Seriously though, 15% as that's the low one on the card reader's display, cash on table for good service in a real restaurant.
Posted on 02/29/2024 5:09:50 PM PST by nickcarraway
Regardless of whether you’re just popping out for a quick coffee, grabbing a pick-up order from a fast-casual restaurant, or savoring dinner at your fave local spot, you’ll probably be asked — or encouraged — to tip the server or the staff before you leave. And according to a new survey from the Pew Research Center, Americans’ views on tipping are (unsurprisingly) varied and can depend on a number of factors, from what you ordered to how old you are.
Pew’s pollsters surveyed almost 12,000 U.S. adults in August, asking over a dozen questions about the who, when, where, and how of our tipping behaviors. One of the survey’s big takeaways was that, as a whole, we’re not always sure when and how much we’re meant to tip. Only around one-third (34%) of respondents said that it was “extremely or very easy” to know how to tip, and another one-third (33%) said that it was “extremely or very easy” to know how much to add to the final bill. The majority of respondents (72%) also said that we’re expected – or at least asked – to tip in more places than we were five years ago.
When it comes to how those gratuities are distributed, the majority (72%) also said it’s the fairest if each server is allowed to keep 100% of the tips they receive, while 14% said that tips should be collected and distributed to all members of the staff — including table bussers, hosts, and bartenders — while another 13% said that tips should be pooled and then split equally between all of the servers.
The Only Tipping Guide You Will Ever Need
The majority of respondents said that they “usually” tip at sit-down restaurants, so Pew asked how much they would tip for an average meal with equally average service. Over half (57%) of those surveyed said they would tip 15% of the bill or less, while 12% said they would tip at least 18%, and 25% said they would tip 20% or more. Two percent of respondents said they would not tip at all. (That same 2% probably also hate when all the Whos in Whoville start singing.) Pew also notes that more older Americans — those 65 or older — were more likely to tip 15% or less.
Tipping behaviors can also vary based on how and where someone is eating or drinking. An overwhelming majority of respondents (92%) say they “always or often” tip at sit-down restaurants. More than three-quarters of respondents (76%) said that they “always or often” tipped on delivery orders, while 70% said they “always or often” tipped at bars. Only one-quarter (25%) of respondents “always or often” tip at coffee shops, and 12% tip at fast-casual restaurants like Chipotle or Panera, where orders aren’t placed through or delivered by a server.
The biggest factor determining how much customers tip is the quality of the service. Over three-quarters of respondents (77%) said that it was a “major factor,” while 18% said it was a minor factor. Five percent said that they didn’t take the service into consideration at all.
Finally, the respondents seem to prefer it when they’re allowed to determine their own tipping amounts, as opposed to being presented with automated suggestions. Forty percent of survey-takers said they “strongly or somewhat oppose” a list of suggested tips, while 32% were neutral about it. The older respondents (again, described as those 65 or older) were most opposed to tip suggestions, while those under 30 were almost evenly split in their views about those recommendations. Almost one-third (31%) said they “favor” suggestions, 33% said they were opposed to them, and the last third (32%) didn’t mind either way.
Mr. Pink?
Yes.
It’s simple. Dominoes pizza told us in their commercial how much we are supposed to tip, when they said we get $3.00 off our pizza when we come pick it up ourselves. I have been tipping $3.00 ever since. Not a penny more.
I wish you would quit hinting at this Nick. You do post some great stuff but I am still not going to tip you for it and that’s final!
Why does he have to be Mr. Pink?
He doesn’t want to be Mr. Pink.
I had a waitress friend tell me that the chain she works at pools tips if they’re on a card and they have to split it with the wait staff and the kitchen staff. So bottom line leave cash on table if the server does a good job
I had a waitress friend tell me that the chain she works at pools tips if they’re on a card and they have to split it with the wait staff and the kitchen staff. So bottom line leave cash on table if the server does a good job
I tip excessively for a multitude of reasons.
I worked for tips.
I like people looking forward to serving me.
I like promoting tax evasion.
I don’t like waiting.
To each his own.
Start with zero and then consider anything above the stated bill in relation to the relative effort and enthusiasm during service. Adjust according to mood.
I usually pay cash to tip to the waitstaff- but we have all been taxed enough and we both don’t need to be hit twice with it.
And I am not cheap as have worked in the hospitality business my entire life so I overtip anyway. Howevah - I do watch my money.
When I was just starting out on my own and paying my own way, poor as a snake, I got a taste of sour grapes with my cell phone that charged by the instant it hit the cell towers in the 80’s - that message you were required to hear about leaving a message, pressing one and blah blah blah - I paid so much to hear that crap without being able to skip it. I bet it cost me a thousand dollars over the time I had that damn bag phone. Not a tax but I was still not happy about it.
I paid $24 for ONE call I made even though I hung up when no one answered. It hit three cell towers when driving downtown Charlotte, NC. I called to question the charge and was told it was $8 every time it hit a tower then.
Hah.
Worked as a waitress. It is true.
I briefly entered East Germany, and had lunch there. They didn’t tip there. It convinced me that tipping works.
In the 20th century the tip was 10%. I will not participate in anything from the 21st century.
NO confusion here, we go to a few restaurants regularly, and they give me awesome service, and wait on us hand and foot, but I am willing to Pay to be Served and they know it.
I am getting more generous as I get older. I want that server to be very happy to see me next time. I have heard stories about what servers can do to the food of the customers they hate. I’m sure that kind of retribution is rare, but I’d prefer to lower the odds.
Also, and this is more important- I feel very blessed with financial stability. No way do I want to try to explain to Jesus on Judgment Day why I was so cheap towards others when He had been so generous to me.
So do we...in cash...around here WORKING PEOPLE” deserve good tips (unless service is bad). We also discriminate...I will leave that at that. However, anyone we suspect getting gov’t payouts usually gets less. We have fun surprising wait staff. It is better than giving to local 501c3’s etc.
Same.
My husband and I tip 20% pre-tax. We’re regulars at the restaurants in our small town and know all the servers by name and they know us. We also tip 20% when dining out in the greater Twin Cities area. It’s rare to get bad service in our experience. I worked in food service pre-college years ago. I appreciate how hard any job in the industry can be at times.
BINGO! Tip for good service not a percent they think they’re owed.
Seriously though, 15% as that's the low one on the card reader's display, cash on table for good service in a real restaurant.
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