Is 15% a bad tip in the US?

Not bad, but it reads as under-marking today. 15% is the floor for ordinary service; most regulars tip 18–20% and loyal customers push 25%.

Do I tip on the pretax or post-tax total?

Servers earn off the pretax subtotal. Tipping on the tax-inflated total quietly adds about 2% more, which regulars skip unless they're rounding to a whole dollar.

Dining

Restaurant Tip Etiquette: The US Percentage Guide

5 min readEtiquette

Nobody hands you the handbook when the check lands. So here it is. I've carried trays for nine years, and this is the percentage map most guides over-explain: 15 is the floor, 20 is the norm, 25 is the standout.

15% — the floor, not the goal

In the US a waiter's wage already assumes you'll tip. Step behind the ledger for a second: many tipped staff live on $2–6 an hour, and that's it. At 15% the service barely breaks even. Leave 15% for competent, forgettable, get-the-orders-right service — and understand that your server reads it as "we were fine, no more."

18–20% — where normal lives

Two decades ago 18% was the star. Today 20% is the quiet default that nobody argues with. Round mentally: take 10% (one decimal shift) and double it, then nudge up for anything you enjoyed. On a $84 pretax bill that's roughly $17 for 20%. The tip calculator spares you the mental string.

25% — the standout

Reservations to a booked-out place, allergies remembered, kids entertained without being asked, a dessert you didn't order because they know you. That's a 25% night. Loyal regulars treat generous tipping as cheap insurance for the next visit.

Tip on the pretax subtotal

The bill shows a subtotal and then tax. Warriors tip on the subtotal; the wholesome-cheat move is to round the subtotal up to the next dollar and tip on that — your server gets a couple extra dollars and your number looks clean. Do not feel obligated to tip 20% on the tax. It's already a quiet 2% mark-up.

"A good tip is a read on the night, not a percentage quiz. 20% for expected, 25% for remembered, 15% for tolerable — the math is the least interesting part."

When 15% is too much

Rude, dismissive, orders wrong twice and never returns? Leave 10% and mention it to a manager. Federal law lets you adjust down for genuinely poor service. What you shouldn't do is skip the tip entirely unless the server was openly hostile — that hurts the staff, not the house.

Fast checklists

Standard dinner — 18–20% on the pretax subtotal
Exceptional service — 25%
Buffet / counter — 10–15%
Slow or rude — 10% and a quiet word