The Surprising History of Tipping: From Medieval Custom to Modern Controversy
Have you ever wondered why we tip? That extra 15–20% we leave after a meal or a drink feels like second nature, but tipping wasn’t always part of American culture. Its history is complex, marked by evolving social norms, resistance, and economic shifts. In this post, I explore the origins of tipping, how it evolved in the United States, and why it remains a hotly debated topic.
Early Origins of Tipping
The Etymology of “Tip”
The notion that “tip” stands for “To Insure Promptitude” is a long-held myth. Linguistic research—drawing on studies by historian George Foster and linguists such as Anatoly Liberman—challenges this explanation. The word “tip” appears to originate from 17th-century “thieves’ cant,” meaning “to pass or give secretly.”
Another theory ties the word to the Old Norse “typpa,” meaning “to touch lightly,” evoking the idea of a small, gentle contact—much like handing over a modest sum of money. Some etymologists also connect “tip” to “tipple,” an old English term for alcoholic drink, reflecting the custom of giving extra money in drinking establishments.
Gerald Cohen and Douglas Harper further propose that “tipping” is analogous to “tipping over” a container. Cohen explains, “Just as a slight tilt of a container allows a small amount of liquid to pour out, a gratuity represents a minor yet meaningful offering—a spillover of generosity.” In his view, the metaphor emphasizes the small amount given and the casual, almost accidental nature of the gesture—a spontaneous pouring out of generosity.
In contrast, Liberman argues that there is no clear linguistic evidence linking the physical act of tilting to gratuities. He contends that “tip” evolved directly from underworld slang used in covert monetary exchanges and cites early modern texts where the term appears without any metaphorical connection to “spilling over.” Liberman favors a more literal evolution of the word, with no deliberate imagery of a container being tipped.
Medieval Europe’s Influence
Rewarding service with money dates back to medieval Europe. Lords and nobles offered small sums, known as “vails,” to their servants—a practice that could mean the difference between barely surviving and affording basic necessities.
Regional practices varied. In France, travelers typically tipped innkeepers and carriage drivers between 2–5 sous for basic service. At that time, 5 sous could buy a loaf of bread—enough to feed a family of four for a day—or several pints of ale. In Germany, customers often gave 2–3 pfennigs, which might purchase a small loaf of rye bread or a bowl of pottage (a hearty stew of grains and vegetables that provided a typical peasant lunch).
Serfs earned vails for tasks such as carrying luggage, cleaning chambers, or assisting with meal preparation in noble households. Higher-status serfs, like personal attendants or estate stewards, received larger vails, while field laborers received only token sums. Female serfs, who performed tasks such as laundering, nursing children, or cooking festive meals, often received smaller vails than their male counterparts due to social and cultural restrictions on the work they could perform. These variations underscored both the value of the gratuity and the rigid social hierarchies of the time.
17th and 18th Century England
By the 1700s, tipping had become an expected practice in English coffeehouses and inns—the bustling centers of commerce and social life. These establishments offered a range of goods—coffee, tea, pastries, tobacco, and newspapers—while also providing lodging, meals, and even stable care for travelers’ horses.
Service was distinctly stratified. High-end inns catered to wealthy clientele by featuring separate dining rooms for different classes. Upper-class diners might enjoy multi-course meals with dishes such as roasted game, elaborate seafood preparations, and expensive wines imported from France, with menus priced in shillings. These venues often offered live musical performances or other refined entertainments. Staff in upscale establishments wore polished uniforms, regularly checked on guests, and tailored meals to individual preferences. In contrast, commoners were served simpler fare—stews and freshly baked bread made from locally sourced grains—in modest dining areas, with staff dressed in plain attire and providing less personalized service.
Tipping Comes to America
Early American Attitudes Toward Tipping
When tipping first arrived in America, many viewed it as an un-American, aristocratic import. Mark Twain, for instance, wrote in his 1891 travelogue, “I have tipped my way through Europe with a blush, but I swear I will never tip again. A man who can’t afford to pay his servants ought to do his own work.” Twain’s criticisms were shaped by personal encounters—he recalled a luxury hotel where a waiter persistently demanded a tip despite substandard service, leaving him feeling coerced into paying what amounted to a bribe rather than genuine appreciation. Twain also mentioned in his letters that the practice felt like a forced extra charge rather than a reward for good service.
Other critics, including journalist William R. Scott, labor activist John Rae, Harper’s Weekly editor George W. Peck, reformer Lucius P. Brown, and satirist Ambrose Bierce, argued that tipping shifted the economic burden from employers to consumers. They contended that tipping obscured true labor costs and perpetuated economic exploitation and social inequality. Anti-tipping organizations like the Anti-Tipping League attracted a mix of middle-class consumers, labor rights activists, and some small business owners. Their debates often split along class lines: while some workers viewed tips as a necessary supplement to low wages, many middle-class reformers saw the practice as an outdated vestige of European aristocracy.
The Post-Civil War Era
After the Civil War, tipping became entrenched in American industries employing newly freed Black workers. Restaurants, railroads, and hotels frequently hired Black laborers at wages that were a mere fraction of those paid to white workers. Archival data from the Southern Employment Records Project and a 1916 study by the National Consumers’ League indicate that Black Pullman porters earned as little as $4 per week plus tips, while white counterparts could earn up to $20 per week on fixed wages.
Southern “Black Codes” further cemented this disparity. Mississippi’s Black Code of 1865, for example, required Black workers to sign annual labor contracts under threat of imprisonment, effectively barring them from more lucrative jobs. In Louisiana, the 1866 Black Code explicitly prohibited Black workers from entering skilled trades, forcing them into low-wage service roles where tips were essential. South Carolina’s restrictive apprenticeship laws similarly limited opportunities, ensuring that many Black workers remained trapped in positions with little upward mobility. Additional discriminatory labor laws and the general lack of access to quality education compounded these effects, leaving Black workers reliant on tips to make ends meet.
Anti-Tipping Laws and Legal Battles
In the early 20th century, several states—including Iowa, Tennessee, and South Carolina—sought to ban tipping. Tennessee’s anti-tipping law of 1909 was based on the argument that tipping allowed employers to evade their responsibility for paying fair wages. In Adams v. Tennessee (1916), however, the court ruled that banning tipping violated the constitutional freedom of contract. The majority opinion held that, because a tip is a voluntary act, state intervention constituted an unwarranted intrusion into private agreements between employees and employers. One dissenting opinion argued that such a ruling ignored the economic coercion faced by workers who had no choice but to depend on tips due to inadequate base wages.
20th-Century Standardization
By the mid-20th century, tipping was institutionalized in restaurants, hotels, and bars. Standard tip percentages evolved from roughly 10% in the early 1900s, to 15% in the 1970s, and now often 20% or more. Worker advocacy groups like Restaurant Opportunities Centers United (ROC United) played a pivotal role. They organized protests, conducted rigorous research on wage disparities, lobbied for legislation to raise base wages, and launched public awareness campaigns—such as the “Fair Tips, Fair Pay” campaign in 2003—to draw attention to unfair tipping practices.
Tipping Beyond Restaurants
Over time, tipping expanded to other service sectors as low wages and the demand for personalized service persisted. In the 1980s, tipping became common for massage therapists in spas, where clients typically tip 15–20%, while those in medical settings often receive lower rates. Local movers now earn tips ranging from 10–15% of the service fee, whereas long-distance movers might receive 15–20%. Similarly, personal trainers in upscale gyms may garner tips of 10–15%, while independent trainers often see tips closer to 15–20%. These industry-specific variations are driven by low base wages, the increasing customization of services, and the perceived need to incentivize high-quality service.
Tipped Minimum Wage
Federal law permits employers to pay a lower minimum wage to workers who receive tips—currently $2.13 per hour—on the assumption that tips will bridge the gap. Employers are required to maintain detailed tip logs and report all gratuities daily. Penalties for wage theft related to tips can include fines of up to $5,000 per violation or even criminal charges; however, enforcement remains inconsistent. For example, in California, tipped workers receive the full minimum wage (around $15 per hour), whereas in Florida the tipped minimum wage can be as low as $5.54 per hour. Documented cases of wage theft—reported by the National Employment Law Project and various news outlets—illustrate how some employers unlawfully withhold tips or fail to report them accurately. Advocates argue that this system fosters wage instability and economic inequity, while some business owners claim it helps keep service costs manageable.
Wage Inequality
Data from a 2021 Economic Policy Institute study reveal stark disparities: tipped workers have a poverty rate of approximately 20% compared to about 10% for non-tipped workers. The study found that female tipped workers earn roughly 22% less than their male counterparts, while Black and Hispanic tipped workers earn up to 30% less than white tipped workers. These figures exceed the overall U.S. wage gap, which averages around 15%, and contribute to long-term challenges such as difficulty saving for retirement and limited access to healthcare. Other studies confirm that wage inequality in the service industry deepens economic vulnerability among marginalized workers.
No-Tipping Experiments
In recent years, some restaurants have experimented with eliminating tipping altogether. Customers in these establishments have raised specific concerns: higher menu prices force them to pay more—often regardless of service quality—and many miss the ability to directly reward exceptional service. For example, one New York restaurant raised menu prices by about 15% and increased hourly wages but experienced a 10% drop in experienced staff retention as servers migrated to venues that still allowed tips. Conversely, a San Francisco restaurant introduced a profit-sharing model that improved staff morale and retention, though it faced regulatory challenges regarding wage classification and had to adjust pricing strategies. These examples underscore the operational and legal complexities inherent in abandoning a tipping-based system.
Conclusion
If technology continues to advance, we might see the emergence of apps that automatically calculate tips based on specific service metrics—such as speed, attentiveness, accuracy, friendliness, and menu knowledge. However, this could lead to heightened surveillance of service workers, creating a highly monitored work environment that raises significant privacy and stress concerns. Alternatively, if the national minimum wage were to reach, say, $20 per hour—especially in high-cost urban areas—we might witness a gradual shift away from tipping in favor of higher base wages. Such a shift could be driven by increased consumer awareness of wage inequality and mounting pressure on restaurants to adopt more equitable pay models. Yet, resistance from restaurant owners, who argue that higher wages increase operating costs, and from workers who fear a loss in potential earnings, may slow this transition. We may also see hybrid models emerge—where tipping is optional for certain services while others adopt a fixed-wage model—reflecting the complex interplay of technological, economic, social, and political forces shaping the future of tipping.