I'm so tired of being asked for tips at nearly every store. Even some self-service checkouts are now asking for tips. Like, for what? I scanned my items, I bagged my items, I had zero human interaction with your staff - what am I tipping for? And in other stores, there's aways someone hovering over the register, watching you when the tip prompt is given, so you feel pressured to tip something. It's absolute hell. I'm fine with tipping the bartender, barista, wait staff, hairdresser, and delivery driver. Everyone else? Yeah, no.

I don’t tip. If they exploit their workers in any way, then I just don’t support that business. I vote for better labour laws instead.

When COVID started, I started tipping everywhere including fast food restaurants, coffee shops, take out counters, etc. At the time I considered it to be a sort of "hazard pay" almost, since I felt bad for the workers having to be on the front line against their will.

These days with most people (including the employees) disregarding COVID as a whole, I no longer feel the need to tip everywhere, but I find it very hard to know where to tip.

I used to (before COVID) use the rule of thumb that if there was a cash tip jar, then the tip was not expected; but with the POS machines always asking for tips I honestly get pretty confused about what's expected of me.

Even when I'm confident a tip is not necessary (a merch booth, for example), I feel incredibly guilty searching the POS screen for the "no tip" button.

In most grey area situations I usually just take the L and add a tip because I'm fairly certain I'm getting paid more than whichever worker would be receiving the tip and it's a nice easy minor method of wealth distribution. I usually just consider it part of the cost of the good/ service.

In terms of the main portion of the question (percentages tipped): if it's something I think I would have tipped on pre-COVID my starting point is 20%, if it's a grey area situation where I'm pretty sure I'm not actually "supposed" to tip my starting point is usually 15%.

I always tip 20% tip wait staff regardless of service unless it was incredibly poor, but I simply haven't had terrible service in around a decade.

Businesses should pay their fucking workers, but until then, I feel it's only right to help them make sure they have a decent wage.

Here in Maine, the minimum tipped wage is $6.90 while the standard minimum wage is $13.80. We eat out so rarely, and generally only as part of a celebration, so we tend to tip %30 or sometimes higher just to make another person's day better too. It helps that we'll hit a family owned hole in the wall where the really great food is, rather than an overpriced chain. It'd be great if it was higher, but given how dependent our state is on seasonal tourism it's a tough ask/sell for year round establishments.

I don't tip because I live in a country that doesn't tip and I'm very against it ever taking root here.

Those things about controlling the service, and choosing who "deserves" what, are anathema to me.

The person is doing a job however they and their employer see fit. If they want to run a business like Basil Fawlty that's on them.

My input into what they get paid is to vote for strong labour laws, min wage rises, and workers' rights. If a tipping culture emerged it would most likely weaken those things and make wages more capricious and less fair. We must resist it.

Just because minimum wage is high, doesn't mean it is a living wage. Here is a great breakdown of costs in Washington

https://nlihc.org/oor/state/wa

With wild inflation and general CoL increases, long gone are the days of the $15/hr being livable. As far as tipping culture goes, it is fucking bullshit. Just pay your staff and increase menu prices as needed. That being said, changing the culture around tipping will take a sea change by either making minimum wage a living wage based on inflation or UBI. Or both. Not tipping because it is bullshit only hurts the people who have the most to lose.

I live in the UK so tipping thankfully isn't a thing here as we have minimum wage. I will tip if I'm at a restaurant with a group of people but otherwise I won't tip at all. Hospitality workers deserve to be paid more but it's not up to the customers to supplement a dodgy business. I am in a union and will always vote for parties who advocate for employment rights though.

Tipping is very much a cultural thing and I think it's not wise to treat it like it's the same everywhere. In the US it sounds like it's a necessary evil and if I were to visit I would comply, but it's not the same as in other countries.

It's nice that Washington State and Seattle have laws and ordinances that protect basic rights of workers, but in most places that does not exist in the US. In many places it's $2.13 an hour which is supposed to be made up by tips to be at least $7.25 an hour.

In theory this is to be made up by the employer if tips dont reach $7.25 but in many right to work states making a fuss about that could land you unemployed. And even if that isn't an actual possibility, the fear of it keeps most quiet.

That's ignoring the outright insanity of saying $7.25 is remotely enough to get by anywhere in the US without forgoing food, safety, health, or the many things required to hold down a job (address, transportation, internet, phone).

I tip when I go out because I can and I don't know the employees situation. If I feel like I can't, I don't go out, get my hair cut, or get a taxi. I wish we didn't have this backwards racist system but I mean (look at us).

Obviously the iPad asks you to tip at silly times, like at the merch booth at a concert, this is a minor inconvenience, just hit no thanks and be ok

Edit: my succinct answer is, I tip when I feel like I am financially able and it's one of those situations I have always tipped in

I tip for 2 things: restaurants and food delivery.

For food delivery, I tip $24.

For restaurants, I tip around the same unless it is a particularly fancy place with a tasting menu that means they're servicing the table way more often than a normal restaurant.