Tipping in America

[Bellybee]

Hello,

I am not trying to start any arguments I promise I am just generally curious.
I am from the UK and generally only tip a max of 10% in restaurants mostly less sometimes nothing.
I just wondered why the figure is higher in the US do the waiting staff get paid very poorly?

 

[Robert P]

I don't really know why the % is higher. A good question to ask.

Yes, the wait staff do get a lower wage (lower than the U.S. minimum wage) in most establishments. Tips do make up a large majority of their earnings.

 

[Barbers2005]

When you eat at American restaurants, the waitstaff generally get paid less than the "minimum" wage because tips are considered to be part of their wage. Here it is considered to be very rude (and cheap) to not leave a tip if you had a waiter or waitress. Just different customs.

 

[Dreamfinder2]

There are tons of etiquette rules in the U.S. dealing with tips, and some of them seem to conflict. But typically, 15 - 18% is standard at a sit-down establishment, perhaps a bit more if service is extraordinary. At a buffet, 10% is appropriate (although I read an article that stated in Las Vegas, where buffets are their own food group, $1 for breakfast, $1.50 for lunch, and $2.00 per person for dinner was standard.)

Servers in the United States are taxed on the income they make from tips, since it's counted as salary.

We usually just look and see what the sales tax is on our meal, double that amount, round it up to the nearest dollar, and that's our tip.

 

[DisneyFan0403]

Tip for service, not based on % amount.

A general guiderule is 15-20% or so. But again, tip for service you receive. Exemplary service would be on the high-end.

If anything, Americans tend to stick to a certain percentage -- like 20% -- more than recognizing someone who provided them with excellent service, and rewarded them accordingly.

Have a great trip!

 

[eva]

It is tough to get used to customs in new countries. We lived in Germany years ago. And we kept wondering why we would get these weird looks whenever we left a restaurant. Well, we were leaving at least a 15% tip. After quite some time an older woman server asked us very sternly if we felt she was poor and had to give her a hand out. Wow, what a difference in customs. In the US if we left nothing, we would have gotten the same glaring reaction. In Europe servers are given a fairly good wage which in turn increases the upfront cost of the meal. In the US servers are given a very substandard wage and exist mainly on tips. Pros and cons on both sides. I guess it is just that much more important to try to learn as much about the country that you will be visiting to try to avoid these mistakes.

I made another huge mistake while living in Germany. My landlady and I had been exchanging different bake goods that were traditional to each of our countries. All was going well until she told me how difficult it was to find good chicken at a reasonable price in Germany. So when I hit the PX the next week, I bought her this lovely roasting chicken. Yikes! You would have thought I walked up and slapped her in the face. She explained that giving unprepared food as a gift is considered an insult in Germany. It is like saying that the recipient is poor and that you have more money than they do.

 

[tigger536]

in Las Vegas, where buffets are their own food group...

Too funny!

Nothing new to add to what the other posters have said, 15%-20% range is the norm.

OT, but now I now why the waiters in England liked me so much...I did not know about the difference in tip norms and tipped "american style", LOL!

 

[rolshuk]

Being from the uk as well I am finding it difficult to come to terms with being expected to tip mouse keeping $4 a day (for 14 days!) plus 20% of everything I spend on food and drinks!!
I usually tip a couple of £s if service is good,over here waiters and waitresses and housekeeping staff are all paid a minimum wage which seems much fairer than expecting me to part with my hard earned wages!
Having said that I will of course tip as I know this is part of the wages in the USA.I might not agree with it but that isnt the staffs fault and I dont want then to go short because of me!

 

[sallyjane]

Remember that if you are on DDP tip is already included. Also in addition to Mousekeeping and food service dont forget you also have to tip bell hops and basically anyone who handles your bag $1-2 per bag. And dont forget those taxi cab drivers or bus drivers. I usually figure everyone that I will need to tip before I go and put money in envelopes just for them so I know how much each person gets and it stops my husband from over-tipping. He feels bad because most of the cab or limo drivers give you hard luck stories about how they have to work two million hours a week to make it or several jobs.

 

[Stinky_Pete]

Being from the uk as well I am finding it difficult to come to terms with being expected to tip mouse keeping $4 a day (for 14 days!)...

Whenever the question of tipping mousekeeping comes up on the resort board it becomes a big debate. The consensus among many of the less-judgemental people seems to be that since Disney lists many positions in their literature as "tipped" positions, but doesn't list mousekeeping as a "tipped" position, then you are neither expected to nor obligated to tip them. It is purely your choice.

While it is customary to tip housekeepers at many hotels in the US on a per-person/per-night basis, it would appear that is not a hard-and-fast rule at Disney, or they would be listed as "tipped" positions.

 

[madalex]

The federal minimum wage in the US is $5.15/hour, scheduled to go up to $7.25/hour over the next couple years. Some states have minimum wages that are higher than the federal minimum. However, there is a separate minimum wage for waiters and waitresses, which amount is only $2.13/hour (I don't know if this is scheduled to increase along with the other increased in the federal minimum wage). In addition, waitstaff are imputed a certain amount of tip income and taxed on that imputed income, even if they don't actually collect that amount in tips! For these reasons, tipping is much more of a factor in the cost of a meal in the US than it may be elsewhere.

 

[Flagondry]

Being from the uk as well I am finding it difficult to come to terms with being expected to tip mouse keeping $4 a day (for 14 days!) plus 20% of everything I spend on food and drinks!!
I usually tip a couple of £s if service is good,over here waiters and waitresses and housekeeping staff are all paid a minimum wage which seems much fairer than expecting me to part with my hard earned wages!
Having said that I will of course tip as I know this is part of the wages in the USA.I might not agree with it but that isnt the staffs fault and I dont want then to go short because of me!

You'll find that, across the board, opinions really vary about tipping for house keeping and it is based on the individual. Many people tip, many do not. Tipping at a hotel is not all that cut and dried and it would not generally be considered poor form not to tip. In an eatery not tipping would be very against the norm. Most people tip between 15-25%, depending on thre service provided.

 

[cedmonds]

With mousekeeping we tip according to service. we have stayed at deluxe and moderate resorts and we tip only when housekeeping is exceptional. I have had great service come back room is beautiful,sinks wiped down etc.. and we have come back to just the beds being made and only half the garbage emptied. We are pretty neat so housekeeping is not a big deal but I tip accordingly at the end of our stay.
Waitresses/waiters are a different story because they usually only make 3 or 4 dollars an hour. Our daughter has waitressed all through college and her tips are her salary and she knows how to turn the charm on and off , she also has to share her tip with the bussing staff. she will say that people outside the US are not known for their tipping some countries worse then others

 

[Mnchknbrat1982]

The area that I live in the tip generally is 10-15% of the bill. With that being said I normally tip a dollar per a person in the party. That normally is more than the 10%. I have found with housekeeping that a dollar per person is sufficient. I also do not do what someone said they do, I do not tip housekeeping at the end of the stay because most of the time you don't have the same housekeeping the entire stay. And when you tip only at the end of the stay the person who did you room the last day is the only one who gets the tip.

 

[raidermatt]

The consensus among many of the less-judgemental people seems to be that since Disney lists many positions in their literature as "tipped" positions, but doesn't list mousekeeping as a "tipped" position, then you are neither expected to nor obligated to tip them. It is purely your choice.

You'll get varying answers when you call and ask, however the Official WDW Guidebook lists it as a tipped position. Also, virtually every other documented source says it is generally customary to tip housekeeping in US hotels.

Everything is a choice of course, but the standard is out there.

 

[ncbyrne]

If you have a WDW package plan that includes the dining option, the tax and tip is included, and no additional tip is required, even if you are getting FREE dining. WDW pays the waitstaff an 18% tip for all of the dining packages. Some tip on top of that, we do not.

 

[mom2my3kids]

Most servers make around 2.13 a hour, I know that is what I make. I work at my local IHOP, So we live on the tips because what little pay we do get goes to pay our government taxes. The norm is 15-20 percent, but I can tell you alot of people tip under that. But the good tippers make up for the bad ones and the ones who stiff even with good service.

 

[zurgswife]

Being from the uk as well I am finding it difficult to come to terms with being expected to tip mouse keeping $4 a day (for 14 days!) plus 20% of everything I spend on food and drinks!!

Tipping mousekeeping is a personal decision. Not one that should be expected. They are not considered a tipped position.

I am I good tipper and tip 20% when it is deserved. For a regular meal usually 15%-18% is the norm. While I have tipped much more for a certain beloved waiter at Disney he is not the norm.

The area that I live in the tip generally is 10-15% of the bill. With that being said I normally tip a dollar per a person in the party. That normally is more than the 10%.

There are very few places at Disney were an adult meal for say 3 people is less then $100. I'm including at least one app, 3 entrees and maybe a dessert and non alcohol beverages. If you tip a dollar a person that is $3 far below 10% and no where near 15%. You'd have to have a $30 bill for 3 people to make your tipping method even come close to 10%. And where do you feed 3 people a sit down dinner for $30 at Disney??? Which in my opinion is too low for most servers. 10% is typically for below margin service.

 

[Mulan82]

i don't know about other states.. but as a server i can tell you that i only get paid $2.13/hr. yes, thats two dollars and thirteen cents an hour. i know that in california their server min wage is 6 something. but i think that is because their cost of living is higher ( apparently, they haven't lived in NJ... ). sometimes people don't realize this. they think that we get paid the regular working minimum wage. but, we don't. and trust me, if i ever do i get a pay check ( which is really really rare...) its only for like, eight dollars. once i got one for $.52!!!!! that was a waste!

 

[raidermatt]

Tipping mousekeeping is a personal decision. Not one that should be expected. They are not considered a tipped position.

From the Official WDW Guide:

Tips are no less valued at Disney Resorts than at any other hotel - $1 per bag is appropriate for lugging luggage; $1 to $3 per person, per night for housekeeping services (include a note to avoid confusion). Gratuities of 15 to 20 percent (excluding tax) are customary at full-service restaurants. (If service is exceptional or otherwise, adjust accordingly.) Gratuity is inlcuded in the room service bill at WDW resorts and some off-property hotels. Check before you tip twice. Note that a 10 percent gratuity is added at the Pepper Market at Coronado Springs (despite the self-serve set-up).

Give cab drivers a 15 percent tip for good service. Baggage handlers at the train station and airport expect about $1 per bag.