How to Use This Calculator
- 1
Enter the bill amount
Type the check total. In the U.S. it's customary to tip on the pre-tax subtotal if it's listed separately, though many people just use the final amount for simplicity.
- 2
Tap a tip percentage
The quick buttons cover the common range — 15%, 18%, 20%, and 25%. For anything else, like rounding to a clean total, type a custom percentage in the field.
- 3
Set how many people are paying
Leave it at 1 if you're covering the check yourself. For a group, enter the headcount and the per-person amounts appear alongside the totals.
- 4
Read off the results
You get the tip in dollars, the grand total with tip included, and what each person owes — both their share of the whole check and of the tip alone.
How It Works
The tip is a straight percentage of the bill, and the split divides everything evenly:
Per person = (Bill + Tip) ÷ Number of people
There's no rounding trickery — if the split doesn't come out to whole cents, the display rounds to the nearest penny. Whoever grabs the check can round the total up and nobody at the table will mind.
Worked example
Four friends share an $85 dinner and want to leave 20%. The tip is 85 × 0.20 = $17.00, bringing the check to $102.00.
Split four ways, each person pays 102 ÷ 4 = $25.50, of which $4.25 is their share of the tip.
Had they gone with 18% instead, the tip would be $15.30 and each share $25.08 — about 42 cents apiece. Between percentages, the per-person difference is usually smaller than people expect.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much should you tip at a restaurant in the US?
For table service, 15–20% of the bill is the accepted standard, with 20% or more for attentive service. On an $85 dinner that's $12.75 to $17.00. Servers in many states earn a tipped minimum wage as low as $2.13 an hour federally, so tips genuinely make up the bulk of their income — skipping the tip entirely is reserved for seriously poor service.
Do you tip on the pre-tax or post-tax amount?
Etiquette guides say the pre-tax subtotal is the correct base, since tax isn't a service. In practice the gap is small: on a $85 bill with 8% tax, tipping 20% post-tax adds just $1.36 more than pre-tax. Many diners tip on the final total for convenience, and restaurant-suggested tip lines often calculate it that way too.
Should you tip for takeout, delivery, or at the bar?
They follow different norms. Takeout: optional, though 10% is a kind gesture for large or complicated orders. Delivery: 15–20% with a $3–5 floor, since the driver covers gas and time regardless of order size. Bartenders: $1–2 per drink or 20% of the tab. Hair stylists and barbers generally expect 15–20% as well.
Is a 15% tip still acceptable?
Yes — 15% remains the floor of the standard range for adequate table service, not an insult. That said, the American norm has drifted upward over the past couple of decades, and 18–20% is now what most etiquette sources describe as typical. Reserve 15% for service that was merely fine, and 20%+ for service you'd want again.
How do I figure a 20% tip in my head?
Take 10% by moving the decimal one place left, then double it. On an $85 check, 10% is $8.50, so 20% is $17.00. For 15%, take that same 10% and add half of it again ($8.50 + $4.25 = $12.75). With a little practice you can land within a quarter of the exact amount before your phone is even out.
Is tipping the same in other countries as in the US?
Not even close — the U.S. is the outlier. In Japan and South Korea tipping can come across as rude; in much of Western Europe a service charge of 10–15% is already built into the bill, so you at most round up; in the U.K. 10–12.5% is typical when service isn't included. Check whether the menu says 'service included' before adding an American-sized tip abroad.