How Much Should You Tip? (2026 US Guide)

In the United States, tip 20% of the pre-tax bill at a full-service restaurant for good service, 15% if it was just okay, and 25% or more for exceptional service. At bars, tip $1 to $2 per drink or 20% of the tab.

Tipping in America can feel like a guessing game, with percentages shifting by place, server, and card machine. Yet the basic rules have stayed stable: full-service restaurants expect the most, counter service expects less, and a few situations — like a self-checkout screen — expect nothing at all. This guide lays out the standard rates, shows the math with real bills, and answers the questions people actually ask, such as whether to tip before or after tax.

To skip the mental math, our free Tip Calculator works out the tip, total, and each share.

Standard US Tipping Rates at a Glance

The table below covers the situations most people run into week to week. Use the middle column as your default, then adjust up or down based on the service you actually received.

How Much Is a 20% Tip? Worked Examples

The formula is simple: tip = bill × percentage. The only judgment call is which bill figure to use, and the convention in the US is the pre-tax subtotal. Here are three everyday examples.

• Dinner for two, $68.00 pre-tax: 20% of $68.00 = $13.60. Round to $14 for convenience, making the total $82.00 before tax.
• Family meal, $142.50 pre-tax: 20% of $142.50 = $28.50. A 15% tip would be $21.38, and a 25% tip would be $35.63 — so the gap between an average and a generous tip on this bill is about $14.
• Lunch, $24.00 pre-tax: 20% of $24.00 = $4.80. Rounding up to $5 is normal and makes the server's day slightly better without changing yours.

Rounding is part of the culture, not a mistake. Nobody expects exactly $13.60; rounding to the nearest dollar is standard, and rounding up on small bills is common.

Should You Tip Before or After Tax?

Tip on the pre-tax subtotal. That is the long-standing US convention, and it is also how servers themselves tend to calculate it. In practice, the difference is small: on a $100 pre-tax bill with 8% sales tax, a 20% tip is $20.00 pre-tax versus $21.60 after tax — a difference of $1.60.

Most receipts print the subtotal before tax, making this easy. If yours only shows the total, tip on a slightly smaller number, or just use the after-tax total and know you are tipping a touch more generously. The awkward mistake is the opposite one: tipping on a total that already includes a service charge or an automatic gratuity.

Check for Automatic Gratuity Before You Tip Twice

Many restaurants add an automatic gratuity of 18 to 20% for large parties, often for groups of six or eight or more. Some also add a service charge, which is not the same thing: a service charge goes to the restaurant, while a gratuity is meant for the staff. Always scan the bill before adding a tip.

• If the bill says "gratuity included" or "20% service added," you have already tipped. Add extra only if the service was exceptional.
• If the bill shows a "service charge" but no gratuity, ask the server whether it goes to staff. If it does not, tip normally on top.
• Delivery apps add their own service and delivery fees. Those fees go to the app and the restaurant, not the driver — the driver's tip is the separate line you add.

The 20% Mental-Math Trick

You do not need a calculator for a 20% tip. Move the decimal point one place left to get 10%, then double it. On a $64.00 bill, 10% is $6.40, so 20% is $12.80. On a $37.50 bill, 10% is $3.75, so 20% is $7.50. For 15%, take the 10% figure and add half of it: on $64.00, that is $6.40 + $3.20 = $9.60.

Another shortcut: 20% is one-fifth of the bill. Divide by five in your head — $85 divided by 5 is $17 — and you have the tip.

Delivery, Takeout, and Counter Service

Delivery deserves the full 20% in most cases. Drivers use their own cars and pay for gas, so a $5 minimum is a useful floor: on a $16 sandwich order, 20% is only $3.20, which barely covers the trip. Bump it to $5, and add a couple of dollars more in rain, snow, or extreme heat.

Takeout is different. When you pick up the food yourself, 10 to 15% is generous and 0% is not rude for a simple counter pickup. The exception is a large, complicated order — twenty items checked, bagged, and kept hot — where 15 to 20% is a fair thank-you. At counter-service spots, tip when someone did real work for you, not just because a screen asked.

Splitting the Bill Fairly

For a group, calculate the tip on the whole bill first, then split the total. Splitting first and letting everyone tip individually usually leaves the server short, because someone always rounds down or forgets tax. Example: four friends share a $160 pre-tax bill. A 20% tip is $32, making $192 before tax, or $48 per person before tax. If the group wants to split evenly, each person pays $48 plus their share of tax. If orders varied wildly, split the food cost by what each person ordered, but still tip 20% on each share so the server is not penalized for the group's arrangement.

When Not to Tip

Tipping fatigue is real, and not every screen deserves a tip. You are not expected to tip at a self-checkout kiosk, a retail store, or a counter where you did everything yourself, nor to tip a professional such as a doctor or plumber, or to double-tip when a gratuity is already included. Skipping a tip in these cases is not stingy; it is the norm.

The one place to be careful is the full-service restaurant itself. In most US states, servers earn a lower tipped minimum wage, and tips make up the bulk of their income. If the service was genuinely bad, speak to a manager rather than leaving nothing, and save the zero-tip option for cases where the service was truly unacceptable.

Tipping in the UK and Elsewhere: A Quick Contrast

Outside the US, the rules are lighter. In the UK, a 12.5% discretionary service charge is often added; if it is there, no extra tip is needed, and if not, 10 to 15% is generous. In much of Europe, rounding up or leaving 5 to 10% is plenty, and in Japan, tipping is not customary at all. The 20% US standard does not travel with you, so check the local norm before you land.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much should I tip at a restaurant in the US?

Tip 20% of the pre-tax bill for good service at a full-service restaurant, 15% for average service, and 25% or more for outstanding service. For counter service, 10 to 20% is typical, and for delivery, tip 20% or $5, whichever is more.

Should I tip before or after tax?

Tip on the pre-tax subtotal, which is the standard US convention. On a $100 pre-tax bill with 8% tax, that means a $20 tip rather than $21.60, though tipping on the after-tax total is also perfectly acceptable and slightly more generous.

How much is a 20% tip on $50?

A 20% tip on $50 is $10, making the total $60 before tax. Use the quick trick of moving the decimal point to get 10% ($5) and doubling it, which works for any bill amount.

Do I have to tip if a gratuity is already included?

No. If the bill states that a gratuity or service charge for staff is included, you have already tipped, and adding a second tip means double-tipping. Add extra only if the service was exceptional, and check whether a listed service charge goes to staff or to the restaurant.