Why splitting bills is surprisingly hard
Splitting a restaurant bill seems simple, but complications arise quickly: different people ordered different amounts, the tip needs to be calculated on what, exactly, some people had alcohol and others did not, and nobody wants to be the one doing long division in their head while the waiter waits. The tip splitter handles all of this instantly.
How to use the tip splitter
Enter the total bill amount — the pre-tax subtotal or the total with tax, depending on whether you want to tip on the pre-tax amount (technically more accurate) or the total (simpler and more common in practice). Select the tip percentage. Enter the number of people. The tool shows the tip amount, total including tip, and the per-person amount.
Standard tip percentages
Tipping norms vary by country and service type. In the United States, 15% is considered the minimum for adequate service, 18–20% is standard for good service, and 20–25% is for excellent service. For takeout and counter service, 10–15% or no tip is typical. For bar tabs, $1–2 per drink or 15–20% of the tab is standard. In the UK, 10–12.5% is typical in sit-down restaurants. In most of Europe, 5–10% or rounding up the bill is customary. Tipping is not expected or even appropriate in Japan, South Korea, and some other East Asian countries.
Tipping before or after tax
The "correct" answer is to tip on the pre-tax subtotal — you are tipping for the service, not the government's tax. In practice, most people tip on the post-tax total because the arithmetic is simpler and the difference is small. On a $100 pre-tax bill in New York (8.875% tax), the difference between tipping 20% on pre-tax ($20) versus post-tax ($21.78) is $1.78 — meaningful to a server on a $100 check but not the hill worth dying on at a group dinner.
Unequal splits
When people ordered very different amounts, equal splitting is unfair. The splitter supports custom amounts per person: enter what each person ordered, add the same tip percentage to each, and see each person's exact total. This works for large groups where tracking individual orders is worth the effort.
Tax handling
The tool lets you enter a tax rate separately if you want to calculate tip on the pre-tax subtotal. Enter the subtotal, add the tax rate, and the tool shows tax amount, tip amount, and grand total separately — useful for expense reports where you need to itemise tax and tip.