A new SSRS Opinion Panel poll finds that the average tip U.S. adults report leaving when paying the bill at a restaurant, assuming the food and service were average, is 16% of the bill.
These findings are part of an SSRS Opinion Panel poll conducted September 9 – 23, 2024, among a nationally representative sample of 3,364 adults aged 18 and older.
How Much U.S. Adults Leave as a Tip at Restaurants
The two most common percentages adults leave as a tip are 20% of the bill (reported by 37%) and 15% of the bill (reported by 24%).
One in four U.S. adults (25%) report leaving a tip of less than 15% of the bill, while 43% report tipping at 20% or more.
Not surprisingly, the size of the average tip is larger for those with higher incomes and smaller for those with lower incomes. More than half (55%) of adults with household incomes of $75,000 a year or more report tipping 20% or more, while 10% tip less than 15%. In contrast, 43% of those with incomes under $50,000 report tipping under 15%, while 28% tip 20% or more of the bill.
Tipping When Picking Up Take-Out Food
The SSRS poll also finds that half of adults (50%) report leaving a tip when picking up take-out from a restaurant always (18%) or sometimes (32%). About the same proportion (49%) report they rarely (25%) or never (24%) leave a tip.
Perhaps surprisingly, the reported frequency of leaving a tip for take-out does not differ significantly by household income.
Methodology
Interviews for this study were conducted on the SSRS Opinion Panel on September 9 – 23, 2024, among a nationally representative sample of 3,364 respondents aged 18 and older. The margin of error for total respondents is +/-2.7 percentage points at the 95% confidence level. The design effect is 2.49.
The SSRS Opinion Panel is a multi-mode panel (web and phone). Most panelists take self-administered web surveys; however, the option to take surveys conducted by a live telephone interviewer is available to those who do not use the internet as well as those who use the internet but are reluctant to take surveys online. Panelists take surveys in their preferred language (English or Spanish). All sample drawn for this study were SSRS Opinion Panelists who are U.S. adults ages 18 or older.
SSRS Opinion Panel members are recruited randomly based on nationally representative ABS (Address Based Sample) design (including Hawaii and Alaska). ABS respondents are randomly sampled by Marketing Systems Group (MSG) through the U.S. Postal Service’s Computerized Delivery Sequence File (CDS), a regularly-updated listing of all known addresses in the U.S. For the SSRS Opinion Panel, known business addresses are excluded from the sample frame. Additional panelists are recruited via random digit dial (RDD) telephone sample of cell phone numbers connected to a prepaid cell phone. This sample is selected by MSG from the cell phone RDD frame using a flag that identifies prepaid numbers. Prepaid cell numbers are associated with cell phones that are “pay as you go” and do not require a contract.
All SSRS Opinion Panel data are weighted to represent the target population of U.S. adults ages 18 or older. View the questions used for this analysis, along with the responses >> The questionnaire was developed and the data analyzed by SSRS contributor, John M. Benson, with assistance from the SSRS team.
John M. Benson is a public opinion researcher, academic writer, and editor with over thirty years’ experience examining public attitudes about health policy and other domestic policy issues. He has directed numerous national and international polling projects leading to more than 100 publications in New England Journal of Medicine, Health Affairs, JAMA, Public Opinion Quarterly, Emerging Infectious Diseases, Public Health Reports, Milbank Quarterly, Social Science Research, and other domestic policy and polling journals. He is also co-author of American Public Opinion and Health Care (CQ Press).
About SSRS
SSRS is breaking the mold on what research companies can do. A full-service market and survey research firm, we use the latest data collection best practices and apply cutting-edge survey methodologies backed by insight from our industry-leading team. We have genuine enthusiasm for our work and a shared goal to connect people through research. Our solutions include groundbreaking approaches fit for purpose: the SSRS Opinion Panel, Encipher®, SSRS Virtual Insights, the SSRS Text Message Panel, and more. Our research areas focus on Health Care and Health Policy, Public Opinion and Policy, Political and Election Polling, Consumer and Lifestyle, and Sports and Entertainment.
Media Contact: Karin Bandoian | SSRS Vice President of Brand and Creative Strategy
