Ever wonder what the “right” tip was to give a service provider? Well, wonder no longer as Yahoo Hotjobs offers the following tip suggestions for a variety of workers:
* Bartender: 10-15 percent of the bar bill.
* Waiter/Waitress: 15-20 percent of the bill, 20 percent at fine restaurants or if you have a large group.
* Massage Therapist: 10-20 percent of the total, 20 percent if it is a really great massage.
* Hairstylist: 15 percent of the total.
* Concierge: $5-10 is average, more for special services or favors.
* Doorman: $1 dollar or more for help with luggage or finding a taxi on the street.
* Parking Attendant: $1-2, depending on how far they travel to get your car.
* Van Driver: $1 or more per bag, especially if they help you with your luggage.
* Musician/Singer: $35-75 per person.
* Taxi Driver: 15 percent of fare, $1 per bag up to 5 bags, $2 per bag for 5 or more bags or if bags are very heavy (50 lbs. each).
In addition, if you regularly use any of these (or other) service workers, you’ll likely want to give them an extra holiday tip this season. For guidance on what amounts are appropriate, Consumer Reports offers a nice chart on what others are tipping this season.
Now here’s the big question: will the poor economy impact the amount you tip the service people in your life? We’re guessing it will for many. How about for you?
10 Workers to Tip This Season [Yahoo Hotjobs]
(Photo: tiangotlost)
I’ve always been told the easiest way to tip is to double the tax. Here the tax is 9%, so that makes it an 18% tip. But I have left less when I’ve had lousy service. After all
T – to
I – insure
P – proper
S – service
The worst tip I ever left – there was no money at all. The waitress took 10 minutes to get our drinks and 40 minutes to get our food. I asked the manager to intervene thinking maybe she was just busy. When he found her, she was outside having a cigarette and had “lost track of time.” She was only responsible for three tables, so she wasn’t overworked at all.
When our food did come out, she’d forgotten to put in my son’s order, so we had another 15 minute wait. While all this was going on, the table near us waited for their bill and finally left without paying. Her response to that was to add their meals to our bill and hope we didn’t notice. Of course we did and called the manager again. I made it clear that I was not leaving her a tip and that her lousy service was the reason why.
A
@vermontwriter:
Tipping nothing just makes you look like a jerk. I prefer to leave a penny for bad service, and write a frowning face on the bill. Gets the message across, at least.
@tongsy: If tipping nothing makes you look like a jerk, how is tipping a penny any better?
vermontwriter told them why the waitress wasn’t getting a tip. I don’t think you look like a jerk if you tell them why.
@Rectilinear Propagation: Agreed. If the service is so bad that I don’t think a tip is warranted, the service is bad enough for me to inform management about it.
@vermontwriter: Oh, and “tips” has nothing to do with the “to insure proper service” acronym–that’s an urban legend.
@floraposte: Uhm, the waitress tried to put someone else’s bill onto hers and provided horrible service.
I don’t think she was being a jerk by not leaving a tip.
@Tabalt: Maybe you’re confusing my post with another? I was agreeing with the notion that leaving a penny doesn’t make you less of a jerk than leaving nothing, and advancing the idea that if the service is that bad, best to tell the management anyway. Which is what vermontwriter did. So s/he and I aren’t disagreeing, and near as I can tell, neither are you and I.
That list seemed thin… who tips a van driver $1/bag? Usually I give the guy $5 if he handles a bag at all, same w/ taxis… mostly because the two generations before me were taxi drivers and I know what a shitty job it is.
But in general tipping is like extortion…
With food service it’s initially extortion for the server–they may be thinking “if I don’t do a good job, the customer will withhold the money that I rely on to make up my income” … but after you become a regular if you’re a BAD tipper it could become extortion for the customer–”if you don’t tip better I’ll ignore you the entire night and you will stare at that blob on your burger and wonder if it looks like spit”
With car valet I always throw the guy a $4-5 before he takes the car in the thin hopes that maybe he won’t beat the shit out of it or park it next to the garbage truck in the lot. When I leave, esp if it’s the same guy I tipped earlier, I either give them nothing or $1-2… but this is maybe a handful of times per year, I’d change my rates if it was weekly or more frequent
I usually leave $5/day every morning at a hotel… what’s funny to me if when I started traveling w/ my girlfriend she said “I usually tip at the end of the whole stay”… and I said… “ok, but if you’re there for 3-4 days then the maid staff will probably think there is no tip coming and treat your room like dirt, if they see the $5 today then they’re more likely to do a good job in the hopes of $5 tomorrow if they actually change the sheets” … she started tipping at the end of the day too…
This all said I never tip for take out and it does bug me that their slips often have a “tip” line, though I understand that it’s just because they use the same mechanism for dine in and take out.
I also tend to not tip at chain coffee places like starbucks where they have those little cards you put money on… it sucks for the servers at those places, but they at least are paid a full wage unlike restaurant employees… the only time I tip at those places is when they give me something free, a few times if the coffee took more then 30 seconds, I give em $2, or on election day this past year I got a free coffee so I gave them what it would have cost me
@emis:
holy crap I type too much
I kind of like my step-dad’s policy on tipping, and am thinking of adopting it. He NEVER gives a penny to any charity or any kind, but he tips at least 25% minimum. He says that’s his charity gift, and at least he’s giving it to someone who is willing to get off their ass and work a job. He can’t stand “lazy” people on welfare, etc. I put lazy in quotes because I at least understand some people just can’t work and it has nothing to do with laziness, but he doesn’t. Still, I kind of like his idea.
@YaleLentulus: There a lot of different charities… Some actually tech people to ”fish”, instead of donating them ”fish”.
I’m a computer tech for a large retailer. How much should I expect to be tipped when I fix a customer’s computer in a timely fashion?
If I need to tip every Moe, Larry and Curley that pours me a cup of coffee then it’s only reasonable to assume that my services services aren’t any less deserving.
My rule of thumb is $4.00. That’s it, that’s all I’m willing to tip. My train of thought is that if a waiter or waitress has 3 to 4 tables (bills for dining out for 4 being greater than $40.00 these days), that’s around $12.00 an hour on top of their regular wage. I realize that it’s hard work but so are a lot of jobs. If they feel they aren’t getting paid enough, take it up with the EMPLOYER of which I am not.
For those of you that might say “But if it’s a slow night.” or “What if they only have 2 tables.” or “What if the customer stays longer.”
Who’s problem is that? The restaurants?
you should also tip your tattoo artists, if you get body art. We don’t get 100% of what you paid for the tattoo. The owner generally gets anywhere from 40-70% of that money you paid, and then we have to buy our own supplies. So after you pay us for a $200 tattoo, we generally get about $40, after our cut, and supplies. And if we do no work that day, we don’t get any money that day. It is a service. You should tip.
At restaurants, if I’m given good service, I give a good tip. I don’t follow that “you should give this much percentage” bull. I tip what I feel they deserve. If they did and extraordinarily good job, by being attentive, making sure our food is right, and not being over-attentive, I’ll generally give a good tip. I’ve left $20 tips for $30 meals. I won’t leave anything if I didn’t get good service.
And fast food employees shouldn’t get a tip at all.
@ConroyLachesis: Yep. You should treat your tattooist like you treat your hairstylists. I used to live with a tattoo artist and we realized that we basically had the same job.
@ConroyLachesis: THANK YOU! I always make sure to treat people good when they remember to tip. If they don’t, I don’t go out of my way for them.
Sitting hunched over tattooing someone for several hours (with a decent amount of people squirming around, complaining tattoos hurt (duh)), plus the fact that you could potentially be dealing with people who have communicable diseases (I personally am VERY picky about how sterile my work area/equipment is), paying the shop for your rental space, buying your own supplies and maintaining your own equipment…….. you hit the nail on the head.
I love tattooing period, I’ve been drawing since i could hold a pencil, I’d do it for free if I didn’t have bills to pay… but that’s also a profession that should be tipped.
ok, i just HAVE to share this as a former hotel concierge:
[www.catastrophegirl.com]
at the top of that page are some of the things hotel guests gave me as tips at work.
if you don’t want to click through, the top three that astounded me were a sweater vest, a sealed package of 6 ‘happy birthday, mom’ cards and a christmas ornament dated 2002 {in 2004}
My wife and I tip well if we get good service and generally we do. If not great service we tip 15%. Usually we tip around 30% for great service and always make an effort to be polite customers.
On the upside we get really really good service at the places we frequent and the pizza place always has our pizza to us ASAP. You don’t have to tip well when you go to a place but when you come back the server will remember you even if you aren’t in their area. The pizza place puts notes in their computer if you are a good tipper and if you are a bad tipper.
It doesn’t ensure better service but it seems to work for us!
My main problem with tipping is that in many places all the tips are split between the waitstaff. This neither rewards good service or punishes poor service. Pay a decent wage, remove the stigma of tipping and tip in cases of extremely good service. I’v had a waiter follow me out of a restaurant before for ONLY tipping 15% or his standard service. A yelling match ensued in front of said restaurant…couldn’t have been good for business.
@wgrune:
If a waiter ever had the balls to yell at me for a tip I deemed appropriate for his/her service I would write letters and call every person I had to and be sure he/she was no longer employed there.
@wgrune: i hate the tip sharing system too. It’s another example of how perverted the whole system has become.
I didn’t realize how crazy the whole system was until I tried to explain it to my European girlfriend.
There was a glorious time in my life that I got a massage once a week and never tipped once. I don’t remember seeing a tip jar and it never crossed my mind.
last month i took a friend to a seafood place and he ordered mussels – when he dumped them out of the bucket half of them were closed [if you know bivalves, this is NOT good, means they have been dead a long time]
all he had to do was point to his plate for the waitress and she whisked it away, offered him other mussels or something else, then advised that the charge would be taken off when he declined [it was an appetizer and the entree was on the way]
i was already planning to tip on the total bill amount as it would have been if the mussels were included but when the next table wanted to order mussels and she was up front with them about the mussels being a bad choice tonight, i added another few bucks.
it certainly wasn’t a fine dining establishment – think sawdust on the floor – but in my opinion, excellent service deserves a reward
The whole idea of tipping in restaurants has got to be one of the weirdest things about western (or American/Canadian) society.
The cost of your food includes the labor for cooking the food, the ingredients, the upkeep of the building, advertising etc.
Oh, but the girl who carries your food 25 feet from the kitchen to your table? You have to pay her directly.
Well, you should pay her. Tecnically you don’t have to pay her if she doesn’t do a good job but you better make sure it was her fault if you don’t want to have an argument in the parking lot.
The worst part of this system is the horrible cloying behaivior of some waiters and waitresses who are angling for a big tip.
@bdgbill: “The worst part of this system is the horrible cloying behaivior of some waiters and waitresses who are angling for a big tip.”
I agree. I’m sick of servers pushing expensive appetizers on me the second I sit down. Most of the time the appetizer costs as much as the entree.
@ObtuseGoose: Right! Or having our conversation interupted every five minutes with “How’s everything tasting?” My favorite is the pictures of the kids on the back of the order pad.
In Europe the waiters are snobby assholes but they are professional. They don’t bother you but are always available if you need them. If you tip them they will laugh at you and call you a stupid American behind your back because they are probably paid more than you are.
The one thing I have never understood is why is the tip amount based on the amount spent? It takes the same level of effort to deliver a burger or filet or deliver a bottle of wine or a bottle of water.
I tip a set amount per person.
Oh man, all the people that are complaining about tipping, I hope you’re at LEAST playing the game and not taking your anger of the system out on the people that should be getting tipped. I make 2.50 an hour, I depend on those tips – I don’t even get a paycheck because I pay more in taxes than my hourly… Also, all the bartenders I work with make about 2.50 so I don’t know where yahoo is getting this 7.00 business.
I can guarantee I am a better server when I’m waiting on someone I’ve had before and I know they tip well, and I will completely ignore you if you’ve tipped me shitty in the past (I’m talking less than 15% on good service).
If you can’t afford to tip, or you simply don’t want to tip because you don’t think its fair (boo freaking hoo), then don’t go out to eat.
My wife and I have a cleaner that comes in every other week to clean our apartment. We usually give hera Christmas bonus that’s the equivalent of one week’s pay, and gave her a raise about six months ago.
Bartenders make $7 an hour? On what planet?
Most bartenders make around $4 an hour, and you don’t even really make that (at least not in my state). If you declare tips over that amount, it’s credited towards that minimum hourly wage. 90% of the bartenders I know walk with a paycheck that says VOID every two weeks.
Dollar a drink people, please. Most bartenders would prefer you leave them alone if you’re going to tip less than that. If you tip 10% on a $100 tab you’re lucky if the bartender doesn’t throw it back in your face with an angry gesture.
@suicide:
At which point, I pick up the money he just threw in my face and leave. If he doesn’t want my money, fine, he can pay the tab.
@humphrmi:
Please don’t waste our time in the first place then, because we’d rather lose money than deal with assholes all night long… good tippers when they’re drunk are usually irritating enough already.
@suicide: I feel so bad for you and your profession.
I have a coffee shop. We’re the type of coffee shop that pulls beautiful shots of espresso by hand (not by button – lame) and steams milk to perfection. If you have been to my store more than twice and ordered the same drink, we remember what and how you like it. If you have a special request we’ll lovingly make it for you. I WISH that I could pay every employee $1000/hour. But I can’t because I sell $3.50 lattes. I expect my customers to tip my baristas because that is how the system in America is set-up. We didn’t form the system, we only abide by it. Retail and restaurant workers get abused by bad attitudes, cell phone talkers, gimme-gimmes, yups and other disrespects all day. Consumers make assumptions that service workers aren’t smart enough or good enough to do any other job. The retail/restaurants of America are the source of most American’s immeasurable pleasure of consuming. Yet you’re unwilling to treat people well and tip for their service? If you expect amazing treatment from our American service industry, then tip. If you think that it’s not worth it, cook at home and brew your own pot of coffee.
I generally tip between 15 and 20% However, I do not buy this whole thing about the “new standard” being 20% because prices have gone up. Prices have gone up, means 15% is more than it was before the price increase. When minimum wage increases, so does the waitstaff minimum wage.
I tip 20% for great service less for normal service and tip very poorly for poor service (like if I’m ignored).
I don’t tip at fast food, counter service, or take out places. I tip $1 per drink at a bar, not a percentage of the cost of the drink (some of which are ridiculous). I don’t think waiters and waitresses are automatically entitled to their tip, whether it be 15% or 20%. They have to work for it. If they don’t work for it, they don’t deserve it.
My biggest problem is when I get the tip line on the receipt right after I order something, but before anything has actually happened. This has only happened a few times, but I’m not going to tip anyone unless I think they deserve it. It is kind of the point after all.
They should have listed “washroom attendants”, those guys who camp out in the washrooms at dance clubs in such away that there’s no choice but to let them turn on the water, pump the soap, hand you a towel, and give you the stink eye when they don’t get a tip.
I work at a small italian deli for years in a very small town. Pretty much everyone who walked through the door I knew and I especially took care of those who did tip me for the service. This really paid off for them during christmas time when the line was out the door…but in a little place like that tips go a long way.
Don’t forget about Maids. $2-$5 is what I usually tip, especially if staying multiple nights, which I do very often due to my job.
They suggest 20% at “Fine” restaurants where the prices are jacked up even more ?
I think the exact reverse…. 18-20% at a local joint and 15% at a fine restaurent.
Although I could never undestand why “I” am expected to pay for the help, why doesn’t restaurant just pay their employees a reasonable wage to begin with ?
I have a real problem tippng someone more than I make an hour. Geez…. at a “Fine” restaurant, a 20% tip could easily be $40 for a dinner for two. I don’t come anywhere close to making that even if you figure in my benefits.
I REALY REALLY Hate these automatic additions to the bill. And it seems more places now are starting to add a surcharge to use a credit card too.
I have had to cut back on eating out… so it is a snowball effect.
The economy hasn’t affected my tipping at all, but then I’m a government employee, so…great job security.
15% – or more for the holidays – is pretty steep for a hairdresser, though, if you’re female. I just can’t agree with that.
I tip according to the competence/eagerness/quality of th worker’s performance, the difficulty of the job, and my hopes that the worker will remember me. I add on extra for small stuff.
There’s a sit-down Thai restaurant in town that has $3.45 lunch specials. That $3.45 gets me a water, a chicken leg, a bowl of soup, one of 10 entrees (eg, shrimp with noodles, rice on the side) and a fortune cookie. I leave at least $7 each time (yes, a tip of ~90%+ or so, after tax, every time), because that’s what they should be charging and because I know that the money is going straight to the couple who run the place.
Housekeeping is the hardest job in the entire travel industry, IMHO. I generally leave at least $10 for 3-4 nights; those people deserve their tips far more than other people who perform less service, and I doubt that they get frequent tips.
I generally don’t tip for taxi drivers, or might add on a buck or two (10% tops, average 5%). I feel like taxi rates are high enough that most drivers do okay. That was something I picked up from Argentina, where taxi drivers aren’t tipped and where waiters get whatever change you have in your pocket (literally; over 8%-10% is excessive there).
Restaurants I aim for 20%ish, buffets half that, +/- 5%-7% and rounded up or down to the $ when I feel like it. OTOH, I was at a buffet yesterday that was SLOW and which had insanely good service. He got 20%. If the waiter lets my water glass stay empty for 8 minutes, odds are good they’ll get the lower end of the spectrum.
For everyone else… I like to tip random people occasionally if they impress me or really going out of their way, or give them a gift somehow. You better believe I gave a nice note and an overpriced box of chocolates to Career Services once I accepted a job offer, as I was insanely impressed with that department.
*SLOW as in customer:waiter ratio of 1:1
As a ten year veteran of waiting tables, I have to admit I hate the concept of tipping. Especially since it comes AFTER you provide service! I always tried to give topnotch service, but lots of wankers would tip zero of 5% for what was very good service. I would like to see waitstaff paid a decent wage, and tipping being totally optional and ideally only for really above average service. Employee base wages could be influenced by customer comment cards, or ‘virtual tips’ where custs are given tokens and leave the ‘tip’ in tokens to be used in figuring wage hike during the next employee review.
Tyler Style
[www.nirdvana.com]
Hmmm: Let us say 30 years ago you paid 10% on tips which was the standard at that time. On a $10.00 meal that would be a $1.00 tip. In 2008 that same meal cost $30.00 so their tip would go up to $3.00 with inflation. Yet, not only has the price of meals gone up but the percentage for tips has doubled. Instead of $3.00 they get $6.00. Why? Why should I now pay 20%? When will this stop…. when the tip EQUALS the cost of the meal so we are paying DOUBLE on each meal out?
I pretty much generally give my change to any fast food tip jars if I’m paying with cash, otherwise no tip. However, at my local Subway they do have a tip jar and I always give them my change or $1 (or get them back later) because they actually know me at this point. Occasionally I will have to gently remind them what I want but they’ve usually got it all handled. That kind of service essentially demands a tip, because they aren’t paid to memorize some bullshit workaday routines at minimum wage just for me, even if I am a regular customer. The amount of money they make is not enough for the amount of brainpower they’ve reserved for knowing that I’d rather have cookies instead of chips. That’s just good service, and that’s what I pay them for.
After spending a fortune tipping at my wedding/honeymoon, I never want to tip again. If that means not patronizing tip-greedy establishments, then so be it. I feel like I’ve been extorted for the past 2 weeks and just want to be done with it.