Are Millennials Good Tippers?

By Chris Lange Updated Jan 6, 2:33AM EST · Published Sep 12, 1:45PM EDT

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Are Millennials Good Tippers? — © SDI Productions / Getty Images

Proper etiquette would suggest tipping for certain services, but this isn’t always the case. Some people are more generous than others, while many aren’t giving tips at all. A new study from CreditCards.com found that men and millennials (ages 23 to 38) are the most reluctant tippers. On the other hand, women and baby boomers (ages 55 to 73) are most likely to tip.

CreditCards.com surveyed U.S. adults who use these common services about their tipping habits and the results demonstrated a discrepancy in behaviors based on both age and gender.

Although men and millennials do tip, their tipping is far more inconsistent, according to the survey. Comparatively, women are more likely than men to always tip their hairstylists (66% versus 60%), waitstaff (80% versus 74%) and food delivery people (66% versus 59%).

In terms of generations, baby boomers are 23 percentage points more likely than millennials to always tip restaurant servers (89% versus 66%) and taxi/rideshare drivers (63% versus 40%), 20 percentage points more likely to always tip hairstylists (73% versus 53%), 16 percentage points more likely to always tip for food delivery (72% versus 56%) and 10 percentage points more likely to always tip hotel housekeepers (33% versus 23%).

However, when they do tip, millennials and men do leave a little extra at restaurants. Millennials tip an average of 22%, versus 17% for baby boomers, while men tip 19% and women tip 18%. Among all diners who leave tips, the average is 19%.

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Ted Rossman, industry analyst at CreditCards.com, commented:

When in doubt, I think you should tip, particularly if this is a service provider you interact with regularly. You may get better service as a result, and you’ll definitely make a difference to a hardworking member of your community.

There’s often an expectation of providing a tip or token of appreciation to service providers during the winter holiday season. More than half of U.S. adults who have teachers or childcare providers give them holiday tips at least on occasion (53% for both). Whereas, most respondents say they never give their trash/recycling collectors (70%) or mail carriers (60%) holiday gratuities.

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About the Author Chris Lange →

Chris Lange is a writer for 24/7 Wall St., based in Houston. He has covered financial markets over the past decade with an emphasis on healthcare, tech, and IPOs. During this time, he has published thousands of articles with insightful analysis across these complex fields. Currently, Lange's focus is on military and geopolitical topics.

Lange's work has been quoted or mentioned in Forbes, The New York Times, Business Insider, USA Today, MSN, Yahoo, The Verge, Vice, The Intelligencer, Quartz, Nasdaq, The Motley Fool, Fox Business, International Business Times, The Street, Seeking Alpha, Barron’s, Benzinga, and many other major publications.

A graduate of Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, Lange majored in business with a particular focus on investments. He has previous experience in the banking industry and startups.