How much do you tip at a restaurant?

[Sun]

Assume the service was friendly and appropriate (no long waits to flag the server down, no forgotten orders, etc.). How much would you tip on a meal that cost $25, including tax, or $22.50 before tax?

 

Please answer for how much you would generally tip in this situation.

Edited January 9, 2012 by Sun

[Ali in OR]

We generally tip 15%, maybe rounding up to an even amount, like $3.50 in this case instead of $3.38. No sales tax in OR; that was 15% of $22.50.

[Just Kate]

I almost always tip 20% (unless there is an obvious service issue).

[Dandelion]

Always 20%, unless the service is subpar.

[Catwoman]

I always tip at least 20% for average service, and I give extra for excellent service. I also usually tip extra at restaurants we visit frequently.

[SKL]

I generally tip 20% on the pre-tax amount. When finances were tight, it was 15%, never less except where service stunk.

[kalanamak]

We generally tip 15%, maybe rounding up to an even amount, like $3.50 in this case instead of $3.38. No sales tax in OR; that was 15% of $22.50.

 

:iagree:

 

I do 15%, but I never ask for anything special, I sort and stack the plates, and pull everything out to the edge so they are easy to pick up. I don't leave kiddo's food scattered about, either.

[Pamela H in Texas]

I can't say for sure. No less than $5. Probably $7 or so. There is a lot I take into consideration. 20% is my base amt and I go from there.

Edited January 9, 2012 by 2J5M9K

[HiddenJewel]

I tip 15% unless we have ordered one meal and split it. Then I will tip more.

[eternalknot]

I voted other.

 

My minimum is 20% and that's always of the total amount. I don't bother with the pre-tax stuff. I have friends that do, and even friends that factor in 10% for drinks then 15-20% for foodstuffs. It's just money, and I'm not going to stress over the details like that LOL. If money is tight, that's reflected by how/what I order rather than through my tip.

 

But I really like even numbers, so I often round up to make a "pretty" final number. So $5 would be my 20% minimum, then I'd add another few extra bucks because I've spent a lifetime in customer service (much of it waiting tables) and it's just how I do. On a $25 bill ... if the service was to my expectations I'd have left $7-8. If it were exceeded my standards, I'd have left $10-ish. Then I'd add whatever change I needed to to make sure the final total, including tip, was an even number. For excellent service, I'll leave 50% or more. I probably get that once every few months (and always at my two local favorite eateries.)

 

I'd tip more if my kids were messy, or if I was dining with someone who generally tips less than I do. I eat out every Sunday with a friend who tips in the 15% range, which seems low to me; so I add "her" 5% more to my bill which brings my minimum up to 25% plus change to make an even number. It's a joke between us :D

[Shellers]

:iagree:

 

I do 15%, but I never ask for anything special, I sort and stack the plates, and pull everything out to the edge so they are easy to pick up. I don't leave kiddo's food scattered about, either.

 

Same here!

[AuntieM]

As someone who has made a living, from time to time, in the food service industry, I consider 20% a minimum and am willing to tip more, up to 100% at holiday time for good service.

 

For poor service - I mean, really bad - I still tip 15% BUT ask for the manager and give the tip to the manager to pass along to the server, along with hints (or straight talk!) that better service was expected.

 

Being a food server is often a difficult, and sometimes downright nasty, job. An extra dollar or two won't make or break me, if I've decided to dine out anyway, but can make the difference between a server feeling appreciated or not.

 

I like to choose to be generous, unless I have truly valid reasons not to be.

[Melissa in Australia]

I don't tip. I am Australian, I live in a country where staff are paid in restaurants. I don't think many Australian's tip.

[creekland]

$5 is our minimum tip regardless of the bill cost if 4 or 5 of us go to eat. When it's the two of us $3 is our minimum tip.

 

Once past the minimum we tend to tip between 15% and 20% - toward the 15% if there was less work required and toward the 20% if there was more.

[Pamela H in Texas]

Then I'd add whatever change I needed to to make sure the final total, including tip, was an even number.

 

I used to do this :) Now my thinking is that the server would probably just like the $8 rather than the $7.79. LOL

[Pamela H in Texas]

I live in a country where staff are paid in restaurants.

 

I think that is good in a way. If everyone does it that way.....blah blah blah.

But I think our waitstaff probably makes out better in the end because other than a few stiffs, they get paid on their performance rather than just a set hourly wage. The bad part is hours they don't have the customers and are just sitting around at $2.13 per hour. That factors into an average pretty heavily.

Well, and regardless, people know what they are walking into when they take the job in either country.

[TheReader]

Average-good, I'd have tipped $4. Better than average-good, I'd have gone $5.

 

Tipping stresses me out, though. If it's a place with a note about auto-tip being added to large parties, I will sometimes use that % as a guideline if I'm not sure. Mostly I use the old standby of "double the tax" (which in our US area comes to around 17% or 18%), and then I mostly round up to the next dollar.

 

I also consider things like if we stayed a long time just eating appetizers or something, thus a smaller bill for the time/service we received, in which case I give a higher % in order to compensate for that.

 

Here in Brazil it's a flat 10%, added to the bill and you have the option to pay it or not (the servers are paid real minimum wage not waitstaff minimum wage like in the US), so remembering how to calculate US tips is a bit more stressful than normal.

 

I use 15% as my base for "he did the bare minimum", then 20% for "eh, that was good service" and 25% for "that was really great service!" --- are those still decent guidelines??

[ErinE]

I have a $5 minimum regardless of the total bill. If my kids and I eat out, we are usually a cheap meal so I compensate for the hassle. I tip 20% minimum and excellent service is 30%. I have tipped 100% for outstanding service (kids melting down, prompt attention to accidents).

[MamaT]

I always tip 20% unless the service was really poor.

[JFSinIL]

Having read the blog (and later book ) Waiter Rant I always tip 20% now (on pre-tax bill) unless the server was a jerk. We did tip a measley 7 cents once at a place in Wyoming where the server was clearly offended that we asked for a simple plate of toast (all he would eat on the menu) for SillyAutismBoy - she then seemed to go out of her way to sloooowwwwllyy walk the food over, give it to the wrong person, etc. And we were only one fo two tables in the entire restaurant with customers at the time!

 

We did report the service issue to both the manager and AAA (the place had been rated high in their guidebook.)

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

I always tip at least 20% for average service, and I give extra for excellent service. I also usually tip extra at restaurants we visit frequently.

 

:iagree:

[chepyl]

We do 15% for avg service and 20% for great service. If they don't charge for our drinks, we add the drink price to our tip. We have left no tip or a few pennies for awful service. We don't tip because it is expected, if the server ignores us, we may not tip or it will be 10% or less. We have had some awful service when we were the only table in the resturaunt (and not at close).

 

My husband does get upset of theybstart trying to run is out 15 minutes before closing time, too.

[CountitallJoy]

20% for "full service", 10-15% for buffet or cafeteria-style.

 

If we're getting really bad service, I always mutter about tipping less (to my husband), but in the end, I rarely can bring myself to leave less than 20%.

[DawnM]

20%-$5

[lailasmum]

We don't have the same culture of tipping and cafe/restaurant staff are at least on minimum wage so I would only tip for a sit down meal and then only about 10%.

 

I know some people tip hairdressers and their postmen at Christmas and people like that but I don't think that is generally done.

[Karen in CO]

I always tip at least 20% for average service, and I give extra for excellent service. I also usually tip extra at restaurants we visit frequently.

 

This is what I do also.

[Tigger]

I usually leave a minimum of $5 - if you're eating somewhere that's around $20, that's a lot of tips one needs to make to make enough to live on, ykwim? Once the tab tops $25, I usually leave 20%, unless service wasn't great, then 10-15%. The only thing I don't tip 20% on is alcoholic drinks - if someone orders alcohol on a tab we're paying, I do 20% food, $1 a drink (just like it we were sitting at the bar). For buffets I also do the minimum $5, but go with 10% once the bill goes over $50 - they really don't much at buffets other than beverages and clear - I'm getting my own food.

[Parrothead]

I voted other because I don't tip any set amount. It really depends on what cash I have in my pocket. For that amount (25.00) it could have been any thing between a few singles or a five. Or even for exceptional service 7 or 8 dollars.

[beaners]

My husband is a restaurant manager, and I used to wait tables and bartend. We would tip between $8 and $10.

[LMA]

20% on post tax amount. If you do large group dinners at a restaurant, the gratuity is calculated on the post tax amount.

[Retired]

15 -20 % depending on the quality of service for waiter/waitress and hairdresser

[KungFuPanda]

I don't tip. I am Australian, I live in a country where staff are paid in restaurants. I don't think many Australian's tip.

 

I tip the standard 20%, but I do think that the restaurant industry has a real racket going where their employees and customers get the short end of the stick. Commission, I would understand, but having part of your pay dependent on the honor system just doesn't seem like a good idea to me.

 

I do wish they'd just add the 20% to the food bill. We can always leave a few bucks for stellar service, but there are still people out there that tip $3 no matter what! I dont know if theyre clueless, stingy, or just cant do the math! Also, good waiters would provide good service anyway and we would be spared the closing 'performance' by the sucky ones.

[BrookValley.]

Always at least 20%, sometimes more, even for our local buffet brunch. I have a friend who argues that the servers at this particular buffet don't need more than 10% or so "because it's just a buffet; they aren't doing anything," but that's utter crap. Just because they don't take your order doesn't mean they aren't preparing (and in when we go out with others, probably splitting) your bill; just because they aren't carrying you your meal doesn't mean they aren't constanstly checking on you, clearing your plates, bringing/refilling your drinks, etc., etc. If you pay attention, they are doing plenty enough to warrant the same 20% I give any other server. Now I realize this might not apply to all buffet-type situations, and I'd certainly consider leaving less for one of those big buffet places where you never really see a server (I just can't remember the last time I went to a place like that). But our local place is awesome, and so are the servers! :D Oh, I also have to bring extra cash to tip "omelet dude." There's a guy that makes fresh, to-order omelets at the buffet, too. I always tip him a couple of bucks.

 

I will also tip more than I would have if I'm eating with friends and they only leave 10-15%. And I am obvious about it, too. If you can't afford to tip, you can't afford to eat out (and I've been there plenty). We stay home if the cost of the entire meal--which includes paying for the service--isn't in the budget. I have friends who can afford a few extra bucks to tip 20% but just don't want to. These are usually the same friends who have never worked in a restaurant. :glare: I worked for years as a waitress in local restaurants. I made $2.13 per hour, so I needed every tip I got, and had to put up with outright rudeness, vulgarity, and being talked to like I was scum...and that would be on a good night. And one of the restaurants I worked at was the nicest, most upscale place for miles around. A lot of people just tipped $1 per person at the table. Many didn't bother figuring out a percentage. I got very good at handling negativity under pressure. I worked hard, was good at what I did, and never got any complaints for my service. Yes, there were a lot of good customers--folks who, no matter wether they tipped well or not, were friendly or at least respectful. These folks were always the respite in your evening! But after several years, those relatively few folks who at least treated you like you were a fellow human being just didn't outweigh the rest. I have never experienced being treated like I was treated as a server, and I've worked a lot of different service jobs. What is it about bringing someone their meal that automatically puts you beneath them? I'll never understand.

 

So yeah, tip at least 20%, more if I can or think I should.

[OLG]

Generally 15% of total bill. My dh does that on pre-tax total. More if exceptional service. For sums under $10 I always tip higher.

[PiCO]

I tip 20% off the pre-tax amount for standard service. I will tip more or less if the service varies.

 

I tip more if I go to a fancy restaurant for dinner, because I don't usually drink alcohol, and that reduces my total bill (and thus the tip) significantly.

 

I heard a news report once that wait staff will make more tips if they appear to be overworked than if they make their job look easy. I thought that was interesting!

[iamrachelle]

I always tip 20% (after tax). As someone who waitressed her way through nursing school I know how back breaking the work can be. Servers earn every penny of our tips...

[tabrizia]

I generally tip around 18% for decent regular service and 25%+ for exceptional service. The only time I tip less is if it is horrible service then I tend to drop to between 12 and 15%. I will also always tip $3 minimum no matter how small the bill, so if for some odd reason I actually go out by myself to lunch and only spend $10 I will still leave a $3 tip minimum.

[*********]

I always tip at least 20% for average service, and I give extra for excellent service.

 

This is us, too.

 

I used to waitress, so I'm BIG on tipping well. :D

 

So long as the waiter/waitress does their job, they're getting a good tip from dh and I. And if they're extra friendly/helpful whatnot, they get even more. We've even been known to give very large tips. For example, if we had a $50 gift card, and our total came to $35 or so, we'd leave the balance of the gift card as a tip.

 

We just LOVE making the waitress's day. We frequently leave tracts with our tip, so that's another reason we like to tip well. Makes a better witness, IMO.

 

We don't eat out often at ALL, but when we do, we just plan on leaving at least a 20-25% tip. I don't remember the last time we've had bad service; not sure what we'd do in that situation.

Edited January 9, 2012 by bethanyniez

[photomo]

I usually always tip 20%.

 

the service would have to be really bad for me to leave less.

 

On occassion if the the waitor/waitress is really good I leave more.

[kathymuggle]

15% of pretax amount.

 

I am more likely to tip well if the service was good but the bill was small. Example - a family of four eating breakfast for 22.50 requires more tip than the $3+ one would get with 15%. For small amounts I usually round up, and will go up in % for good service.

 

OTOH, if I go out for dinner with my hubby and the bill is 100$ you are only going to get 15%. $15 is plenty for the service - even if the service was wonderful. I will compliment them or tell the manager if the service is wonderful, but they are still unlikely to get more than 15% if the bill is high.

Edited January 9, 2012 by kathymuggle

[kathymuggle]

20% on post tax amount. If you do large group dinners at a restaurant, the gratuity is calculated on the post tax amount.

 

They do it that way because they want more of the customers money. I do not think that is how it is supposed to be done, according to tipping experts.

[Laurie4b]

I tip 20% for good service, which would be 4.50. So whether I tipped 4.50 or 5.00 would depend on the bills I had in my wallet. I would not tip over $5. I debated whether to choose 4-4.99 or 5-5.99 because of this, and finally selected the 4.00-4.99 but I would not tip under 4.50 and it's as likely that I would tip $5 as the 4.50. I used to wait tables. I rarely tip less than 20%, but will for really bad service that I can see is the wait person's fault. (Sometimes bad service is the fault of the cook, with things getting out really late, or the management, for scheduling too few wait staff. In that case, I don't think it's fair to doc the wait person.) I will sometimes tip as high as $25 % but that would be for exceptional service and probably if we caused some difficulty (as when I had little kids and there was a mess under the table.) If we had sat at the table longer than is typical in a busy restaurant, I would tip even more because we were depriving the wait person of the opportunity to make another tip from another set of customers.

[Lady Florida.]

I chose $4-$4.99 because I always tip 18-20% pre-tax.

[mommaduck]

15% is what I was taught it used to be. Last I heard, tipping was up to 18%. That is approx what I will tip.

[Jennifer3141]

I tip a minimum of 20% for good service, based upon the bill's total. I never thought about deducting for tax before.

 

I will leave much less if the service is bad. And I've left much more when we had super service. :)

 

We had a HORRIBLE experience at The Melting Pot recently. That server got less than 10% and frankly, she was lucky to get that.

 

We had a great experience at a local Chinese restaurant last week and I tipped that guy about 50%. My kids are STILL laughing about how funny and nice that server was and he kept giving us free tastes of everything.

[Night Elf]

I tip 20% of the entire bill after tax, not pre-tax.

[theYoungerMrsWarde]

Oops, I clicked on the wrong one! I put $2-2.99, but it should have been $3-3.99.

[Mrs Mungo]

I voted $5-5.99. But, I tip anywhere from 15-25% (occasionally more...or less) depending upon the circumstances and service.

[Joanne]

20%, or more, for adequate service. I don't "back out" tax, so at least $5.00.

[tammyw]

A timely article just popped up in Yahoo!

 

http://shine.yahoo.com/work-money/tipping-correctly-161000019.html