Tip Calculator — Calculate Tip and Split Any Bill

Tip = Bill × (Tip% / 100)
Total = Bill + Tip
Per Person = Total / Number of People

Tip is calculated on the pre-tax bill, though most people tip on the total. The difference is usually under $1 and either approach is acceptable.

Tip (bill A1, pct B1)

=A1*(B1/100)

Total

=A1*(1+B1/100)

Per person (n in C1)

=A1*(1+B1/100)/C1

How to Calculate a Restaurant TipSearch YouTube tutorials →

Standard Tipping Rates in the US

Tipping norms in the United States have shifted upward over the past two decades. The old standard of 15% for good service has largely been replaced by 18-20% as the baseline expectation, with 20-25% for excellent service. In major cities, 20% is increasingly considered the floor rather than the ceiling.

For restaurant servers, tips are not optional — they are the primary component of income. Federal law allows tipped employees to be paid a minimum of $2.13/hour (the tipped minimum wage), with tips expected to make up the difference to the federal minimum wage. In practice, tips are the majority of server income. Tipping below 15% effectively means you are paying someone below minimum wage for their work.

Other service categories have different conventions. Bartenders: $1-2 per drink or 15-20% of the tab. Hotel housekeeping: $3-5 per night left daily (not just checkout day, since staff rotate). Taxi and rideshare: 15-20%. Food delivery drivers: $3-5 minimum, more for large or complex orders. Hair stylists and barbers: 15-20% of the service cost.

How Bill Splitting Works

Splitting a bill evenly is straightforward — divide the total including tip by the number of people. This calculator handles that directly. The trickier scenario is when people ordered very different amounts and want to pay for what they ordered specifically.

For uneven splits, the cleanest approach is to ask for separate checks when ordering — most restaurants accommodate this easily. If that's not possible, each person calculates their share of the food (their items plus a proportional share of any shared dishes), then adds tip on their individual subtotal.

Tip apps and bill-splitting apps like Splitwise, Tab, and Venmo's bill-splitting feature automate the complex math. For regular group dining, they're worth setting up — they track who paid, calculate individual shares, and handle the settling-up automatically.

Frequently Asked Questions

Etiquette guides say pre-tax is technically correct, since tax isn't part of the service. In practice, most people tip on the full post-tax total. On a $60 bill with 8% tax, the difference at 20% tip is about $0.96 — not worth the mental effort. Do whichever feels natural.

If service was genuinely poor, 10-15% communicates dissatisfaction while still acknowledging the server's work. Zero tip is generally considered appropriate only for actively hostile or deeply inappropriate behavior. For problems beyond the server's control — kitchen delays, food quality, other staff — the server typically shouldn't bear the full financial consequence.

Tipping is discretionary at counter service. The tip prompts on Square and other POS systems can feel pressured, but there's no social obligation equivalent to full-service dining. A small tip ($1-2) for friendly service at a regular spot you frequent is a nice gesture; skipping it at a fast-food counter is entirely acceptable.

Many restaurants automatically add a gratuity of 18-20% for parties of 6 or more. Check your bill before adding an additional tip — the auto-gratuity line is sometimes easy to miss. If you want to add more for exceptional service on top of the automatic gratuity, you can write that in the additional tip line.