How much should I tip?
Printed From: HairBoutique.com
Category: Hair Talk
Forum Name: Hair Politics
Forum Description: The politics of Hair is a slippery slope...
URL: https://talk.hairboutique.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=8604
Printed Date: July 22 2025 at 3:39am
Topic: How much should I tip?
Posted By: Unregistered Guest
Subject: How much should I tip?
Date Posted: March 22 2000 at 12:27am
Hi,
I was just wondering...what's an appropriate amount for a tip when getting your hair cut? I usually tip about 2 bucks for a $25 wash, cut and style at a privately owned little joint, but I'm thinking of upping that. They do a good job, and I wouldn't want to offend anyone. What do you think? Would 15-20% like at a restaurant be more reasonable?
Thanx :)
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Replies:
Posted By: Ally
Date Posted: March 23 2000 at 8:52am
Great topic! I'd like to hear from real people, and not just magazines, which recommend 15 to 25 percent. (25 percent!?!?!?)
I hope I'm not cheap, but to me a $6 tip for a haircut seems extreme. That is what's suggested for a $30 cut, however. It gets worse if you have a cut and color ($90), and the "suggested" tip climbs to over $20!
I dislike this American practice of tipping everyone for everything. Waiters and waitress I don't mind. That's standard, and it's the majority of their earnings. But now we're supposed to tip hairstylists, manicurists, aestheticians, masseurs, and so on--ON TOP of prices that are already outrageous.
And because it's standard and expected, I don't have the heart to decline. Even if the service wasn't worth a tip. The last time I had my eyebrows waxed (1 minute, $12), I noticed the technician was lingering expectantly while I paid. This wasn't even a salon. It was a cosmetic store in the mall. I tipped her $3 and left feeling resentful.
Where does it end?
Ally
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Posted By: DaveDecker
Date Posted: March 24 2000 at 7:17am
Ally,
Perhaps the best way to decide whether or not you want to demand a service is to ask yourself if you would still be willing to pay a price that includes the expected tip. For example, with a stated price of $12 (and implied tip of $3), would you be willing to pay $15 for the waxing service?
All people who work in occupations that earn tips have come to expect tips to be a significant portion of their income.
That said, I understand how you feel. My thoughts on tips may be "old fashioned," but I believe that the amount of the tip should vary depending on the quality, and the extent, of the service provided. When I go to restaurants with friends (taking turns paying the bill), I am constantly surprised how some of them will nonchalantly tip 20-25% for "average" service. But my pet peeve is "bathroom attendants." If I'm able to "take care of my business" and also wash my hands afterwards, why do I then need somebody to hand me a paper towel to dry them with?!
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Posted By: Ally
Date Posted: March 24 2000 at 9:29am
Dave,
I completely agree that a 25 percent tip /should/ be reserved for exceptional service. Something else that's always bothered me: The waiter in the nice restaurant where you ordered filet mignon gets a $25 tip, whereas the waiter at Chili's gets $6. They both carried the same number of plates and made the same number of trips to the kitchen.
This goes for beauty services too. I used to give the woman who cut and colored my hair the "requisite" $20 tip. What could a colorist possibly be doing above and beyond the call of duty, on a monthly basis, to warrant an extra 20 bucks for an hour's work? (Half that time she spent sipping soda and reading a magazine while I sat under the dryer.) That's practically the price of the haircut all over again. And if you tip her 20 percent once, you pretty much have to do it ever after, even if she does a less than stellar job.
If you're just getting your hair cut, a tip is no big deal. But when you get into expensive services like hair extensions or specialty color....ugh!
I think I'm dismayed that tipping is now "automatic." It's not a nicety or an expression of appreciation. To duck out of it is socially unacceptable. For this reason, why not just work it into the price of the service?
Ally
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Posted By: dianefromcanada
Date Posted: March 25 2000 at 12:37pm
My trims cost $21.00 so I normally tip $5.00
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dianefromcanada
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