Tip Calculator: Work Out a Gratuity and Split the Bill

Quick answer

In the UK, a tip of 10 to 12.5% is normal in restaurants with table service, and many venues add a discretionary service charge of 12.5% automatically (you can ask for it to be removed). Since the Employment (Allocation of Tips) Act took effect in October 2024, 100% of tips must legally go to staff.

Use the tip calculator above

Type the bill into the calculator at the top of this page, pick the tip percentage, and set how many people are splitting it. The result updates instantly: the tip in pounds, the new total, and the per-person share. No app, no sign-up, and it works on your phone at the table.

How the tip calculator works

The maths behind a gratuity is simple percentages, and seeing the formula makes it easy to sanity-check any figure on the spot. The two lines you need are:

• Tip = bill × (tip percentage ÷ 100)
• Per person = (bill + tip) ÷ number of people

So for a 12.5% tip on a £80 bill: 80 × 0.125 = £10 tip. The total becomes £90. Split between four people that is 90 ÷ 4 = £22.50 each. If you would rather tip on the food and drink only (not on a service charge that is already on the bill), subtract the service charge before you multiply, otherwise you tip twice on the same service.

A common point of confusion in the UK is the difference between a tip and a service charge. A service charge is added by the restaurant, often 12.5%, and is usually described as "discretionary" which means you can ask for it to be removed. A tip is what you choose to add yourself. If a discretionary service charge is already printed on your bill, you do not normally need to tip again on top. This calculator lets you treat either as the percentage, so use it for whichever you are deciding.

Rounding matters when a split does not divide evenly. If three people share a £100 total, that is £33.333 each. The calculator rounds to the penny, and you can simply round the whole total up to £102 so each person pays £34 and the extra goes to the tip. Rounding up to a tidy number is the easiest way to leave a slightly more generous gratuity without doing fresh arithmetic.

Worked examples with the maths shown

Example 1: dinner for two, 12.5% tip

Your bill comes to £64.40 and there is no service charge. You want to leave 12.5%. Tip = 64.40 × 0.125 = £8.05. Total = 64.40 + 8.05 = £72.45. Split between two = £36.23 each (one person covers the extra penny). If you would rather round up, paying £75 makes the tip £10.60, which is about 16.5%.

Example 2: group meal for six, 10% tip, bill split evenly

Six friends run up a £187.50 bill and agree on 10%. Tip = 187.50 × 0.10 = £18.75. Total = £206.25. Per person = 206.25 ÷ 6 = £34.375, which rounds to £34.38 each. To keep it simple, the group could round to £35 a head, collecting £210 and leaving a £22.50 tip (12%). Splitting a large bill is one of the most common reasons people reach for a tip calculator UK diners can trust at the table.

Example 3: taxi fare, round-up tip

A cab fare is £13.60. Rather than a percentage, you round up to £15, a tip of £1.40 (about 10.3%). Round-up tipping is normal for short journeys and small bills where a strict percentage would be a few pence. The calculator handles both approaches, so you can compare a flat round-up against a set percentage before you decide.

How much should you tip in the UK?

There is no legal tipping rate in the UK, so this is custom rather than a fixed figure. As a practical guide, many people leave around 10% to 15% for good table service in a restaurant, often nothing extra at counter-service cafes or pubs where you order at the bar, and a round-up for taxis, hairdressers and food delivery. Tipping is always your choice.

Two things changed the picture recently. Under the Employment (Allocation of Tips) Act 2023, employers must pass on 100% of qualifying tips to staff without deductions, and many venues now pool card tips through a fair distribution system. That means a tip added to your card is more likely to reach the people who served you than it once was. Staff still pay income tax on tips they receive, and tips paid through the payroll also have National Insurance applied.

If you are watching what you spend across the month, a gratuity is one of those small recurring costs that quietly adds up. Pairing this tool with a monthly budget calculator helps you see the real cost of eating out, and the percentage calculator is handy when you want to check any percentage by hand. For a different kind of saving on the bill itself, a discount calculator works out money-off vouchers and meal deals before the tip is even applied.

VAT, service charge and what you are actually tipping on

Restaurant prices already include VAT at the standard rate, so the bill you see is the VAT-inclusive figure and you tip on that total as printed. A genuinely discretionary service charge sits outside VAT, but a compulsory one can fall within it, which is partly why most venues keep service charges optional. If you run a hospitality business and need to separate the VAT element of a price, our VAT calculator does the add-or-remove maths. For meals abroad, convert the foreign total first with a currency converter, then apply the local tipping custom, which is often higher than the UK norm.

Common mistakes when splitting a bill

• Tipping on a bill that already has service added. Check the bottom of the receipt for "service charge" before adding your own gratuity, or you pay for service twice.
• Forgetting the rounding pennies. When a total does not divide evenly, one person ends up a penny or two short. Round the total up rather than down so the staff are not left out of pocket.
• Splitting a tip when one person had far more. An even split is simplest, but if one diner had the lobster and three had salads, agree an itemised split first, then add the tip proportionally.
• Assuming a percentage on a small bill. On a £4 coffee, 12.5% is 50p; many people simply round up the change instead. Percentages suit larger sit-down bills.
• Paying a service charge you are unhappy with. If service was poor, you are entitled to ask for a discretionary charge to be removed before you reach for any extra tip.

Quick tips to make splitting painless

Agree the tip percentage before the bill arrives so there is no awkward maths over coffee. Nominate one person to pay on their card and have everyone transfer their share instantly. Keep a screenshot of the split if it is a big group. And if the venue lets you tip in cash, that historically reached staff directly, though the new tipping rules now protect card tips too.

These figures are estimates for guidance only and are not personal tax or financial advice. Tipping in the UK is always voluntary unless a charge is clearly stated as compulsory on the bill.

Related calculators

Keep your everyday-money sums tidy with a few more free tools: work out any proportion with the percentage calculator, plan your spending with the budget calculator, and check sale prices with the discount calculator before the tip ever gets added.

UK tipping norms at a glance

Your legal right to your tips as a worker: GOV.UK code of practice on tips. Splitting more than a bill? Try the percentage calculator.