Tip Calculator — Split Bill Among Friends
Calculate the tip amount, total bill with tip, and per-person share when splitting a restaurant bill. Works in INR and any currency.
Tip Amount
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Total Bill
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Per Person
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How to Use & Understand This Calculator
Tipping practices vary enormously by country and culture. In the United States, 15-20% is the standard expected tip at restaurants. In the UK, 10-15% is customary but less obligatory. In India, tipping culture is still evolving — higher-end restaurants and hotels expect 10%, while dhabas and local restaurants may not expect any tip.
The confusion often starts with pre-tax vs post-tax tipping. In countries with restaurant taxes, you can tip on the pre-tax amount (the food cost) or the full post-tax bill. Tipping on pre-tax is technically more fair to the server if the tax rate is high. This calculator uses your entered bill as-is (you decide whether that includes tax).
Bill splitting strategies: Equal split (everyone pays the same) is the simplest. Item-based split (you pay for what you ordered) is fairest when orders vary widely in price. Proportional split (based on the value of what each person ordered) is complex but used in business expense settings.
Note: Many restaurants in India add a "Service Charge" (usually 10%) to the bill automatically. Unlike GST (which is a government tax), this service charge is theoretically optional and has been ruled so by consumer courts — though restaurants may pressure you to pay it.
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No. The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) issued guidelines in 2022 stating that hotels and restaurants cannot force customers to pay the service charge and cannot add it automatically to the bill. You can legally refuse to pay it.
GST (5% for restaurants without alcohol, 18% for those with) is a government tax — mandatory and non-negotiable. Service charge is a discretionary amount charged by the restaurant to distribute among staff. It does not go to the government.
For food delivery apps, a tip of ₹20-50 is considered courteous. Delivery partners are often compensated below minimum wage by the platform and rely on tips. During bad weather or long-distance orders, a higher tip is appreciated.
Etiquette suggests tipping on the pre-discount (original) bill, since the server provided full service regardless of your coupon. However, many people tip on the post-discount amount, which is also acceptable. The key is not to tip nothing because of a discount.
Apps like Splitwise, Google Pay, and PhonePe allow you to create group expenses, log each person's share, and track who owes whom. Splitwise can also handle complex scenarios where one person paid for everything and others need to reimburse them.