Tip Calculator

How the tip, the total, and the split are calculated

Tip = bill × tip percent ÷ 100. Grand total = bill + tip. The people field is rounded to a whole number. A value of 2.5 becomes 3, because a half rounds away from zero toward the positive side. A blank, a zero, or a negative becomes 1. Each person = grand total ÷ that whole number of people. All three dollar lines then round to the nearest dollar, separately. The page does not show cents. A tip of $7.50 displays as $8. A grand total of $57.50 displays as $58. The three lines are not forced to add back up after that rounding, so the displayed tip plus the bill you typed can be a dollar away from the displayed grand total.

Nothing is added for tax. The bill box is the base you chose. If you want the tip on the pre-tax subtotal, type the subtotal. If you want it on the amount including tax, type that amount. The page cannot see a receipt. The 20 in the tip box is a placeholder so the field is not empty. It is not a required rate, and the page does not look up a local custom. A receipt that already includes a gratuity is a reason to type a different percent, including zero, not a reason to add 20 on top without reading the bill.

Worked examples

Example 1: $50 at 15 percent, where the cents disappear

Tip = 50 × 15 ÷ 100 = $7.50, which displays as $8. Grand total = 57.50, which displays as $58. One person, so per person is also $58. The exact products are $7.50 and $57.50. The panel never shows those cents. Twenty percent of the same $50 is exactly $10, grand total exactly $60, and those display as $10, $60, and $60. Eighteen percent of $50 is $9 exactly, grand total $59. The 15 percent case is the one that crosses a half-dollar.

Example 2: $84.60 at 20 percent, three people

Tip = 84.60 × 0.20 = $16.92, which displays as $17. Grand total = 101.52, which displays as $102. Per person = 101.52 ÷ 3 = 33.84, which displays as $34. Three times the displayed $34 is $102, which matches the displayed grand total. The displayed tip of $17 does not equal $16.92, and $84.60 + $17 = $101.60, which is not the $102 on the grand-total line. Each line rounded on its own. If you need cents for a card slip, compute 16.92 and 101.52 by hand. This panel will not show them.

Example 3: $64.50 at 18 percent, two people, and a 2.5 that becomes 3

$64.50 × 0.18 = $11.61, which displays as $12. Grand total = 76.11, which displays as $76. Split by 2: 76.11 ÷ 2 = 38.055, which displays as $38. Two times $38 is $76. The exact per-person amount is not $38.00. On a different bill, type 2.5 people on a $100 bill at 20 percent. The people field rounds 2.5 to 3. Tip displays as $20, grand total as $120, and per person as $40, because 120 ÷ 3 = 40. It does not divide by 2.5.

When to use this

Use it for one bill, one percent, and an optional equal split. It lives under Math because that is the arithmetic. There is no second tip tool under DIY. A discount off a price, rather than a percent added on, is the Percent Off Calculator. A change from one number to another, such as last month's total versus this one, is the Percent Change Calculator. An unequal split, 3:2 or otherwise, is not this page and is not the Ratio Calculator either. The ratio page will not divide a dollar total. You would have to apply the shares yourself.

Pre-tax, post-tax, and a gratuity already on the check

The formula does not know which base you consider fair. It multiplies the bill you typed. Food of $50 and tax of $4 is two possible bills. Twenty percent of 50 is $10, grand total of food plus tax plus that tip is not what the page shows unless you type 50 and then add the $4 yourself outside the tool. Twenty percent of 54 is $10.80, which displays as a tip of $11 and a grand total of $65, because 54 × 1.20 = 64.80 and 64.80 rounds to $65. Pick one base, type that base, and read the rounded dollars as rounded dollars.

If the check already has an 18 percent gratuity, typing 18 again computes another 18 percent. The page does not scan for the words "service charge." Type 0 if you are not adding more. Delivery-app fees and a tip field in an app are also outside the formula. Type the amount you still intend to multiply.

Common mistakes

• Expecting cents. $7.50 displays as $8 and $57.50 displays as $58. The panel rounds every dollar line to the nearest dollar.
• Adding the displayed tip to the bill and expecting the displayed total. On $84.60 at 20 percent the tip line says $17 and the total says $102. 84.60 + 17 is 101.60. The total was rounded from 101.52.
• Typing 2.5 people and expecting a split by 2.5. 2.5 rounds to 3. The $100, 20 percent example divides $120 by 3.
• Leaving 20 in the box because it was already there. Twenty is a placeholder. Type the percent you mean, including a percent that is already printed on the receipt if you still want to add it, or zero if you do not.
• Tipping on tax without meaning to. The tool adds nothing. If the bill you typed includes tax, the percent applies to tax too.
• Splitting unequally. Every person gets the same rounded share of the grand total. The page has no way to mark one diner's wine.

Limitations

One bill, one percent, an equal split, and nearest-dollar display. No currency conversion, no tax adder, no receipt parser, and no stored "standard" percent. Half-dollar amounts round away from zero on positive bills, so $7.50 becomes $8. A people count of 2.5 becomes 3. Blank and non-positive people counts become 1. The exact cent amount is available only by redoing the multiplication. The panel will not show it.

FAQ

Why does 15 percent of $50 show a tip of $8?

50 × 0.15 = 7.50, and the tip line rounds to the nearest dollar. Half a dollar rounds away from zero, so 7.50 displays as $8. The grand total of 57.50 displays as $58.

Why doesn't the tip plus the bill equal the grand total on the panel?

Each line rounds separately. On a bill of $84.60 at 20 percent the exact tip is $16.92 (displays as $17) and the exact grand total is $101.52 (displays as $102). 84.60 + 17 is not 102.

Should I type the pre-tax subtotal or the total with tax?

Type the base you want the percent applied to. The page does not add tax and does not remove it. Twenty percent of $50 is $10. Twenty percent of $54 is $10.80, which displays as a tip of $11 and a grand total of $65.

What if the receipt already includes a gratuity?

The page cannot see it. If you type another percent, it will add that percent on top. Type 0 when you are not adding more.

What does 2.5 people do?

It rounds to 3. A $100 bill at 20 percent then splits $120 three ways, $40 displayed per person. It does not divide by 2.5. A blank or a zero uses 1 person.

Is 20 percent the rate this calculator expects?

No. The 20 in the box is a placeholder. The formula multiplies whatever percent you type. It does not store a customary rate.

Can the split be uneven?

No. Per person is the grand total divided by the rounded people count, then rounded to the nearest dollar. Everyone's line is the same.

Related calculators

• Percent Off Calculator for a percent taken off a price
• Percent Change Calculator
• Ratio Calculator for simplifying a pair of numbers, not for splitting a bill
• Fraction to Decimal to Percent