Stingy tippers, steep taxes: California and Washington state anchor the bottom of the tipping charts

Restaurant-goers in California, Washington state and D.C. are tipping less than almost anyone else in the country, and the pattern is showing up right alongside a wave of newly enacted and proposed taxes on high earners in two of those jurisdictions.

Stingy tippers, steep taxes: California and Washington state anchor the bottom of the tipping charts

TL;DR

  • California, Washington state, and D.C. have the lowest tipping rates in the country.
  • This pattern coincides with new and proposed taxes on high earners in California and Washington.
  • The data suggests a potential link between increased taxes and reduced tipping.