Tipping in Scotland Etiquette: Who & Where to Tip (2024)

FAQs

Tipping in Scotland Etiquette: Who & Where to Tip? ›

There are no hard and fast rules for tipping in Scotland. If you are happy with the service, a 10-15% tip is customary, particularly in a restaurant or café with table service. A tip is not necessary if a service charge has been added to the bill by the establishment.

Plan to tip around 10-15% in Scotish restaurants. However, the exact tip amount when eating out in Scotland depends on the place, occasion, and order size. It's customary to give your waiter or waitress a slightly higher tip than you would a bartender, as they are likely sharing their tip with the kitchen staff.

Hotels: Tips depend on the level of service, but it's common to tip concierges for hiring a taxi, making dinner reservations, etc. As for porters, about £1 per bag is standard. And while not required, leaving a few pounds for the housekeeping is always nice.

“In general, for things like sit-down restaurant meals, haircuts and taxis/rideshares, I'd say a 20 percent tip is recommended,” Bankrate Senior Industry Analyst Ted Rossman says.

It will be unlawful to alter an employee's regular wage (hourly rate or salary) in return for a share of tips. Moreover, any guaranteed tips' value cannot count towards meeting National Minimum Wage requirements. In Scotland the tax benefit to Government is estimated to be £98m.

When dining out in Scotland, tipping is generally expected in restaurants and bars. The standard practice is to leave a gratuity of around 10-15% of the total bill.

All major credit cards can also be used across Scotland, with Visa and MasterCard being most widely accepted. Scotland has its own bank notes that look different to those in the rest of the UK, however their value is the same. Both Scottish and UK-wide notes can be used throughout Scotland.

Dining Etiquette

In Scotland, dining times can vary widely, ranging from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at sit-down restaurants to the wee hours of the morning at pubs or fast food joints.

Scottish businesses are required to provide “tap water fit for drinking”. There are currently no such laws on the books in Northern Ireland. This means that anyone, paying customer or not, can walk in and ask for water. This could be a glass of tap water or a refillable bottle.

You might run through various excuses for not tipping the housekeeper as you're checking out of a hotel — perhaps you're in a rush, or aren't carrying cash — but Gottsman says you should aim to leave a minimum of $3-$5 per day, or, if you have a bigger crew, $1 per person per day before checking out.

When should you not tip? ›

As a blanket rule, you don't need to tip anyone who earns a salary or performs a trade. That means you don't have to tip doctors, lawyers, teachers, plumbers or cable technicians.

Dr. Peters and Birardi both agree that a 20% tip is the minimum appropriate for the standard tipped workers and that larger tips (more than 20%) should be done to recognize excellent customer service.

Figuring out the tip

If your total bill is $200 and you want to tip 15%, work out the tip by multiplying the total bill by 0.15. You can then add this amount to your bill when it comes to pay. Simple. Or alternatively, you can multiply the bill excluding service by 1.15 (assuming you want to leave that same 15% tip).

There are no hard and fast rules for tipping in Scotland. If you are happy with the service, a 10-15% tip is customary, particularly in a restaurant or café with table service. A tip is not necessary if a service charge has been added to the bill by the establishment.

Don't worry about offending your waiter if you don't tip. They won't assume you hated your visit. Return business is more important in the UK. So if you say, “thanks, that was great,” you've let them know you'll probably be back!

The new law on tips says: employers must pass on tips to workers without any deductions. a draft statutory code of practice sets out how tips should be distributed in order to demonstrate fairness and transparency. employers should have a written policy on tips and record how they manage tips.

It's important to be polite in Scotland, so using phrases such as "please" and "thank you" is expected. When asking for assistance or directions, it's recommended to begin with "Excuse me" or "Sorry to bother you." Also part of being polite is acknowledging Scotland has a strong dialect of its own.

It is customary to leave 10 to 15% of the bill as tip when eating out, though some restaurants add on a service charge instead. In London hotels, people often tip porters. It is polite to round up your taxi fare to the nearest pound for black cabs and licensed minicabs.

Gratuities, as it were. Some believe that 'tipping' in Europe is not required or even frowned upon. While some places in Europe may have that stigma, it is not true in Scotland. It is less formal than the USA but is still a nice thing to do and a good tip can make someone's day, week or even month!

How much to tip in London, UK. Unlike most cities worldwide, tipping in London is not expected or essential. However, the general advice is to leave between 10–15 per cent of the bill, particularly when dining at a full-service restaurant.