How Much To Tip Hotel Housekeeping? - NerdWallet (2024)

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How Much To Tip Hotel Housekeeping? - NerdWallet? ›

The American Hotel & Lodging Association suggests leaving a $1-to-$5 tip per day for the housekeeping staff.

According to the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA), guests should tip housekeeping anywhere between $1 to $5 per night for a mid-range or business hotel. For luxury hotels where the staff offers daily cleaning services and nightly turndown services, guests should leave a little more.

Despite this, you should definitely tip your housekeeper if you're staying at any kind of hotel, even if it's just for one night.

Even if the service is poor, it's recommended you leave at least 10 percent. * Check your tab carefully because some places add a gratuity to the bill. You may or may not want to supplement that. For the wait staff at sit-down restaurants, the tip should be 15 percent to 20 percent of the pretax bill.

Servers: At sit-down restaurants, tip 15 to 20 percent pretax. If you received exceptional service, feel free to tip above 20 percent, but it's not expected. Bartenders: Tip 15 to 20 perfect of your tab, or about $1 to $2 per drink.

According to the American Hotel and Lodging Association, housekeepers should be tipped between $1 and $5 per day. Certified etiquette expert Lisa Grotts advises between $2 and $5, while Annie Davis, president of the boutique travel agency Palm Beach Travel says “$5 is the new $1.”

A general rule of thumb is $3 to $5 per night for budget and midrange hotels, and up to $10 a night for luxury hotels and resorts (or more if the service is really high end). Families don't automatically need to tip more than single travelers or couples.

Some guests leave a lump-sum tip on the last day of their stay, but a better practice is doling out incremental tips daily, as hotel housekeepers might have different day-to-day room assignments. A daily tip more closely ensures your gratitude goes to the specific worker who services the room each day.

At a mid-range or business hotel, the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) suggests tipping housekeeping $1–$5 per night.

As for a tip, you don't need to break out your wallet for directions to a nearby coffee shop, says Gottsman. But consider a small gratuity, from $5 to $20, if a front desk person or concierge is able to secure you hard-to-get tickets, reservations or special services.

Is 10% tip rude? ›

Industry insider: common consensus says 15-20% is considered a normal tip, but honestly any amount less than 20% is considered a bad tip.

Industry insider: common consensus says 15-20% is considered a normal tip, but honestly any amount less than 20% is considered a bad tip. If I (or the other servers I worked with) got less, we wondered what we did wrong. We weren't money-hungry monsters, though. There is a reason we expected 20% if we did a great job.

In America, tipping is optional in name only.

Legally it's voluntary but if you slink out of a restaurant without leaving a gratuity of between 20 and 25 per cent, you're likely to be chased by a waiter demanding to know why.

If it's fast food or you're grabbing a pre-packaged item from a shelf, Farley says you don't need to tip. But in other cases, especially if the order is for more than one person, you should leave at least a 10-15% gratuity.

Parul Jain, who teaches finance and economics at Rutgers Business School, said tipping got a huge boost during the COVID-19 pandemic. People used to tip on the basis of performance, she said. Now, the near ubiquitous use of touch screens at places where we'd never previously think of tipping applies enormous pressure.

At the end of the Civil War, America's labor force "was flooded" with formerly enslaved people and immigrants, says Zagor. Employers took advantage of this class of "low-educated, low-income" workers, he says, and hired them for jobs that paid very little, encouraging patrons to tip as a supplement to wages.

But consider a small gratuity, from $5 to $20, if a front desk person or concierge is able to secure you hard-to-get tickets, reservations or special services. And remember, it's the thought that counts when it comes to tipping. These are just guidelines, says Gottsman.

The tip should be left daily (preferably in an envelope or with a note so that it's clear it's for housekeeping). For special requests (like an extra blanket), tip $2 for one item, $1 for more. Tipping is not required for someone fixing something broken or bringing something missing.