# Tipping & Service

> How much to tip in the US by service, holiday tipping, and the courteous phrases that make service interactions go well on both sides of the counter.

URL: https://courteo.us/money-and-service/

Tipping is the etiquette question Americans ask most, and the rules have shifted fast as tablets moved tip prompts to every counter. These guides lay out the customary ranges, what surveys say people actually do, and how to be gracious whether you are the customer or the one serving.

## Guides

- [How much to tip: a US tipping guide for 2026](https://courteo.us/tipping-guide/): Customary US tips for restaurants, bars, delivery, rideshare, salons, hotels and more, what 2025 surveys say people actually tip, and how to handle tip screens.
- [Holiday tipping: who to thank at year’s end, and how much](https://courteo.us/holiday-tipping/): Who to tip at the holidays and how much: housekeepers, sitters, teachers, mail carriers, trash collectors and more, with 2025 survey data and gift rules.
- [Courteous customer-service phrases, for both sides of the counter](https://courteo.us/customer-service-phrases/): Polite phrases for customers and service staff: what to say instead of common irritants, how to complain politely, and templates for calls, chats and emails.

## Recent Daily Dilemmas

- [The tablet at a self-serve counter is asking for 20%. Do I have to tip?](https://courteo.us/daily/tip-screen-self-checkout/) (2026-10-21): No. At a self-checkout kiosk or a counter where you order and pick up yourself, a tip is optional; tap No Tip or Custom without apology, and tip when someone genuinely did extra work for you.

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Courteous (courteo.us) — Modern manners, researched. Markdown version of https://courteo.us/money-and-service/