An American Casino Tipping Etiquette | A Full Information
In American casinos, tipping has always been a little tricky.
80% of the workers you come across in a casino, from the valet runner who greets you when you arrive to the cashier who rings you up when you leave, will be low-paid and hoping for a gratuity because casinos outsource payroll to the patron.
But fear not—we will guide you through the who, what, and when of casino tipping.
Giving a tip when you arrive
Valet runners can save you a lot of walking because they are quick and effective.
While not everyone will choose to valet park, this is a really cost-effective gratuity, particularly on chilly or wet evenings, and can range from $2 or $5 as you pull in to a few dollars when they wheel your car back around.
Just be advised that when lightning is approaching, the majority of valet services without parking structures will pull in their runners.
Bellmen are also a significant time-saver if you’re staying at the hotel.
Paying a few bucks for each bag, or up to $10 or $20 for the full luggage cart, will probably put you in a lot better mood than trudging through the halls and up the elevator to get to your room.
Of course, you can head straight for the casino floor the sooner you’re comfortable.
Leaving a Tippee When it comes to leaving a gratuity, Attendant Slots are really simple.
Tipping an attendant for fixing your machine is a contentious issue, but if it makes them return sooner the next time, why not give them a dollar or two?
Any payoff exceeding $1,200 will be made in person by a slot floor employee in the majority of US jurisdictions. Depending on the consumer, tipping might range from $20 to as much as 3–10% of the prize. Below is further information on this.
Tipping should be dependent on the duration of your absence if you ask an attendant to hold a machine while you use the restroom or for any other reason.
This might be as little as $5, or even more if you’re going to be away for a while.
Instead, simply ask them to turn off the machine if you anticipate being gone for longer than five to ten minutes. When you get back, you may always use the service button to switch it back on.
Making A Hand Pay Jackpot Tipping
Any win exceeding $1,200 will constitute a hand pay jackpot, as was previously stated. The phrase “hand pay” is appropriate as that is exactly how your winnings will be delivered by the attendant—by hand.
This is due to the fact that a win of this magnitude must be reported for taxation purposes to the IRS. After verifying that they have all the necessary paperwork on file and taking out the relevant taxes, your slot attendant will come over and give you your win in cash.
Naturally, you will have the choice to deposit the winnings at the casino cage or to accept a check for greater prizes. You won’t have to worry about having all that cash on you because you can access as much as you need this way.
What is the appropriate gratuity amount following a hand pay jackpot win? A $20 minimum gratuity and up to 3% to 10% of the total is advised due to the time, in-person engagement, and expectation that you will want to be paid on promptly when your next jackpot occurs.
Note: If you would like federal taxes withheld on smaller sums, make sure to inquire because they are typically not withheld until the jackpot exceeds $5,000.
Leaving Tips for Table Games
Table game tipping can be complicated.
Tipping dealers is a topic on which there are many different schools of thought, but ultimately it boils down to how much fun you are having. It is not permitted for a pit supervisor to take tips.
A dealer is first and foremost an entertainer. This isn’t someone giving you a drink or circling your car.
Here, tipping is based on entertainment value rather than a service received (at least not directly).
Sure, you should definitely take care of a dealer who delivers you a straight flush in Mississippi Stud or a 30-minute roll on the dice table, but even that should be considered in relation to whether or not you had a nice time.
Even if you lose, a dealer should always make sure you walk away happy. Tipping the dealer is appropriate if you’ve enjoyed yourself while playing at their table.
At the end of the day, the service you are tipping for is customer service, and if they give that, they deserve that little bit extra. We will go into more detail about other tipping scenarios later.
Giving the Blackjack Dealer a Tipper
In blackjack, you can tip the dealer by putting a stake in front of yours or by giving the dealer chips directly.
Because they believe it keeps the dealer cheering them on and gives them a part in their success, most people prefer to place bets on the dealer.
Maybe a few bucks after each blackjack at a lower limit table, or if you’ve won a few hands in a row.
In games with a higher limit of $25 and above, it would be wiser to use $5 dollar chips.
Nowadays, most blackjack games include a side bet of some kind. If you were to win one of them, you would need to take home between 3 and 10%.
While it’s not necessary, it’s polite to place bets for the dealer as well if you split or double your wager.
Giving Your Roulette Dealer a Tipper
To indicate that a bet is for the dealer in roulette, you can either hand it in or offset it on top of the chips you are betting.
Inform them that this bet is for them and the number you would want to wager.
Another popular way to tip in roulette is to just give part of your chips—maybe 5%—as soon as you finish coloring them in.
In the game of roulette, some players work the dealer far more than others. You might not need to tip as much if all you’re doing is placing your own outside bets.
However, more frequent tipping may ensure more cooperation if you are requesting the dealer to place 10 or 12 bets for you before every spin, or if you are piling chips on corners, splits, and straight ups.
Leaving a Tipped Craps Dealer
The majority of dice players just turn in their chips when they’re through. This slightly smooths things out without slowing down the game.
However, some dice players believe that keeping the dealers active will bring them luck.
You might hear the phrase “$5 Yo for me and a dollar for the dealers” on the coming out roll. This implies that if all 11 rolls come up heads, the player will win $75 and the dealers will gain $15.
More than any other game, dice players frequently exclaim, “I’m in control,” in regard to a wager they have made with the dealer.
The player would then select what to do with a winning stake, maybe parlaying it to a $16 Yo or instructing the dealers to drop the $15 in wins but leave the dollar up for the next roll, assuming the player in our scenario above had said, “Dollar for the dealer, I’m in control.”
A few players at Craps will tip the dealers a six, eight, or even all the numbers.
If the player has indicated that he is in control, he will choose whether to press, parlay, or forfeit the winnings when they hit. If that number wins, the dealers win.
Look for a slower, less crowded game if you’re new to the game.
While you’re there, ask the dealer about tipping and let them know you’re learning. They’ll definitely pitch in.
Giving Your Dealer a Tipping
Similar to other card games, most baccarat players tip while they are coloring.
On specific hands, individuals will place a chip in front of their player or banker bet, or occasionally their tie bet, to wager against the dealer.
Nowadays, side bets are present on most baccarat tables. When a player hits a good payoff on one of them, most players will leave a 3-5% tip.
Tipping in Carnival Activities
Games at carnivals like Pai-Gow Poker, Ultimate Texas Hold’em, Three Card Poker, and Mississippi Stud are always problematic since we have the possibility of winning a taxable jackpot for the first time.
The casinos won’t entertain filling out tax documents for the more than 100 dealers splitting the windfall.
Therefore, it is not permitted to gamble on the dealer on a single hand in many carnival games. When you walk away from the table or after a winning hand, you can tip the dealer.
In certain situations, you can avoid this by placing the dealer’s bet offset above your wager.
In the event that you strike a taxable jackpot, you can simply give the dealer their portion because the chip will still be deemed yours and the taxes will be deducted in your name.
This won’t always work because a lot of these games have severe wager limits of one or five dollars. A payout becomes taxable at 300 to 1 AND $600 or more in the majority of states.
As with craps, your best chance is to ask the dealer, and they will guide you through the specific casino’s laws for tipping on these tables. However, this too differs from state to state and tribe to tribe.
Do Dealers at Casinos Keep Their Tips?
The majority of US casino dealers start out making between $4.35 and $9.00 per hour, with the expectation that consumers will cover the difference.
However, tips are pooled by dealers in nearly all casinos. They don’t hold onto theirs. There are a number of reasons, but the main one is to prevent the dealer from believing that they will lose money if they dealt challenging games and to profit more while dealing really easy games. The casino would not benefit from this.
Tipping Your Cocktail waiters: Without beverage waiters, a casino wouldn’t be nearly as enjoyable.
In addition to bringing you refreshments and offering you encouragement and smiles, your diligent server will also improve your overall gaming experience.
The fact that these dedicated workers only receive $2.15 per hour is one of the dirty little secrets of the casino industry. Many people can work for years without earning more than $3 in base salary.
Drinks are free for patrons who are actively gaming in around half of US casinos; in the other half, there is a small fee.
Whether a drink is alcoholic or not, you should tip at least $1 and ideally $2 for each one. Then don’t hesitate to go above and beyond for excellent customer service.
You want these people to come back, after all.
Leaving A Tipper at the Cage
When the evening is over, you cash out your chips in the cage. This is also the players’ club room where you pick up your players’ club card in the majority of US casinos.
If you don’t already have a players card, make sure to stop by this section and grab one, as at least 90% of these casinos will be offering new players a sign-up bonus.
They can also assist you get cash off your credit card or build up credit lines.
The majority of transactions in this field don’t call for gratuities, but in a few exceptional circumstances—like cashing out a large win, sending money via wire transfer, or doing something else that takes a lot of time—a small tip might be appropriate.
Tipping the Host at Your Casino
Some casino hosts do not allow tips in cash, and in very uncommon circumstances, presents are not permitted either. Though it’s best to be discrete, you can present your host a little gift or cash tip in most casinos. If cash is not permitted, place it inside an envelope or card or use a gift card.
Although it’s improbable that a host will overpay you for a tiny gratuity, it’s always a good idea to let them know that you value their time and attention.
The kind of service a host provides will determine how much you should tip them. A $20 gift card might be given if they secured you a room, but if they flew you out, made dinner reservations for three nights, and then found you tickets to see U2 at the Sphere, then that’s a whole other ballgame when it comes to tipping.
Leaving Gratuities in Restaurants
Tipping etiquette in America is 10–25% of the total bill, including drinks, when dining out at the casino or neighboring restaurants.
Once more, most of these people aren’t really making minimum wage—rather, they’re making a tip-adjusted variation of it.
As in every one of these circumstances, client service is crucial.
Taxi Tipping and Other Things
Look for a taxi stand if you must take a cab, especially in Las Vegas.
You cannot flag down a taxi on the Strip on your own since it is against the law for Vegas taxis to accept hailed fairs.
A reasonable place to start is with 10% of the total fare. Taxi drivers ought to be treated the same as Uber or Lyft drivers.
Tipping Customs in the United States and Across the Globe
As you can see, tipping in American casinos can be a very costly endeavor and differs greatly from other countries.
Tipping was prohibited in UK casinos until recently. And tipping is still uncommon, or at least covert, in the majority of European casinos.
Not even Macau has a culture of leaving tips, and the managers take advantage of many of them.
The only place you’ll find an American model of underpaid employees and an evening full of gratuities is in the Caribbean.
But keep in mind that the staff is working extremely hard to make sure you have an exciting and memorable experience, so most of the time a few dollars, a smile, and some understanding will go a very far way.
