BOISE (Statesman of Idaho) I usually leave a full-service tip of 20%.
However, I left $20 on a $61.58 tab while spending Tuesday night with friends on the patio of a pub and grill in Boise. We had received good treatment. Additionally, finger steaks made me feel generous.
When I was given two beer cans at an outdoor concert hours earlier, I didn’t tip at all. Tokens were used in transactions. Even though the Feeling tipsy? bucket was filled with a few dollar bills, I had no cash.
Last Friday, I left a 15% tip on a $15 meal at a food truck. For any less serious concern, I was too lazy to choose custom on the touchscreen. That added up to more than $18 for a burrito covered in foil. Two plastic ramekins of salsa were included, at least.
According to a recent study, I’m most likely a cheapskate overall, regardless of how haphazardly I might seem to tip.
According to a LendingTree article, Idahoans are the third worst tippers in the US.
If it cheers you up, our neighbors in Utah are the worst.
According to LendingTree, New Hampshire residents leave the highest tips.
However, should we believe any of these claims at all?
Best or worst?
Idaho residents are the best tippers in America, according to data from payment processing giant Square that Time released in 2017. First place!
Two years later, a survey of over 2,500 people from New Hampshire revealed that New Hampshire was the best state for tipping, while Idaho was the worst.
Who is right? Or both? Not one? How much trust you place in the process will determine this. The article’s bottom contains LendingTree’s strategy. Overall, however, we examined 2023 data from the National Food Expenditure Series of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Economic Research Service (ERS) to estimate tipping behavior by state. The total amount spent on food away from home (including tax and tip) and the total amount spent on food away from home (without tax and tip) were the two expenditure estimates that we specifically compared.
The two primary conclusions that caught my attention were:
- Americans spent $77.6 billion on tips for food purchased to be consumed away from home in 2023, the latest year for which data is available. Tips accounted for 15.02% of spending at full-service restaurants in the U.S. When including limited-service restaurants, drinking establishments and other similar places, that percentage falls to 6.75%.
- In New Hampshire, tips comprised 16.07% of spending on food purchased to be consumed away from home The District of Columbia and South Carolina are second and third. Utah, Mississippi and Idaho rank lowest, with tips comprising 5.10% or less of spending. (Note: These percentages include tips for full-service restaurants, limited-service restaurants and drinking establishments, among others.)
Service fees, credit card charges
My tipping tendencies are obviously inconsistent. I mistrust a lot of Americans, including Idahoans.
This is most likely the reason why some bold eateries and pubs covertly tack on a service charge. An average ding is 18%. 20% sometimes. It is most frequently observed when a restaurant serves groups of six or more patrons.
Many people hate paying for services. myself as well. Businesses can end up going in the opposite direction.
I want to be able to tip however and whenever I choose. I can’t support a compulsory gratuity, even if we all know it’s a difficult industry. Particularly when it might not even reach the server. Alternatively, the restaurant argues that the service charge is not the same as a tip and is related to paying reasonable salaries.
Additionally, I will completely avoid any bar or restaurant that charges a credit card fee. Like my car mechanic, adjust rates appropriately and give a cash discount instead.
Are these emotions illogical? Most likely.
Has the tipping culture in the US gone completely crazy? Of course.
Are Idaho residents truly the nation’s third-worst tippers? Maybe.
In any case, feel free to Venmo me a tip even if you are a Statesman subscription but not if you are not.
