotionally strenuous and requires intimate knowledge of many subjects. Experts suggest that if you intend to tip an exterminator, you should aim to tip $10 to $20 for a standard pest control battery service.

Christmas Light Installation

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Getting beautiful lights isn’t something you have to do for yourself. You can pay someone else to do it for you! If you like how the lights came out after being professionally installed, it might be appropriate to tip the employee who did the installation. Experts suggest that you tip 10% to 20% of the cost of the bill for Christmas light installation.

When Not to Tip

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If the services you received were exceptionally poor quality, such as damage to your home, it might be appropriate not to tip the employees who rendered the services. Additionally, it’s crucial to understand the differences in tipping culture across different countries when traveling. While tipping is often a given in the United States, in Asia it’s seen as rude. In these countries, tipping an employee implies that you believe they are poor and need your charity, and that their employer doesn’t pay them adequately. This is an insult to both the employee and the establishment and should be avoided.

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