Just the Tip

7/20/2018

When dining at a full-service restaurant in the United States, it is customary to leave a tip.  The servers who work in these establishments earn little more than $2/hour and therefore depend on gratuity left behind by patrons for their livelihood.   A general rule of thumb when determining how much money to leave as a tip is 10% - 20% of the total cost of the bill.  For example, if the bill (sales and tax) is $100, your tip should be $10 - $20.  Here are some other tips:

1. Never leave less than 10%, even if you think your server totally sucks.  Although it may seem simple, being a waiter or waitress can be extremely stressful and demanding.  A lot of factors lie beyond the control of the server such as kitchen errors, facility issues and sometimes coping with several new tables at once.
2. A decent service experience should receive about 15% of the cost of the bill.  This means everything went smoothly, everyone was polite and there were no mistakes.
3. A good server expects to earn about 18 - 20% of the bill.  This server routinely goes above and beyond on behalf of the guest, making them feel completely comfortable during the entire experience.  This waitress is not just friendly but genuinely interested in creating an enjoyable dining situation for the guest. This waiter demonstrates an advanced menu knowledge, generating thoughtful suggestions.  This server also deals gracefully with any issues that arise, smoothing them out immediately.
4. Feel free to leave more than 20% although it is not necessary, even for really excellent service.  Inevitably somebody else will undertip so those who overtip are doing an extra good deed for humanity.  
5. Servers talk about how much you tip.  If you are a bad tipper, that becomes your reputation so consider what you want people to say about you.
6. Another way to find 20% is to double the bill and divide by 10.  For example, if the bill is $30, double it ($60) and divide by 10 = $6 tip.
7. Don’t just leave a flat $5 or $10, make sure you consider the cost of your sales and leave a percentage based on the bill.  Servers also tip out their bussers and bartenders at the end of each shift so keep in mind your 20% tip actually translates to 16% after payout.
8. Tip your baristas!  At least a dollar. Tip everyone!  I recently tipped a very friendly gas station clerk.  Remember that what goes around comes around, and when you are generous to others, the world is generous with you.
9. If you are from another country and this custom seems strange, hopefully you find that it motivates good service.
10. In certain states, servers earn $8/hour so the etiquette may be different there.  This article was written from the perspective of someone working in a $2/hour state.