4 ms·

When did tipping 20% become standard in the US? I was talking to a colleague about this recently and they mentioned it but I could’ve sworn it used to be 15%

mattnewton 4y ago
I don’t think it is just you- ten years ago I distinctly remember somewhere where the brand new POS tip screens used to have 10, 15 and 20 percent tip buttons; now I frequently see 15 20 25 or 20 25 30 as defaults on those screens when going out.
rx_bandit 4y ago
It's true! I remember before we use to just double the tax and that was the tip. (When it used to be 7.25% in California) Nowadays we're taking a second and thinking before eating out.
jcranmer 4y ago
I want to say around-ish a decade ago? It definitely used to be 15% when I was growing up. Although based on some recent news articles I found when I tried searching for a more definitive source, tip amounts have gone down in the past year or so.
jghn 4y ago
In more cosmopolitan areas it's been normal for a while now. I remember 18 & even 20% being discussed over 10 years ago. And these days starting to see 25% pop up in conversations.
barbariangrunge 4y ago
It actually used to be 10%. It’s crept upwards for years
- gearsandbeers 4y ago
  I do wonder why it’s creeping upward though given it’s proportional and would increase as prices increase - perhaps it’s a symptom of employers paying even less after controlling for inflation etc. when comparing then vs now
  - lotsofpulp 4y ago
    I assume it is at least partly a status symbol thing when going out as a group to eat, especially amongst young people.
  - dpkirchner 4y ago
    The minimum wage (roughly what tipped workers earn) has been falling for decades, so I think at least some of the upward creep can be attributed to the knowledge that the workers are getting screwed, hard.
anigbrowl 4y ago
During the pandemic. 15% used to be the norm, then people (including me) started paying a bit more to help out restaurant workers who were dealing with a sudden precipitous drop in business. I'm about over it though.

mattnewton 4y ago

I don’t think it is just you- ten years ago I distinctly remember somewhere where the brand new POS tip screens used to have 10, 15 and 20 percent tip buttons; now I frequently see 15 20 25 or 20 25 30 as defaults on those screens when going out.

rx_bandit 4y ago

It's true! I remember before we use to just double the tax and that was the tip. (When it used to be 7.25% in California) Nowadays we're taking a second and thinking before eating out.

jcranmer 4y ago

I want to say around-ish a decade ago? It definitely used to be 15% when I was growing up. Although based on some recent news articles I found when I tried searching for a more definitive source, tip amounts have gone down in the past year or so.

jghn 4y ago

In more cosmopolitan areas it's been normal for a while now. I remember 18 & even 20% being discussed over 10 years ago. And these days starting to see 25% pop up in conversations.

barbariangrunge 4y ago

It actually used to be 10%. It’s crept upwards for years

gearsandbeers 4y ago
I do wonder why it’s creeping upward though given it’s proportional and would increase as prices increase - perhaps it’s a symptom of employers paying even less after controlling for inflation etc. when comparing then vs now
- lotsofpulp 4y ago
  I assume it is at least partly a status symbol thing when going out as a group to eat, especially amongst young people.
- dpkirchner 4y ago
  The minimum wage (roughly what tipped workers earn) has been falling for decades, so I think at least some of the upward creep can be attributed to the knowledge that the workers are getting screwed, hard.

anigbrowl 4y ago

During the pandemic. 15% used to be the norm, then people (including me) started paying a bit more to help out restaurant workers who were dealing with a sudden precipitous drop in business. I'm about over it though.