Do you know how much is acceptable to tip someone? Do you know when you are tipping too much? Or to little…? Learn how to not be a jerk when you tip.
People often comment rashly against tipping, saying, “Hey, you don’t have to tip. He’s just doing his job!” without even trying to understand why the tip needs to be considered as a part of your budget.
The catch? Delivery guys getting paid to do a job doesn’t mean they don’t deserve a tip. While you’re changing into your pajamas, they are out there struggling between finding the direction to your home and bringing your food to your door before it turns cold.
It is often awkwardly confusing about how much to tip for delivery. If you feel the same way, you’ve come to the right place to find out the answer.
Here is the guide on how much to tip in different conditions.
Do you have to tip?
Well, yes and no. In some countries, they don’t believe in tipping.
But…
For the majority of the world, yes. Tipping is normal. Especially if you received good, timely service.
There are differences when you tip though on how much and how often.
This article has you covered on the etiquette of tipping.
How much to tip for food delivery
We’ve all been there: everyone is hungry, the fridge is bare, but no one wants to go out. Fortunately, ordering food has never been so easy.
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From classic pizza delivery to a delicious meal, if someone had to bring it to your front door, it is basic etiquette to tip them.
Generally, a tip of 15% for good service is reasonable. The standard tip for orders with exceptional service is 20%.
But tipping the delivery guy for good service isn’t the only reason to increase your tip. Consider tipping more in any of the following conditions:
- Bad weather conditions
- Major obstacles or construction work on the roads
- Long-distance from the restaurant
- Delivery during peak hours
- Large orders that require repetitive trips
Should you tip for takeout?
Generally, takeout doesn’t need tipping since you are taking it home yourself. However, if it’s a large order, that could mean a lot of work and hassle for the cooks and servers who put it together.
While it’s not mandatory, a tip of 10% to 15% of the total food order is reasonable for the effort they put on.
How much to tip for pizza delivery
Pizza delivery comes under the same standards as any other food delivery service.
In general, consider a $5 tip or 10% of the bill, excluding tax, as a minimum tip for pizza delivery if you think the service is poor.
If you order a large number of pizzas, there are obstacles to getting the pizzas to you, or the service was exceptionally good, go with the 20% standard.
Because the pizza delivery person is saving you the hustle of picking up the large order, you should show your generous spirit.
Can you tip the pizza delivery using a credit card?
The delivery driver will bring a receipt for you to sign if you want to tip by credit card, and you will have to call the restaurant and give them your credit card details.
But if you can, you should consider tipping in cash instead so that the delivery guy doesn’t have to claim your tip as taxable income.
How much to tip for catering delivery
When it comes to catering orders, delivery is even more complicated because catering orders are larger and require extra time for packaging and delivery.
The role of the delivery guy is also significant as he has to deliver large orders and make multiple trips.
When you’re ordering a catering delivery, make room in your budget for the delivery fee and a tip for the driver. You should expect to tip at least 10% on an average catering order on top of the delivery fee.
Tipping caterers can be a complicated business. The best thing to do is discuss the fees with a caterer in advance. Most catering services have a service charge included in the bill, and that is distributed to the cooks, staff, and delivery driver.
If there is no service charge or it does not belong to the catering delivery person, then tipping based on the total catering bill at a rate of 15–20% is appropriate.
If you feel the driver went above and beyond or had to go through major obstacles to get to you, consider a 20% tip.
Your big day is personal and full of special moments. So, you ought to reflect gratitude monetarily by tipping generously.
How much to tip for appliance delivery
In some appliance stores, employees or the delivery person are permitted to accept gratuities if the customer wanted to tip, but it is not expected.
Although appliance delivery men are paid for their work, they deserve to be recognized for the effort involved in delivering appliances to your rooms without scuffing up your walls, leaving dirty footprints, or breaking anything during the process of delivering and fitting.
How much should you tip the appliance delivery guy? Depending on the difficulty of the job and your home’s layout, you should consider tipping them anywhere from $5–20 each.
How much to tip for grocery delivery
Proper tipping manners haven’t been established yet since grocery delivery is a relatively new thing. That being said, a 10% tip or a couple of dollars is a general rate for the person who delivered your grocery items and favorite snacks to your doorstep.
However, many grocery stores don’t allow delivery people to accept tips. In such cases, you wouldn’t have to worry about how much to tip on grocery delivery.
Do you need to tip online grocery delivery?
If you received decent service, then you should tip. Instacart shoppers are paid similarly to restaurant delivery people, so they greatly appreciate tips.
As far as the tipping methodology is concerned, you can pay in cash or online. You can Instacart tip online and, 100% of the tip is given to the delivery drivers.
Peapod has no options for tipping online, so you can pay the delivery person directly.
How much should you tip meal delivery drivers from restaurants?
You can easily get pretty much any food delivered directly to your front door within a short time. On top of that, you are only one click away when you use meal delivery applications on your smartphone, like GrubHub, UberEats, Doordash, etc.
Most delivery apps have a tipping option available within the app, so you can add your 15–20% tip.
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The complex part is figuring out if you should tip and doing the quick calculation before you get to the door. You should tip at least 10–15% for a decent service.
Should you tip a bad delivery driver?
Should you tip the delivery driver even if you are not satisfied with the service you asked for? Undoubtedly, yes! Even in that case, you should consider tipping them a minimum. Not tipping is not really an option.
Instead of leaving no tip, tipping just $1 is more effective to convey the dissatisfaction for truly awful service. Believe me. A $1 tip will be much more noticed than no tip.
Is it always the fault of the delivery driver?
There are many reasons for poor service. One should analyze whether the bad service is the fault of the driver or not before you take it out on the delivery driver by tipping less!
Late Delivery: Delivering your order late is rarely the fault of the driver. Unless you receive a cold pizza, this should not impact how much you tip.
Often, it is the fault of the restaurant who took more food preparation time or the manager took more orders than what was manageable. Other times, it is uncontrollable factors such as traffic, bad weather, etc.
Does the delivery fee go to the driver?
The delivery fee should not be taken as an excuse not to tip your driver. While the delivery fees have ballooned in recent years, the person delivering your pizza doesn’t necessarily get that money.
The delivery fee generally goes to either:
- the delivery service or the restaurant (or food delivery app)
- to cover driver expenses
- paying for a portion of their gas
- insurance liability
- the rising cost of food ingredients
- more employees
- uniforms
- heated delivery bags that chains use.
This means the delivery fee is not given to the delivery driver. Instead, they rely on your tips for the majority of their income.
Drivers also cannot walk away with the entire fee they’re earning. The majority of their paycheck goes back to oil changes and repairing wear and tear on their vehicle. Again, your tip is going to help cover all of those expenses.
Is it rude to order delivery service in bad weather?
When you look through the window and see a torrential downpour or snow, would it be immoral to make a person deliver your food?
Well, it is their job, and they get paid for it. So, you don’t have to feel guilty about ordering a pizza in bad weather, and it is not rude.
But he is driving out in a dangerous condition in bad weather, so you should consider tipping the pizza delivery person a little extra to show your appreciation.
If you’re expecting the delivery driver to do something you wouldn’t want to do yourself, give them a good tip to show them your gratitude.
Do you still need to tip if gratuity is added?
If the bill says, “Gratuity” or “Service Charge” with an amount next to it, tipping is not required because a tip is already included.
Tipping Etiquette and Considerations
Not every country has a culture of tipping.
Remember that tipping etiquette can change from place to place. For instance, consumers don’t tip in countries like Japan, China, and South Korea.
In fact, in these countries, tipping is often considered an insult. So, you should be careful not to tip in these countries.
There are other countries where tipping is already included as a gratuity or service fee in the bill.
Generosity can pay off for better service next time.
Whether you tip or not makes a great difference, especially if you plan to get delivery from that service again and again. We cannot ignore that a good tipper has advantages.
At the end of the day, tipping is just a nice gesture of gratitude for the trouble they went through in bringing the service to your front door. Remember that your tip helps the person delivering your food make their wages and pay their bills.
Tips can get pricey sometimes, but you have to pay for the comfort and convenience you enjoy. Tipping needs to be taken as mandatory rather than a customary social etiquette because they deserve it.