Do You Tip In Singapore?

The question of tipping in Singapore is a commonly asked question. Tipping is really an American thing and is not part of the Singaporean culture. In saying that, there can be a service charge in restaurants and hotels. Do you need to tip in Singapore?

No, Singapore is not a tipping country so you do not need to worry about paying a tip when using any services in Singapore. Restaurants do add about a 10% service charge to the bill. No one is going to run after you if you do not leave a tip or reduce the quality of their service if you return.

In this post, we will go through if you tip in Singapore. Let’s get started!

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Is Tipping Expected In Singapore?

No, tipping is not expected in Singapore. Singapore is not a tipping country so it is not expected or mandatory to tip in Singapore. In saying that some hotels and restaurants do add a service charge of roughly around 10% to the total bill. Taxi drivers do not expect a tip but it can be common to round up the fare.

There are places where you might wonder if you need to leave a tip. These are as follows.

Restaurants And Bars.
Street Food.
Tour Guides.
Hotel.
Taxis.

Restaurants And Bars

Simply at cafe shops, bars, small restaurants, and family-run restaurants, tipping is generally not expected. But there might be a service charge. Definitely, the more fancy or upscale restaurants will more than likely add a service charge of roughly around 10% to the total bill automatically.

Whether the waiter or waitress gets any of that service charge is debatable. Either way, if you had a positive experience and you want to leave a tip, give the tip directly to the person you want to tip. You shouldn’t just leave it on the table.

Street Food

It applies mainly to Chinatown but you do not need to tip the street food vendors when buying street food. If you want to leave a tip there might be a tipping jar nearby or give them the tip after the transaction.

Tour Guides

Being a tour guide is a thankless job. They have to entertain everyone in the group and try to keep everyone happy. And do it will a simile.

Depending on your experience of the tour and properly the length of the tour. Hand the tip to the tour guide discreetly at the end of your tour. Roughly the tip to your tour guide can roughly be around 5 to 15%.

Hotels

Generally tipping in hotels is not expected except for the bellboys. Whether you want to leave a tip to the porters, maids, cleaners, etc.. this is entirely up to you if the service has been great.

If you want to tip the maids and cleaners. You can do so by leaving a tip and envelope in your room somewhere with a note.

Taxis

There’s no expectation to tip a taxi driver in Singapore. Taxis worldwide are known for their scams but in Singapore, taxis are well-regulated. So scams are rare in Singapore regarding taxis.

How Much Do You Tip A Driver In Singapore?

Tipping your taxi or Grab driver is not expected but appreciated by the driver. If you are using Grab in Singapore, you know that 100% of your tip will go to the driver.

What Is A Reasonable Tip In Singapore?

A fair tip to leave if you get a good service would be around 5% to 10% of the total bill is considered a fair amount. You will have to judge whether to give higher than 5% or to go lower. Again tipping is not expected in Singapore.

USEFUL TRAVEL RESOURCES

Book Accommodation

Booking.com has a large range of properties from hotels, hostels, guesthouses, and resorts where you will find the best deals. Airbnb and Hostelworld also have a good range of places to stay at good prices.

Booking Flight

Skyscanner is a flight search comparison website that searches millions of flights all at once. Ultimately it is the best flight comparison website online at the moment.

Booking Transportation & Things To Do

Rome2rio and 12Go are useful to plan how to get anywhere by searching train, bus, car, and ferry routes. Especially useful in countries like Vietnam or Thailand. While Klook is great for exploring things to do in each place.

Travel Insurance

Travel insurance is cheap and more than likely you will never need to use it but you will have peace of mind if something does happen, you are covered in case of an emergency. World Nomads have great customer service and competitive prices.

Check out our resource page for the best companies to use when you travel.

Wrapping Up

Finally, Singapore is not a tipping country so you do not need to worry about paying a tip when using any services in Singapore. Some restaurants do add about a 10% service charge to the bill. But no one is going to run after you if you do not leave a tip or reduce the quality of their service if you return.

And that’s it for now! I’d love to know if this guide on do you tip in Singapore has helped you. Let me know if you have any questions and let me know if there is more to add.