How much should I tip at a restaurant?

In the US and Canada, 15–20% of the pre-tax bill is standard. 18% is a safe default for sit-down restaurants; adjust up for exceptional service.

Do I tip on the pre-tax or post-tax amount?

Etiquette says tip on the pre-tax subtotal. Tipping on the post-tax amount is common but slightly overpays — the difference is usually just a dollar or two.

Should you tip on takeout?

Not obligatory. Rounding up or adding 10% is generous for takeout. Counter and app orders increasingly show tip prompts — these are optional, and skipping them is not considered rude.

Do you tip if service was bad?

Conventional wisdom is yes — at least 10–15% — because servers often tip-share with kitchen and support staff who had nothing to do with your experience. A reduced tip signals dissatisfaction without punishing the whole team. For serious service failures, speak to the manager instead.

Is it rude not to tip?

In the US and Canada, skipping a tip at a sit-down restaurant is considered rude because servers are legally paid below minimum wage with tips counted as part of their income. In countries where service is factored into wages — Japan, most of Europe, Australia — it is culturally normal to skip the tip entirely.

What is an 18% tip on $85?

$15.30. The math: 85 × 0.18 = 15.30, so the total comes to $100.30.

Tip calculator — split a bill across any party size

The formula

Tip amount = bill × (tip% ÷ 100). Per-person share = (bill + tip) ÷ number of people. For a $48 dinner with 20% tip split between 3: tip = $48 × 0.20 = $9.60; total = $57.60; per person = $19.20.

Worked examples

15% on a $65.40 restaurant bill: $65.40 × 0.15 = $9.81 tip; total $75.21.
20% on a $120 bill split between 4: tip = $24; total = $144; per person = $36.
Bill already includes 12.5% service charge: adding another tip on top would be double-tipping. Total = bill × 1.125; no additional tip needed.

How much to tip, by country

Tipping norms vary wildly. A few useful starting points:

US, Canada: 15–20% on the pre-tax bill, more for great service. 18% is a safe default.
UK, Ireland:10–12.5%, often already added as a "service charge" — check the bottom of the bill before adding more.
Most of continental Europe: rounding up or 5–10% for good service. Service is included by law in many countries.
Japan, South Korea: tipping is generally not done and can come across as rude in upscale settings.
Australia: not expected — service staff are paid full wages, so tipping is purely voluntary.
Brazil: a 10% service charge is often added directly to the bill; check before adding more.
Mexico: 10–15% is expected in sit-down restaurants, and more in tourist areas where servers depend heavily on tips.
Lithuania, Baltics: 5–10% is generous, rounding up is the norm. Card-machine prompts are increasingly common.

Splitting the bill cleanly

The fairest split is to add tip to the total first, then divide. Splitting the subtotal and asking each person to add their own tip mathematically works out the same but introduces rounding errors that always favour the restaurant. We do the math for you — adjust the slider for the number of people, and the per-person figure updates as you type.

The card-machine trap

US-style card machines often default to a 25–30% tip on the post-taxtotal. That's 30–40% more than a 20% pre-tax tip. Worth knowing if you tip from instinct.

When not to tip

Service charge already on the bill: adding more is double-tipping. Scan the receipt before tapping the card machine.
Takeout food: rounding up or leaving a dollar is plenty. A full sit-down tip is not expected.
Counter service:ordering at a counter or food truck doesn't carry the same tipping expectation as table service.
Self-checkout: tip prompts at self-checkout kiosks are optional — there is no server to tip.

Tip calculator