International Tipping Table
| Country / region | Restaurant | The local norm |
|---|---|---|
| United States | 18-20% | wages assume it - 15% is the floor, screens now suggest 25%+ |
| Canada | 15-20% | US-adjacent; card terminals prompt for it |
| UK, Ireland | 0-12.5% | service charge often on the bill - check before adding |
| France, Spain, Italy | round up / 5-10% | service compris - included by law; the extra is praise, not duty |
| Germany, Austria | round up / 5-10% | tell the server the total when paying cash |
| Japan | none | not the system - chasing you to return it is not rude, just confusing |
| South Korea, China | none | no tipping culture; Hong Kong adds a 10% service charge instead |
| Australia, NZ | none expected | 10% for genuinely exceptional service only |
| Mexico | 10-15% | la propina is expected; cash preferred |
Tipping is the one travel skill nobody teaches: the 20% reflex that embarrasses you in Tokyo, the double-tip on a Paris bill that already included service, the housekeeper you forgot because she cannot add a line to the card machine. The table lays out the norms country by country, with the local logic attached.
Bottom line: the world splits three ways. Tip-as-wage countries (the US, Canada) expect 18-20% because the law lets employers pay tipped staff less. Service-included countries (most of Europe, Hong Kong) print the charge on the bill, so anything extra is praise. No-tipping countries (Japan, South Korea, China) simply run a different system - the bill is the whole price.
The honest part: norms are moving. US card screens now suggest 25-30% for counter service that never used to be tipped, European tourist zones have learned to expect American percentages, and every guidebook disagrees by five points. The table gives the settled middle - locally, watching one local settle a bill teaches more than any guide.
How to use
- Check the bill before anything else: a service charge line (service compris, coperto, the Hong Kong 10%) means the tip decision is already made.
- Find your country's row and match the setting - restaurant norms do not transfer to bars, taxis or hotels, where the notes column and the calculators below take over.
- In no-tipping countries, pay exactly the bill: rounding up for convenience is fine, but a deliberate tip invites a chase to return it.
Frequently asked questions
Do you tip in Japan?
No - and it is not modesty, it is system design: good service is the price, not a gratuity to be topped up. Leaving cash can genuinely confuse a server, who may chase you down the street to return the money you 'forgot'. The one workaround: rounding up to the nearest convenient note when paying cash is unremarkable.
Do you tip in Europe?
Less than you think. Most of the EU includes service in the menu price by law (service compris in France is literally 'service included'), so the extra 5-10% - or rounding up the cash total - is appreciation, not obligation. The real traps: the UK bill that already carries a 12.5% optional service charge, and the tourist restaurants that print 'tip not included' in four languages.
What is the US tipping expectation in 2026?
Sit-down restaurants run 18-20%, with 15% the working floor and screens now suggesting 25% and up - including at counter-service kiosks that historically took no tips. The practical read: full service keeps the 18-20% norm, counter service is genuinely optional (0-10%), and the wage structure is the reason it feels compulsory - federal tipped minimum wage assumes tips exist.
Should I tip hotel housekeeping?
In tipped countries, yes - it is the most-skipped tip in travel because the recipient cannot add a line to your card: $2-5 per night in the US, cash, left daily (staff rotate, so a checkout lump sum may miss the people who served you). Elsewhere follow the country's restaurant norm: nothing in Japan, round-up in Europe.
Is it rude to tip in no-tipping countries?
Rude is too strong - confusing is accurate. In Japan a left-behind note becomes a lost-and-found errand; in South Korea or mainland China a tip may simply be refused after an awkward pause. Nobody will be offended the way guides warn, but nobody will be pleased either: you paid more and broke a script both sides knew. The generous version is a genuine thank-you, not cash.