Tipping by country: a table of 20 destinations

The trouble with most tipping tables is that nobody says where the numbers come from. They copy one another, and you can't tell whether the 10% for Italy came from Italians or from a blog in Ohio. The table here only includes places where an official tourism body or city says something itself. For popular destinations like Greece, Thailand or Mexico we found no such statement, so they aren't here. They haven't been forgotten; we just don't guess.

One more caveat: these are customs, not rules. All the sources say in one form or another that the amount depends on your satisfaction.

The table: tipping at restaurants

As a chart, using the top of each range. Where a body only says "not expected" or "not obligatory", it shows 0; for Copenhagen it is the 10% the body names.

The numbers aren't always directly comparable. In France, 15% service is already in the price and the 3% is an extra thank-you. In the USA it's the opposite: the menu price doesn't include service. That's also why the USA looks so high on the chart.

What to check first: the bill

Most awkward moments come in pairs: you tip on top of a service charge, or you leave nothing where none was added.

• London: Visit London puts the usual service charge at 12.5%. If it's there, nothing further is needed. In pubs, ordering at the bar, no tip is expected.
• Dubai: a service charge is often already on the bill. But Visit Dubai points out that it often goes to the business and not necessarily to the staff who served you.
• Vienna: the Vienna Tourist Board says that if the tip is already included, you don't pay it again.
• Spain and France: according to the official bodies, service is already included. A tip is a thank-you, not a gap in someone's wage.
• USA and Canada: the pre-tax bill is the base, with tax shown separately. NYC Tourism and Tourisme Montréal both calculate before tax.

For markets and small places it's practical to carry some cash anyway.

Taxis, hotels and guides

For Japan, the official tourism organisation names one exception: private guides or interpreters used to overseas guests may accept a tip as a gesture, discreetly in an envelope. JNTO says such envelopes are sold at convenience stores and 100-yen shops. In a bar, a taxi or a hotel you leave it; the route itself is in our Japan itinerary. If you book a private tour in Tokyo, say tours in Tokyo at Klook^*, bring one of those envelopes.

New York is the reverse: if you book guided tours in New York^*, keep some cash ready for a tip. Visit California names "a few dollars" for rideshare drivers and a dollar per drink for bartenders; NYC Tourism $1 to $2 per drink.

The three countries where it most often goes wrong

USA. Coming from Britain or Europe, leaving nothing counts as rude, since tips are built into how staff are paid. So budget for around 20% more on food than the menu shows, plus tax. For a trip around the States, include that from the start; see US city breaks.

Japan. Here the opposite is what seems odd. JNTO says tipping isn't customary and, if done at all, should be discreet.

UK. Europe's most common double payment, because of the service charge. For visitors: one look at the bill is all it takes.

In most other countries you'll visit from Britain, about 10% or rounding up is right, as far as an official body gives any figure at all.

How YesTrip helps

For your trip budget, YesTrip's expenses feature helps: you enter shared costs, in several currencies if needed, and the app shows who owes whom. A tip simply goes in too. Under good-to-know you find things like plugs, currency and emergency numbers for each destination, along with a link to your home country's official travel advice. A tipping figure per country isn't in the app yet, which is what this table is for. Before setting off for Dubai, check the UK government's travel advice, which currently urges caution over regional tensions.

How this fits into your planning is explained in How to plan a trip: step by step, and for shared costs on the road see Split travel expenses fairly.

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