How much to tip:
restaurant, cafe, delivery, hotel and salon

Check the bill before you tip

The most useful step is the one before any maths: read the bill. Many restaurants add a service charge as a line item, and some hotels fold service into the room tariff. If it is already there, an extra tip is a personal choice rather than an expectation.

Rules and norms differ widely, by country, city and kind of venue, and they have been revised and argued over in recent years. In some places tipping is customary at 15–20%, in others a few per cent or rounding up is normal, and in some it is not expected at all. What follows is arithmetic and typical practice, not a rulebook.

If a service charge has been added, ask for it to be removed or reduced if the service did not warrant it; then tip the person directly if you like. Rules on whether it can be levied by default differ, so check the current position where you are.

The calculation, on a real bill

Decide whether to base the tip on the pre-tax or the after-tax amount. Many people use the pre-tax food and drink total because the tax is not the server's work, and the difference is small. Either is acceptable if you are consistent.

Rounding makes it easier to hand over cash: the total of ₹2,024 can be rounded up to ₹2,030, which makes the tip ₹190, or about 10.3%. If the tip had been based on a pre-tax food total of ₹1,600, it would have been ₹160, a difference of ₹24.

For a quick estimate in your head, move the decimal one place for 10%, halve that for 5%, and add them for 15%.

Typical amounts by service

The ranges above are customs, not obligations, and they move over time. Where you are matters more than a national average, so watch what locals do.

Mental shortcuts that work

Tip arithmetic is quick when the numbers are cut down to a tenth. Move the decimal for 10%, halve it for 5%, add both for 15%, and double it for 20%.

Round to a figure you can actually hand over: ₹137.50 becomes ₹140. For card payments, the machine usually rounds for you, and an app will give an exact figure. The goal is a considerate amount, not decimal precision.

Splitting the tip fairly

Tipping as a group has one trap: people tip on their own order without noticing that the table total is what the server sees. Compute the tip once on the whole bill and divide the total.

• If the shares are equal, divide the grand total by head count.
• If the orders differ widely, split the pre-tip bill by item, then apply the same percentage to each share so the tip is proportional.
• If someone is a guest, the host usually covers the tip as well.
• If you pay by card, check whether the machine allows a tip line, otherwise carry small cash.

Worked example: a salon visit with two stylists

Tipping at a salon often goes to more than one person: the stylist who did the work and an assistant who washed or prepped. A percentage on the full service bill, divided by an agreed ratio, handles it.

Some salons pool tips or add a service line to the bill; ask how it is shared so your money reaches the people you meant it for. Where staff are paid a wage that includes this, a smaller amount or a thank-you is perfectly acceptable.

Quality of service and judgement

A tip is a thank-you for service, and the amount can reasonably reflect it. Poor service may justify a lower figure, and exceptional help a higher one. Staff in many places depend on tips to make a living wage, so a sudden zero deserves a reason rather than a reflex.

On the other side, avoid pressure. A tip that is mandatory in all but name is a service charge, and a charge should be on the bill, not demanded at the table. Use the calculator when the arithmetic gets awkward, such as a three-way split with different orders, and use your own judgement for the rest.

Tipping when travelling

Customs change sharply at borders. In some countries a tip of 15–20% is part of how staff are paid, and leaving none is read as a complaint. In others it is unusual or even awkward, and a thank-you is the right response. Check a recent local guide before you go, and look at whether a service charge is printed on the bill, since it often replaces the tip.

Carry small local notes for porters, taxis and cafe tables, and use the same percentage method on the bill when a tip is expected. For a bill of 60 units of local currency, 15% is 9, 18% is 10.8, and 20% is 12. Rounding to a whole figure is perfectly normal.