The topic of tipping in food establishments remains a hot topic.
Things can get especially heated when it comes to when and how much customers should tip, whether at a full-service or quick-service restaurant.
A SpotOn survey published in may The study found that restaurant workers’ expectations for tips varied, with more than a third of respondents saying a 15% tip was the “minimum percentage” they expected “based on service.” About 28% expected customers to give them 14%, while 11% expected 20% and 8% wanted 18%, according to the results.
And this month, Toast data “Restaurant Trends Report Q2 2024”A study of typical tip percentages in the U.S. may offer even more food for thought when it comes to practice.
The five states where people tended to leave the largest tips at restaurants had average tipping percentages above 20%, according to the company.
Toast used data from tips paid solely by card and digitally at restaurants that use its technology to create its rankings. The payments spanned from April 1 through the end of June, it said.
Five States With the Highest Total Tipping Rates
1. Delaware
According to Toast, Delaware restaurant customers tipped 21.5 percent on average in the second quarter. That percentage earned the so-called “First State” the No. 1 spot for top tippers for the second consecutive quarter.
2. West Virginia
The average restaurant tip rate in West Virginia was just 1 percentage point lower than Delaware's, at 20.5%, the data showed.
3. Indiana
Overall, Indiana residents left a tip of 20.4 percent on their orders, Toast reported. The statewide average was slightly higher when it came to tips at full-service restaurants specifically.
4. New Hampshire
New Hampshire ranked No. 4 with an average tip rate of 20.4%, the same percentage as Indiana.
5. Kentucky
The Bluegrass State rounded out the top five for highest tipping rates, according to Toast. Overall, tipping rates were 20.3%.
Meanwhile, Toast found that California, Washington, Nevada, Florida and Louisiana were among the states with the lowest average tip percentages in the second quarter. The lowest, 17.3%, was in the Golden State.
How tips changed from quarter to quarter
Toast’s ranking of the “best and worst states for tipping” followed its findings that 18.8 percent represented the overall average for tipping at U.S. restaurants in the second quarter. In the first quarter, it was 18.9 percent.
Similar to overall tips, tips at full-service and fast-food restaurants fell one-tenth of a percentage point compared to the previous quarter. The average for full-service establishments was 19.3%, while Toast put it at 15.9% for fast-food establishments.
Toast's report included other data about the restaurant industry, such as what types of food quick-service restaurant customers preferred at lunchtime and similar sales trends.
