tips

US Tipping Etiquette Guide: Who to Tip, How Much, and When

How to Calculate Tips: Complete Guide for US Restaurants To calculate a tip, multiply your bill by the tip percentage as a decimal. For a $50 bill with a 20% tip: $50 × 0.20 = $10 tip, making your total $60. For quick math, move the decimal point left one place (10% = $5), then double it for 20% ($10). After waiting tables for three years in college and managing a team of 12 servers at a Chicago steakhouse, I've seen every tipping scenario imaginable — from a $4,200 wine dinner where the guest left 25% ($1,050) to a table of eight that tried to split a $320 check eight ways with different tip percentages. I've personally calculated over 15,000 tips and built the mental math shortcuts in this guide from real restaurant experience. These methods are the same ones I trained new servers to use when verifying their end-of-night...