Tip Calculator
Split a bill fairly: enter the amount, tip percent, and party size to see the tip, total, and per-person share.
Shows the tip, total, and per-person amount. Set tip to 0% to split a bill evenly.
How the tip and the split are calculated
The math is three quick steps. Tip equals the bill multiplied by the tip rate. Total equals the bill plus the tip. Per person equals the total divided by the number of people. Worked example: a table has a $84.50 bill, wants to leave 18%, and is splitting four ways. The tip is 84.50 x 0.18 = $15.21, the total is 84.50 + 15.21 = $99.71, and each person owes 99.71 / 4 = $24.9275, or $24.93 after rounding. If the group prefers round numbers, collecting $25 each brings in $100, which covers the bill and leaves a small extra toward the tip.
Tip on the pre-tax subtotal or the post-tax total?
This is the question most people get wrong, and it changes the number more than you would expect. Say the food and drinks come to a $80 subtotal and sales tax is 8%, so tax is $6.40 and the printed total is $86.40. A 20% tip on the pre-tax subtotal is 80 x 0.20 = $16.00. A 20% tip on the post-tax total is 86.40 x 0.20 = $17.28. That is a $1.28 gap on one meal, and it grows with the bill size. Traditionally the tip is calculated on the pre-tax subtotal, since tax is money that goes to the government, not the server. Either choice is fine socially, but decide before you enter the number so your percentage means what you think it means.
Splitting evenly versus splitting by what each person ordered
An even 1/N split is fair only when everyone ordered roughly the same. When one person had a steak and wine and another had a salad and water, an even split quietly overcharges the light orderer. Example: a $100 subtotal where person A ordered $50, person B $30, and person C $20, with a 20% tip of $20 for a $120 total. Splitting proportionally, A pays $60, B pays $36, and C pays $24. Splitting evenly makes each person pay $40 — so C hands over $40 for a $20 meal, $16 too much. The clean rule is to apply the same tip percentage to everyone, but let each person's share track what they actually ordered.
Tipping norms differ by country
- United States and Canada: 15 to 20% is customary at sit-down restaurants, adjusted up or down for service. Below 15% reads as a complaint.
- Europe: a service charge is often already on the bill (look for 'service compris' or 'servizio incluso'). People usually just round up or leave small change on top.
- United Kingdom and Australia: tipping is appreciated but modest, often around 10% or rounding up, and frequently already added for larger groups.
- Korea, Japan, and much of East Asia: tipping is generally not expected and can even cause confusion. Prices are the prices.
- Useful travel habit: check the receipt for the words 'service charge' or 'gratuity' before adding anything, so you do not pay it twice.
Situations where a tip calculator helps
- Group dinners: split a large bill quickly so nobody has to do mental math while the server waits.
- Travel: work in local percentages when you are unsure of the custom, and sanity-check a bill in an unfamiliar currency.
- Delivery and takeout: estimate a fair tip on top of an order total when the app does not suggest one.
- Cash tables: set the tip, see the total, then round each person up to an easy bill so you can settle in notes without coins.
- Plain bill-splitting: set the tip to 0% and the tool becomes a simple 1/N splitter for any shared cost, not just meals.
Common mistakes when splitting a bill
- Double-tipping an included service charge. If the bill already lists 'service' or 'gratuity added', an additional 18% on top is a second tip you did not mean to leave.
- Splitting evenly when orders were very uneven, which reliably overcharges whoever ate the least.
- Rounding every share up and forgetting the extra. Four people rounding $24.93 up to $25 quietly adds $0.28 — harmless here, but the habit hides larger gaps.
- Confusing percent of the bill with a fixed amount. On a $200 bill, 20% is $40, not $20; on a $20 bill, 20% is $4.
- Tipping on the post-tax total while thinking you tipped on the subtotal, which makes your real percentage a little higher than intended.
Cautions and limits
This tool does arithmetic, not etiquette. It cannot tell you the right percentage for a given country, service level, or occasion — those are judgment calls, and the norms above are general guidance, not rules. It also assumes the number you type is the base you meant to tip on, so decide up front whether that is the pre-tax subtotal or the post-tax total. Currency and rounding are cosmetic: the per-person figure is exact, and any rounding to whole coins or notes is yours to reconcile at the table. Everything is computed in your browser and nothing is stored or sent to a server.
The amounts you enter are calculated in your browser and never sent to a server.
Read the Privacy Policy →Frequently asked questions
Should I tip on the amount before or after tax?
The traditional approach is to tip on the pre-tax subtotal, because tax is a government charge rather than payment for service. Tipping on the post-tax total is also common and just makes your effective tip slightly higher. On a $80 subtotal with $6.40 tax, 20% is $16.00 pre-tax versus $17.28 post-tax — a $1.28 difference. Pick one before you enter the number so your percentage means what you intend.
Is a 'service charge' or 'gratuity included' the same as a tip?
Usually yes, and that is exactly why you should not add another tip on top without checking. Many restaurants, especially for larger groups or in Europe, automatically add a service charge of 10 to 20%. If the receipt already says 'service', 'gratuity', or 'servizio incluso', the tip is handled — leaving extra is optional, not expected. Read the itemized total before you calculate anything.
How do I split a bill fairly when people ordered different amounts?
Apply the same tip percentage to the whole table, but base each person's share on what they actually ordered rather than dividing evenly. For a $100 order where one person had $50 of items, they should cover 50% of the tip and total too. An even split feels simpler but overcharges whoever ordered the least, sometimes by a lot.
What's a quick way to estimate a tip without a calculator?
Two shortcuts work well in the US. Take 10% of the bill (move the decimal one place left), then add half of that again for roughly 15%, or double it for 20%. Alternatively, in some U.S. cities doubling the sales tax printed on the receipt lands close to a normal tip — in New York City, for instance, the combined 8.875% sales tax doubled is about 17.75%. For an exact figure and a clean per-person split, this calculator is faster and avoids rounding errors.
How much should I tip for delivery, takeout, or at a bar?
These differ from sit-down dining. Delivery is commonly around 10 to 15% or a few dollars, more in bad weather or for a large order. Takeout that you pick up yourself is often 0 to 10%. At a bar, many people leave about $1 to $2 per drink, or 15 to 20% on a tab. These are customs, not rules, so adjust for service and your own judgment.
Are the amounts I enter stored anywhere?
No. Every calculation runs entirely in your browser, and nothing you type is sent to or saved on a server. You can close the page and the numbers are gone.