# You're a billionaire. How much do you tip restaurant staff? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 16, 2015, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-a-billionaire-how-much-do-you-tip-restaurant-staff/737736 "2015-11-16T20:59:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![kimberlyxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b487fb/32.png) [@kimberlyxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kimberlyxx)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-a-billionaire-how-much-do-you-tip-restaurant-staff/737736/21 "2015-11-17T01:22:22Z")
i would tip over average ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-a-billionaire-how-much-do-you-tip-restaurant-staff/737736/22 "2015-11-17T01:22:58Z")
I think one of the fun parts of being that rich would be to do things like that for random people. It wouldn’t be an ego thing. I just think it was feel great to be able to drop 100 bucks as a tip and to know how much it was probably appreciated. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-a-billionaire-how-much-do-you-tip-restaurant-staff/737736/23 "2015-11-17T01:33:22Z")
I would tip the same 20% I currently do. The difference is that as a billionaire, I would only eat at restaurants that served exotic endangered species to other billionaires, celebrities and heads of state. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-a-billionaire-how-much-do-you-tip-restaurant-staff/737736/24 "2015-11-17T01:38:55Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Because you can? Billionaires can’t spend all their money on themselves even if they try. Therefore the only morally acceptable option is to use the money to better humanity. Tipping large does this. inefficiently, I’ll grant you. But baby steps. You can tip large while still subsidizing clean water for 3rd World countries. If you do anything else you deserve to [del]die[/del] get a paper cut and spill lemon juice on it. Typical left-wing mentality that poor people are entitled to take from the wealthy simply by virtue of having less money. What is the difference, from an economic standpoint, between tipping excessively, buying a bunch of crap you probably don’t need or just giving a ton of money to charity? ---
**Author:** ![Mikeisskeptical](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@Mikeisskeptical](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mikeisskeptical)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-a-billionaire-how-much-do-you-tip-restaurant-staff/737736/25 "2015-11-17T01:48:42Z")
If I’m a billionaire? I’d happily tip thousands, if not tens of thousands of dollars. Why? Because it is an insignificant amount of money to me. I was once in a very poor country, in an outdoor restaurant and a guy came to our table and played guitar/sang pretty decently for about 15 minutes. I was reprimanded by my friends for giving him the equivalent of about $5. The standard expectation for a tip was about 50 cents. Who did I hurt? I spent more than $5 on one drink in the airport on my way home. Was whichever company ran that particular bar more deserving of my money? ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-a-billionaire-how-much-do-you-tip-restaurant-staff/737736/26 "2015-11-17T01:49:22Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > Typical left-wing mentality that poor people are entitled to take from the wealthy simply by virtue of having less money. There has been no “taking” described anywhere here. ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-a-billionaire-how-much-do-you-tip-restaurant-staff/737736/27 "2015-11-17T01:51:04Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > Typical left-wing mentality that poor people are entitled to take from the wealthy simply by virtue of having less money. > > What is the difference, from an economic standpoint, between tipping excessively, buying a bunch of crap you probably don’t need or just giving a ton of money to charity? Giving feels good. Doing something small for someone else feels good. I didn’t realize those feelings had a political bent. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-a-billionaire-how-much-do-you-tip-restaurant-staff/737736/28 "2015-11-17T01:54:49Z")
> [@IvoryTowerDenizen](#): > > Giving feels good. Doing something small for someone else feels good. I didn’t realize those feelings had a political bent. It used to be that conservatives lauded acts of private, voluntary charity. ---
**Author:** ![Mikeisskeptical](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@Mikeisskeptical](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mikeisskeptical)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-a-billionaire-how-much-do-you-tip-restaurant-staff/737736/29 "2015-11-17T02:15:40Z")
> [@Peremensoe](#): > > It used to be that conservatives lauded acts of private, voluntary charity. Only so long as they can advance it as an alternative to social responsibility. As soon as that dries up, fuck you. Every penny that doesn’t end up in a billionaires pocket is a penny wasted. ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-a-billionaire-how-much-do-you-tip-restaurant-staff/737736/30 "2015-11-17T02:21:14Z")
It’s not a lot, but around Christmas time we go to one of the chain diners (IHOP, Perkins, Bob Evans, etc) and leave a HUGE tip for the waitress. I think last year we left a $75 tip on a $40. We were walking out to the car when the server came running after us, thinking we had paid incorrectly, then gave us hugs when she found out it was for her. We can’t do it all the time, but boy, is it fun to do. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-a-billionaire-how-much-do-you-tip-restaurant-staff/737736/31 "2015-11-17T02:22:36Z")
> [@IvoryTowerDenizen](#): > > Giving feels good. Doing something small for someone else feels good. I didn’t realize those feelings had a political bent. Declaring that overpaying for a service because you can afford to is “the only morally acceptable option” has a political bent. ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-a-billionaire-how-much-do-you-tip-restaurant-staff/737736/32 "2015-11-17T02:27:46Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > Declaring that overpaying for a service because you can afford to is “the only morally acceptable option” has a political bent. Re-read the comment. > [@silenus](#): > > Because you can? Billionaires can’t spend all their money on themselves even if they try. Therefore the only morally acceptable option is to use the money to better humanity. Tipping large does this. inefficiently, I’ll grant you. But baby steps. You can tip large while still subsidizing clean water for 3rd World countries. If you do anything else you deserve to [del]die[/del] get a paper cut and spill lemon juice on it. Bettering humanity is the moral imperative being argued, when you’re that wealthy. Tipping is one way to do that (as well as funding clean water initiatives, an example given in that post). Even if the post was written as you interpreted (tipping is the only way to do it) it I still don’t see how that’s specifically political or a claim to take money from the rich. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-a-billionaire-how-much-do-you-tip-restaurant-staff/737736/33 "2015-11-17T02:30:49Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > Declaring that overpaying for a service because you can afford to is “the only morally acceptable option” has a political bent. What was actually said: > [@silenus](#): > > Billionaires can’t spend all their money on themselves even if they try. Therefore the only morally acceptable option is to use the money to better humanity. I agree with that. I personally would not choose to do it by way of tips, nor any overpaying. But I would certainly direct a lot of spending with the moral imperative in mind. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-a-billionaire-how-much-do-you-tip-restaurant-staff/737736/34 "2015-11-17T02:32:09Z")
It used to be that conservatives lauded the betterment of humanity, too. ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-a-billionaire-how-much-do-you-tip-restaurant-staff/737736/35 "2015-11-17T02:46:51Z")
I would tip NOTHING. I certainly didn’t become a billionaire by handing out my cash to the Little People. ---
**Author:** ![Mikeisskeptical](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@Mikeisskeptical](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mikeisskeptical)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-a-billionaire-how-much-do-you-tip-restaurant-staff/737736/36 "2015-11-17T02:47:34Z")
personally, I’m opposed to charity/philanthropy as a _solution_ to societal ills. That doesn’t mean that I think of the behaviour itself as anything other than laudable. Come the revolution however, all people will be treated equally. Charity will be superfluous. If you disagree, that’s cool. Blood makes excellent fertilizer. ---
**Author:** ![WF\_Tomba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d9b06d/32.png) [@WF\_Tomba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WF_Tomba)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-a-billionaire-how-much-do-you-tip-restaurant-staff/737736/37 "2015-11-17T03:52:06Z")
The OP seems to be assuming “normal” prices for these restaurant meals, but as a billionaire, I’d probably (at least sometimes) be eating at restaurants where a 20% tip _is_ hundreds or thousands of dollars. What I’d do: carry a stack of C-notes and tip 20%, rounded up to the next hundred. So if I eat at a normal-person restaurant where the bill doesn’t get above $500, I’d always be leaving a hundred. This would make me feel like a hero _and_ take away all the difficulty of calculating tips. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-a-billionaire-how-much-do-you-tip-restaurant-staff/737736/38 "2015-11-17T05:24:16Z")
I don’t see any reason not to give big tips. The money won’t matter to me, and it’s fun to make people happy. At that level, it’s like giving someone a penny. Heck, I think I’d have a fund just for this purpose, to randomly give out money to people. I’ll still have plenty for the betterment of the world. ---
**Author:** ![Snnipe\_70E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5a626/32.png) [@Snnipe\_70E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snnipe_70E)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 5:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-a-billionaire-how-much-do-you-tip-restaurant-staff/737736/39 "2015-11-17T05:32:13Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Because you can? Billionaires can’t spend all their money on themselves even if they try. Therefore the only morally acceptable option is to use the money to better humanity. Tipping large does this. inefficiently, I’ll grant you. But baby steps. You can tip large while still subsidizing clean water for 3rd World countries. If you do anything else you deserve to [del]die[/del] get a paper cut and spill lemon juice on it. If because you can? So why not pay more for the meal at the same time. If you go to a football game and 50 yard tickets are $500 pay $1000 because you can? ---
**Author:** ![Snnipe\_70E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5a626/32.png) [@Snnipe\_70E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snnipe_70E)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-a-billionaire-how-much-do-you-tip-restaurant-staff/737736/40 "2015-11-17T05:46:03Z")
> [@IvoryTowerDenizen](#): > > Giving feels good. Doing something small for someone else feels good. I didn’t realize those feelings had a political bent. Giving should be done freely not because your are rich that you have to. It becomes political when a mandatory note is added to the mix. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-a-billionaire-how-much-do-you-tip-restaurant-staff/737736.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-a-billionaire-how-much-do-you-tip-restaurant-staff/737736.md?page=3)