5 On Your Side: How much are customers tipping?

Is 20% still a good tip? 5 On Your Side investigates what people are tipping these days and how tipping culture is changing.

For many consumers, tipping fatigue is real, and technology can turn nearly every transaction into a math problem.

Restaurant technology company Toast tracked credit card and digital payments at roughly 171,000 tip-enabled restaurants on its platform in the first quarter. Cash tips were not included.

The average tip across all transactions was about 18.8%, but it varied depending on the type of restaurant. At full service sit-down restaurants, the average tip was 19.3%. At counter service or fast food restaurants, it was less, at 15.8%. For takeout, the average dropped to 13.7%.

The study did not establish a hard and fast rule, but Toast users still tend to tip about 18% to 20% when dining at a full service restaurant. For other types of service, customers appear to adjust accordingly.

Remember this: Gratuities, service charges and other fees may already be added automatically, so check your bill before you pay.