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I got permanently banned from an Italian travel Facebook group for saying that tipping is not the norm in Italy. This woman got really irate and was saying that she always tipped in Italy, and left big tips, because she wanted to help people who were struggling. I tried explaining that Italian waiters don’t rely on tips in the same way that waiters do in the US and so tipping a waiter would be like tipping a bus driver or a postal worker (maybe not a perfect analogy, but you get the point). She said she wanted to reward a job well done. I said some people just take pride in their work and do a good job without expecting a reward, and Italian waiters are likely not struggling. She said well I’m going to keep doing what I know is right, even if people tell me it’s not the custom nor necessary. So I said, and I think this is what got me booted, “The next time you work really hard and do a great job at your office, I hope someone comes up to you and gives you two dollars. And if you say, ‘No, I don’t need this, this isn’t why I worked so hard,’ I hope they say, ‘No, take it. I know you’re struggling, I know you need it.’” Bye bye Facebook group. I regret nothing.
I think most American's these days are also tired of the tipping system. So it's either a relief or a shock not having to sit there and do extra math after having a meal. (Hell, tipping has gotten so out of hand, that the POS system's some places use, It will ask you for a tip for handing you a coffee at Starbucks, or some other dumb shit. Plus the extra service charges that restaurants are trying to sneak onto the bill at the last min.)
I was buying bubble tea the other day, ordered on a screen of a computer (no human to help out whatsoever) and it asked for a tip. A COMPUTER ASKED ME FOR A TIP!!!
This woman should go to Japan and try tipping all those 'hard work' for gratification.. While it is in good spirit to show your appreciation, it is stupid to just follow what you follow at home and implement it arbitrarily... Whatever happened to respect local culture, this borders on cultural appropriation..
While a good practice to try, it makes no sense to get so livid with others who have different information or opinion
She was right tho, it she wants to do it she is free to, you pushing back made no sense. There is also nothing wrong with wanting to give two dollars to someone you felt did a great job, it's only her reasoning that is misplaced
That also happened to me twice in Rome but they were in some tourist places and I am painfully obviously American at first glance so. That’s probably the deal.
Tip is never included.
It is also not usual or expected, you can tip as a thank you if you really liked the service (otherwise we only tip rounding up small amounts when paying cash)
No tiping in Italy. You will get charged something called coperto which is a service charge that ranges from 1.5-3 eur per person.
You can leave a small amount but it's not expected unless you're in a tourist trap.
Tipping is not expected. Maybe a touristy restaurant might expect a tip from ignorant American tourists but it's not the norm. Round up to the nearest euro if you're paying in cash and you enjoyed especially good service but don't bother if you pay by card.
No tipping on Pos system is not because Italians don‘t tip. It is because you would have to add it on the busta paga as additional income and nobody wants to deal with that workload. I have seen pos systems that allow tips but that was more in the north (Dolomiti) etc
I am coming from a neighbour country and I've spent numerous holidays in Italy. Yes, no need to tip, but no one is going to reject it if you do. But yes, it is not expected like in the NA.
Some restaurants in very popular locations for tourists have implemented a system that prompts for a tip, with pre-set percentages. These are a way to scam the US tourists. Do not fall for it.
These restaurants should be avoided anyway since they only cater to ignorant tourists. That's not a great business model for ensuring a quality (or authentic) meal.
Lots of people leave a shit 5-10% tip here in the US and pat themselves on the back for helping the poor struggling person. I think they want to feel that same surge of superiority when they travel abroad.
It’s gross and I hate it.
In California most servers are paid minimum 20 per hour. I rarely tip 20% there, anymore, even with great service.
In other states, in the US, I tip 20% minimum, unless the service is abysmal.
In Italy, I don’t plan to tip.
It’s all relative on where you are and what’s the norm in that area.
20% is something for USA.
In any other country it is strange, hell it is strange for anyone from outside US to be almost forced to tip 20% for everything in US (eg a coffee place that during payment you are shown a screen with selection of tipping percentages starting from 15%, going to 30%, with default at 20).
10% is max for a very good service in Europe, and in some countries there you just don't tip (like in Italy).
That's due to the POS systems having that already implemented into them, and the Owners not wanting to fix it. The issue is that most people see that as bullshit, because why I am tipping the cashier?
Or Switzerland. We don’t tip here. Wait staff are professionals who are paid a reasonable wage and have retirement accounts. Rounding up is done, but not expected.
I think it is fair to tip as much as you think the service was satisfactory to you. It shouldn't be automatic no matter what. After all, they are working for you. I have an example where I tipped 10% once, and it was way too much for the service we got. Otherwise, 20% is the norm for dinner.
Just a cultural norm here. Waiters get paid a paltry hourly wage and live off tips so in America waitstaff would make less than minimum wage if no one tipped.
If their tips don't bring their hourly average up to minimum wage, they legally have to be paid minimum wage.... which is somehow still $7.25. If I was server and I only made $7.25 an hour I would be pissed and also scared about being able to afford to live.
We took my son on a visit to Pisa, we don’t tip, we live in Italy it isn’t a thing. The restaurant pointed out the tip line about three times. They were told to spin, the service was terrible and the food mediocre (very very unusual for Italy) so some places are getting pushy about tips, especially when they think you aren’t local.
Remember, in Italy people get a proper wage, they don’t have to make their wages from tips. Please don’t encourage the repugnant system of tipping for no reason.
Tipping isn't expected everywhere like it is now in the US. Some tourist trap restaurants have started actually asking for tips and trying to guilt you into it, just refuse or avoid those places.
The service fee is a flat 1/4€ x person charge called coperto that is mentioned somewhere in the menù.
You can leave a tip but you are not expected to and in general you should refrain from tipping since it damages the workers.
Managers will use tips as an excuse to lower the average salary, as a result the workers end up relying more and more on tips because the base salary gradually becomes insufficient.
The employers are the ones benefitting from tips.
The thing is, even if you do tip in Italy, it does not necessarily go to the server. There are not laws about it there like in the US. The owner can keep them, or choose to pool them at the end of the year, etc. I sometimes leave a few euro on the table for great service and assume the waiter keeps it in that case. But it’s really a crapshoot.
Overall, tipping in Italy would be like tipping your dentist or bus driver. THAT BEING SAID, if you receive exceptional, over the top, incredible service by someone or had a great time over several hours (like a tour guide who doesn't own the business themselves) - rounding up or a couple euros per person is totally fine.
Many servers will push for a tip or mention that service isn't included. They would never do this to an Italian person, so I'd just ignore it unless you had the best service of your life.
You can leave a few euros in cash if you want, but its not at all expected. You won't see tip jars at all. If you're paying by card (which you can do pretty much anywhere), you probably won't even be able to leave a tip.
I tipped on one dinner in Rome where the server was really helpful in determining which wine to pair with our food. I didn't tip on any other restaurants.
You may encounter "coperto" which is a fee for the tablecloth, utensils, etc... which is usually 1-2 euros per person.
If any restaurants mention tips, you are almost definitely eating at a tourist trap near a museum or site.
tipping is not expected. some restaurants include a service charge which kind of counts as a tip in the bill
if service is exemplary you are welcome to leave a tip of course. italians have come to expect tips from tourists generally, and Americans specifically
Tipping is not necessary but appreciated if you liked the service. Normally you round up.
Like 39.10€ could become 40.00€ and the change goes to the waiter.
Coperto is a „service fee“ that you will encounter in 99% of the places but nothing of that goes to the waiter.
The only time I tipped was when it was easier to round the bill than to end up with 1 or 2 euro in change. So 98 euro bill, I'd pay 100 and leave it. I'd say we didn't really go to tourist traps since most of the restaurants we went to were recommended to us by our airbnb host, and the waiters/waitresses were all fine with it. Otherwise, no tipping expected at all, just not the norm there.
If you had a great experience you can tip 5 or 10 euros. If you had a random quick experience no need to tip. (it's not offensive at all as someone said, waiters love tips)
Off topic but what about tour guides? For example, we are hiring a service to take our party if 5 on a 7 hour winery tour in the Val d’Ocrcia. It cost over $200 per person (includes transportation, wineries and lunch). The is supposed to teach us about the region as we go. Any idea what to tip that person? I was thinking $10 per person but is the too little?
I was going to say 50eu total and that is exactly 10 per person, so that works. But only do this if it's exceptional - 1000 euros for what would be about maybe 500ish in actual costs (being generous here with the transportation costs) is significant as it is.
Perfect - thanks. Yeah I know we are paying way more than it costs but we wanted to have at least one day where we didn’t need a designated driver 😂 So the cost of the transportation alone is reason enough for us to over pay. Hoping the guide is knowledgeable.
Oh I totally get it, no worries. But because this thing is so expensive as it is, I would go easy on the tipping, that's all. Is it just the five of you or will you be a part of a larger group?
Tipping is nothing like in the US, it's not done in percentage but usually by an amount <10 euros and it is only done for outstanding / very friendly service.
Like, I'd say it happens once in a few years, some people dont do it at all
Wait a second.
I'm from Naples and I'm 99% sure that I can talk for Rome too.
Tips is not mandatory but of course is appreciated. In Naples when we buy coffee (1€ usually) we leave 0.20€ to the maker of the coffee, more if i m sitting at the table.
In restaurants, avoiding of course tourist traps, we usually leave as tip the change. For example if the final check is like 67€ we pay 70€ and leave the rest. Maybe more if the service was the best ever.
And that's it. Not sure why many italians here say do not tip, I presume that in the north is not common.
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I got permanently banned from an Italian travel Facebook group for saying that tipping is not the norm in Italy. This woman got really irate and was saying that she always tipped in Italy, and left big tips, because she wanted to help people who were struggling. I tried explaining that Italian waiters don’t rely on tips in the same way that waiters do in the US and so tipping a waiter would be like tipping a bus driver or a postal worker (maybe not a perfect analogy, but you get the point). She said she wanted to reward a job well done. I said some people just take pride in their work and do a good job without expecting a reward, and Italian waiters are likely not struggling. She said well I’m going to keep doing what I know is right, even if people tell me it’s not the custom nor necessary. So I said, and I think this is what got me booted, “The next time you work really hard and do a great job at your office, I hope someone comes up to you and gives you two dollars. And if you say, ‘No, I don’t need this, this isn’t why I worked so hard,’ I hope they say, ‘No, take it. I know you’re struggling, I know you need it.’” Bye bye Facebook group. I regret nothing.
lol that's insane. FB is wild (I know, I mod a huge Italy FB group).
I think most American's these days are also tired of the tipping system. So it's either a relief or a shock not having to sit there and do extra math after having a meal. (Hell, tipping has gotten so out of hand, that the POS system's some places use, It will ask you for a tip for handing you a coffee at Starbucks, or some other dumb shit. Plus the extra service charges that restaurants are trying to sneak onto the bill at the last min.)
I was buying bubble tea the other day, ordered on a screen of a computer (no human to help out whatsoever) and it asked for a tip. A COMPUTER ASKED ME FOR A TIP!!!
Hear hear!
This woman should go to Japan and try tipping all those 'hard work' for gratification.. While it is in good spirit to show your appreciation, it is stupid to just follow what you follow at home and implement it arbitrarily... Whatever happened to respect local culture, this borders on cultural appropriation.. While a good practice to try, it makes no sense to get so livid with others who have different information or opinion
She was right tho, it she wants to do it she is free to, you pushing back made no sense. There is also nothing wrong with wanting to give two dollars to someone you felt did a great job, it's only her reasoning that is misplaced
Don’t tip please we don’t want that here
Got it! Thanks
We just ate in Rome and the man told us that the tip wasn’t included in the bill.
That also happened to me twice in Rome but they were in some tourist places and I am painfully obviously American at first glance so. That’s probably the deal.
“Thank you, but I understand the tipping situation here,”
Tip is never included. It is also not usual or expected, you can tip as a thank you if you really liked the service (otherwise we only tip rounding up small amounts when paying cash)
That was my main question- if I can just round up if using cash and if even that would be against the norm.
It would be fine (I’m Italian)
No tiping in Italy. You will get charged something called coperto which is a service charge that ranges from 1.5-3 eur per person. You can leave a small amount but it's not expected unless you're in a tourist trap.
Good to know! Thank you very much
Don't leave the small amount. It can be offensive for the waiters if they are professionals.
I dont think any waiter would feel offended by a tip. Surprised for sure, since its not customary.
A small tip..
Tipping is not expected. Maybe a touristy restaurant might expect a tip from ignorant American tourists but it's not the norm. Round up to the nearest euro if you're paying in cash and you enjoyed especially good service but don't bother if you pay by card.
Great advice, thanks!
Yep they suckered my brother in law
Pay with credit card. There won’t be an option to add a tip. That’s because you don’t tip in Italy.
No tipping on Pos system is not because Italians don‘t tip. It is because you would have to add it on the busta paga as additional income and nobody wants to deal with that workload. I have seen pos systems that allow tips but that was more in the north (Dolomiti) etc
You can also add tip to the bill even when paying with a card. I always round up to 5 eur and never had any problems.
Or, just don't tip. Tipping culture doesn't exist outside of North America and can often be perceived as insulting or condescending.
I am coming from a neighbour country and I've spent numerous holidays in Italy. Yes, no need to tip, but no one is going to reject it if you do. But yes, it is not expected like in the NA.
I think the point was “but you can always…” makes it sound like you should. It’s simple, don’t tip!
Don't tip unless you have a good reason to do so.
Got it, thanks!
And if you think you have a good reason, think again because you probably don’t.
Some restaurants in very popular locations for tourists have implemented a system that prompts for a tip, with pre-set percentages. These are a way to scam the US tourists. Do not fall for it.
These restaurants should be avoided anyway since they only cater to ignorant tourists. That's not a great business model for ensuring a quality (or authentic) meal.
True, but often tourists don't know and if they happen to end up in one of these places, at least they shouldn't pay more with the trick of the tip.
Why do people have such a hard on for tipping?
Lots of people leave a shit 5-10% tip here in the US and pat themselves on the back for helping the poor struggling person. I think they want to feel that same surge of superiority when they travel abroad. It’s gross and I hate it.
In California most servers are paid minimum 20 per hour. I rarely tip 20% there, anymore, even with great service. In other states, in the US, I tip 20% minimum, unless the service is abysmal. In Italy, I don’t plan to tip. It’s all relative on where you are and what’s the norm in that area.
You mean 20%
No I mean assholes that don’t even tip 20%
20% is something for USA. In any other country it is strange, hell it is strange for anyone from outside US to be almost forced to tip 20% for everything in US (eg a coffee place that during payment you are shown a screen with selection of tipping percentages starting from 15%, going to 30%, with default at 20). 10% is max for a very good service in Europe, and in some countries there you just don't tip (like in Italy).
That's due to the POS systems having that already implemented into them, and the Owners not wanting to fix it. The issue is that most people see that as bullshit, because why I am tipping the cashier?
Or Switzerland. We don’t tip here. Wait staff are professionals who are paid a reasonable wage and have retirement accounts. Rounding up is done, but not expected.
I think it is fair to tip as much as you think the service was satisfactory to you. It shouldn't be automatic no matter what. After all, they are working for you. I have an example where I tipped 10% once, and it was way too much for the service we got. Otherwise, 20% is the norm for dinner.
Yes, I agree, I’m not talking about normal people like us.
Just a cultural norm here. Waiters get paid a paltry hourly wage and live off tips so in America waitstaff would make less than minimum wage if no one tipped.
Not all states. Non crappy states still pay the minimum wage plus tips.
If their tips don't bring their hourly average up to minimum wage, they legally have to be paid minimum wage.... which is somehow still $7.25. If I was server and I only made $7.25 an hour I would be pissed and also scared about being able to afford to live.
Well if it’s something I have to consider, I want to know. In my country we don’t have a tip system, and service is already included in the bill.
We took my son on a visit to Pisa, we don’t tip, we live in Italy it isn’t a thing. The restaurant pointed out the tip line about three times. They were told to spin, the service was terrible and the food mediocre (very very unusual for Italy) so some places are getting pushy about tips, especially when they think you aren’t local. Remember, in Italy people get a proper wage, they don’t have to make their wages from tips. Please don’t encourage the repugnant system of tipping for no reason.
Tipping isn't expected everywhere like it is now in the US. Some tourist trap restaurants have started actually asking for tips and trying to guilt you into it, just refuse or avoid those places.
The service fee is a flat 1/4€ x person charge called coperto that is mentioned somewhere in the menù. You can leave a tip but you are not expected to and in general you should refrain from tipping since it damages the workers.
it's not damaging in ayway. How can 5€ damage you? If you buy a kinfe with it maybe
Managers will use tips as an excuse to lower the average salary, as a result the workers end up relying more and more on tips because the base salary gradually becomes insufficient. The employers are the ones benefitting from tips.
It encourages a culture where servers expect to be paid less because they know they can rely on tips.
culture doesn't change like that for a few tips
The thing is, even if you do tip in Italy, it does not necessarily go to the server. There are not laws about it there like in the US. The owner can keep them, or choose to pool them at the end of the year, etc. I sometimes leave a few euro on the table for great service and assume the waiter keeps it in that case. But it’s really a crapshoot.
It is not compulsory and, as an Italian, I usually do not tip. It might be different in special cases/situations
Overall, tipping in Italy would be like tipping your dentist or bus driver. THAT BEING SAID, if you receive exceptional, over the top, incredible service by someone or had a great time over several hours (like a tour guide who doesn't own the business themselves) - rounding up or a couple euros per person is totally fine. Many servers will push for a tip or mention that service isn't included. They would never do this to an Italian person, so I'd just ignore it unless you had the best service of your life.
You can leave a few euros in cash if you want, but its not at all expected. You won't see tip jars at all. If you're paying by card (which you can do pretty much anywhere), you probably won't even be able to leave a tip. I tipped on one dinner in Rome where the server was really helpful in determining which wine to pair with our food. I didn't tip on any other restaurants. You may encounter "coperto" which is a fee for the tablecloth, utensils, etc... which is usually 1-2 euros per person. If any restaurants mention tips, you are almost definitely eating at a tourist trap near a museum or site.
I’ll keep an eye on. Thanks for the advice!
tipping is not expected. some restaurants include a service charge which kind of counts as a tip in the bill if service is exemplary you are welcome to leave a tip of course. italians have come to expect tips from tourists generally, and Americans specifically
Tipping is not necessary but appreciated if you liked the service. Normally you round up. Like 39.10€ could become 40.00€ and the change goes to the waiter. Coperto is a „service fee“ that you will encounter in 99% of the places but nothing of that goes to the waiter.
The only time I tipped was when it was easier to round the bill than to end up with 1 or 2 euro in change. So 98 euro bill, I'd pay 100 and leave it. I'd say we didn't really go to tourist traps since most of the restaurants we went to were recommended to us by our airbnb host, and the waiters/waitresses were all fine with it. Otherwise, no tipping expected at all, just not the norm there.
I love how italians saying that "WE DO TIP" sometimes are getting downvoted. This sub is a joke. Actual italians opinions get regularly downvoted
If i spend 37 or 38, i leave 2 or 3, i just say "keep the change" it's being nice, but the waiters are not paid by the tip
If you had a great experience you can tip 5 or 10 euros. If you had a random quick experience no need to tip. (it's not offensive at all as someone said, waiters love tips)
Off topic but what about tour guides? For example, we are hiring a service to take our party if 5 on a 7 hour winery tour in the Val d’Ocrcia. It cost over $200 per person (includes transportation, wineries and lunch). The is supposed to teach us about the region as we go. Any idea what to tip that person? I was thinking $10 per person but is the too little?
Zero.
I was going to say 50eu total and that is exactly 10 per person, so that works. But only do this if it's exceptional - 1000 euros for what would be about maybe 500ish in actual costs (being generous here with the transportation costs) is significant as it is.
Perfect - thanks. Yeah I know we are paying way more than it costs but we wanted to have at least one day where we didn’t need a designated driver 😂 So the cost of the transportation alone is reason enough for us to over pay. Hoping the guide is knowledgeable.
Oh I totally get it, no worries. But because this thing is so expensive as it is, I would go easy on the tipping, that's all. Is it just the five of you or will you be a part of a larger group?
Tipping is nothing like in the US, it's not done in percentage but usually by an amount <10 euros and it is only done for outstanding / very friendly service. Like, I'd say it happens once in a few years, some people dont do it at all
Wait a second. I'm from Naples and I'm 99% sure that I can talk for Rome too. Tips is not mandatory but of course is appreciated. In Naples when we buy coffee (1€ usually) we leave 0.20€ to the maker of the coffee, more if i m sitting at the table. In restaurants, avoiding of course tourist traps, we usually leave as tip the change. For example if the final check is like 67€ we pay 70€ and leave the rest. Maybe more if the service was the best ever. And that's it. Not sure why many italians here say do not tip, I presume that in the north is not common.