UK tipping: 10-12.5% in restaurants, not in pubs, not in taxis
TL;DR
- Check the bill first. Most London restaurants add a service charge, usually 12.5%. If it is printed there, you are done; adding more means tipping twice.
- No service charge on the bill? Leave 10 to 15%. At a pub bar, nothing. In a taxi, round up to the nearest pound.
- Service charge is legally a tip. Since 1 October 2024, every pound of it must reach the staff, with deductions banned by law.
- Unhappy with the service? The charge is discretionary. Asking for it to be removed is allowed, and is the system working as designed.
Contents
The rule
Look at the bill before you think about tipping. If a service charge is already printed on it, usually 12.5% in London, add nothing. If there is none, 10 to 15% is the restaurant norm. At a pub bar you do not tip, and in a taxi you simply round up the fare.
Why this rule exists
A British service charge is not a mystery levy. London's official visitor guide is plain on both counts. Service charge and tip are the same thing, and where the charge is on the bill, no extra tip is needed. It is also discretionary, which means you can ask for it to be removed if the service was poor.
The reason you can trust the printed line is recent law. The Employment (Allocation of Tips) Act 2023 and a statutory Code of Practice came into force on 1 October 2024. They require employers in England, Scotland and Wales to pass on 100% of tips, gratuities and service charges to workers, without deductions. The government's guidance puts the principle in one line: by law, all tips must be given to workers. An employer who withholds them can be taken to an employment tribunal. Tips also sit on top of the National Minimum Wage, not inside it, so the wage floor stands whether you tip or not.
What happens if you don't follow it
Immediate. Nothing. Tipping in Britain is optional, and the visitor guide says plainly that not tipping is not considered rude.
Financial. The real costs run the other way, toward paying twice. Tipping on top of an included service charge leads the guide's list of visitor mistakes. Check the bill first, always.
Cultural. A percentage tip pressed on a bartender imports another country's script; the pub's own spoken convention is covered in the pub lesson. British tipping is a bonus for service, not a part of anyone's income, which is the reverse of the American frame.
If service was poor. Ask for the discretionary charge to be taken off. That is not a scene; it is the system working as designed.
Quick reference
- Restaurant, service charge printed (usually 12.5% in London): pay it, add nothing.
- Restaurant, no service charge: 10 to 15% of the bill.
- Poor service: ask for the discretionary charge to be removed.
- Pub or bar: no tip expected.
- Taxi: round up to the nearest pound, or around 5 to 10%. Up to £5 for a longer ride with luggage help.
- Cafes, fast food, self-service, takeaway: not customary. Round up if you feel like it.
- Hotels: £1 to £2 a bag for porters, £1 to £5 a night for housekeeping, all optional.
- Tour guides: £5 to £10 a person, and free walking tours run on tips.
- Since 1 October 2024: 100% of tips and service charges must reach staff by law, in England, Scotland and Wales.
Quick check
1. Dinner for four in a London restaurant. The bill arrives with a line near the bottom: 'Discretionary service charge, 12.5%'. The service was fine. What do you do?
Select an answer.
2. A colleague in London tells you to always ask for the service charge to be removed and tip in cash, because the restaurant keeps the printed charge anyway. Is he right?
Select an answer.