In Europe alone, there is little in the way of consensus when it comes to the tradition of tipping.
This summer, whether you’re jetting off to the other side of the world or taking a short break closer to home, there’s one question that comes up time and again when getting ready to go: what should you do about tipping, whether in a restaurant or a taxi-cab?
While this Western custom is frowned upon in Japan – and even considered an insult – travellers are just as aware that tipping is essential in the US, where customers are relied on to pay for service.
But what about in Italy, Germany, Greece or Poland?
Within Europe, the question of what to do and what not to do is still one worth asking, since the economic model of a common project on the Old Continent has not erased national habits and traditions.
Moreover, while English-speaking countries might be culturally close in many ways, their attitudes to tipping can vary greatly.
In fact, only 55% of people in the UK said that they typically leave gratuity in restaurants, according to figures reported by The Guardian, based on polling by YouGov.
This is a significant proportion, but less than the 72% of German diners who leave a tip – almost as many as Americans.
On the other hand, tipping appears to be a lesser-used custom in Europe’s more southern nations.
So-called optional tips are only left by 46% of Spanish diners, for example. In France, tipping is even less common, with only 34% of diners tipping in addition to included service charges. In Italy, only 24% of diners said they would typically tip when dining out.
These figures refer to restaurants, and tipping is closely associated with eating out. However, this analysis extends to other settings in which it can be customary to leave a few coins.
Germans (56%), for example, tip hairdressers, but also concierges (37%) and cab drivers (40%). And in Germany, the question of tipping is not inevitably linked to the quality of a service: 17% say that they tip even if the customer experience has been disappointing.