(NEXSTAR) – Are you “guilt-tipping” more than the average American?
In recent times, individuals across the nation are increasingly encountering digital payment interfaces at their local coffee shops, retail stores, and quick-service eateries. Frequently, these screens prompt patrons to leave a gratuity — sometimes even at places where they serve themselves.
“Am I imagining things, or has this situation spiraled out of control?” one Reddit user questioned earlier this year, after reportedly being asked to tip 18% at both a self-serve candy store and a self-serve convenience terminal.
These tipping screens are not expected to vanish anytime soon. However, Americans seem to be making modest strides in feeling less pressured to comply, as indicated by findings from a recent survey.
A survey involving 2,000 American adults, executed by Talker Research, reveals that people in the United States are experiencing less guilt over skipping the tipping screen. Furthermore, when they do decide to tip, they tend to be tipping less than they did in 2024.
The average survey participant felt compelled to tip — or “guilt-tipped” — about 4.2 times monthly, the survey shows. This is a decrease from the 6.3 times per month in 2024, according to Talker Research’s findings.
The typical respondent also predicted that they will guilt-tip an additional $283.20 in 2025 — a reduction from the $453.60 average in 2024. (Talker Research asked participants to estimate how much they felt they had over-tipped under pressure within the previous 30 days and multiplied the findings by 12 to derive the annual estimate.)
“When asked generally about their tipping in 2025, over a fifth (22%) say they now tip less across the board,” Talker Research wrote of its findings.
Despite these changing habits, many Americans still feel like they’re being pressured to tip at undeserving establishments, the polling group determined. Just under half (48%) said they “strongly” or “somewhat” agreed that they’re increasingly being pressured to tip more than they would normally. And 20% indicated that they “often” or “always” did so.
Speaking with Nexstar during the pandemic, when digital payment screens were becoming more common, Michael Lynn, a professor of marketing and management communication at Cornell University, said people who feel pressured to tip generally harbored anger toward the businesses.
“People think it’s manipulative, they resent it, and their perceptions of service go down,” Lynn said, citing a study from researchers at Purdue and Temple Universities.
So why do companies continue to use these screens? Maybe because studies have shown that it works more often than it doesn’t, or because it helps to recruit employees who wouldn’t otherwise be happy with their hourly wages.
Etiquette expert Diane Gottsman, the founder of the Protocol School of Texas, also once told Nexstar that customers who feel pressured to tip should evaluate their service before deciding whether or not to do so. At restaurants, for example, servers are likely making less than minimum wage and gratuities help augment their income. In most other situations, tipping, while a courteous gesture, isn’t “socially mandatory,” but rather a nice gesture for good service.
Americans may also want to get comfortable with newer tipping practices sooner rather than later, because those screens probably aren’t going anywhere.
“We are subjected to that app, that screen, almost every day when we buy a coffee or a sandwich,” Gottsman said. “So we have to get used to this form of payment.”
