How much do I have to tip? Is it true 18% to 20% is the bare minimum?

When was the last time you bought a coffee and weren’t prompted for a tip on the payment machine?

According to an Angus Reid survey, many Canadians think tipping has gotten out of control, culminating in a phenomenon known as ‘tipflation.’

“It’s where we’re being sort of nudged to tip more than we’ve tipped before — partly because some of us tipped more during the pandemic at our favourite restaurants because we were worried about keeping them in business and partly because there’s a labour shortage,” says Mike von Massow, a professor in the department of food, agricultural and resource economics at the University of Guelph.

Simon Pek, an associate professor at the University of Victoria, says tipping is now presented as something that is by default an expectation when it wasn’t historically.

“When traditionally, you may have seen options like 12, 15 or 18 per cent, now the minimum is 18 or 20 per cent. That means people are influenced by those defaults and might choose those options instead of picking another option through a process that’s not always immediately clear.”

But how much do you have to tip?

“I think it differs by the type of business and the geography you’re in,” he explains. “I work in Guelph, and I would say that the average tip is higher than it is in Toronto in terms of what is asked for and what the average is.”

According to the same Angus Reid survey, 43 per cent of Canadians reported leaving a tip of less than 15 per cent at a restaurant in 2016. Now, just 23 per cent report leaving the same amount for a tip. Where the standard tip range might have been between 10 to 20 per cent in the past, that range has now shifted to 15 to 25 per cent, von Massow explains.

Lisa Orr, an etiquette expert, told Narcity that you shouldn’t bother eating out if you can’t leave a tip between 15 and 20 per cent. Meanwhile, von Massow adds that people should remember tipping is voluntary.

“Yes, there is this social norm, but there’s no law, rules, or standards for doing so, and you should do what you’re comfortable with.”