How Much You Should *Really* Tip at Starbucks, According to Current & Former Baristas
Tipping at Starbucks
"Tip your barista" became a rallying cry, particularly in the early days of the pandemic in 2020. Yet, four years later, headlines suggest that tipping culture has jumped the shark, and a recent Bankrate survey indicates that fewer than 25% of coffee shop customers give their baristas a little something extra. In fact, baristas were the third-least-tipped service workers, behind hairdressers/stylists/barbers, servers at a sit-down restaurant and food delivery workers. They ranked ahead of home repair workers and restaurant staff when picking up takeout.
Yet, baristas do a lot.
"For the most part, baristas contribute to society in a mostly positive way by serving caffeine," says Lance “Boo” Mayfield, a barista with Virgin Hotels. "The work day for a barista can start as early as 3:30 a.m. just to make sure that you, as a customer, are awake and ready to become a functioning member of society."
Baristas also deal with you before you're fully functioning. "The pre-caffeinated person can sometimes be so cruel," Mayfield says.
"Yes — full stop," says Alex Frankel, the CEO and founder of the Hot Fat Guy Club, who was a barista in New York for four years in college.
OK, but how much, and what about drip coffee? And drive-thrus? And your free birthday drink at Starbucks? Baristas spilled all the coffee beans on tip etiquette at Starbucks (and local coffee shops).
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How Much Should You Tip a Starbucks Barista?
One former barista concedes you don't have to tip but highly recommends you do.
"Although tipping a Starbucks barista isn't mandatory, it's greatly appreciated," says Lindsay Babcock, a writer, proofreader and former Starbucks barista. "Generally, I think a tip of 10% to 20% is standard, depending on the complexity of the order."
Or, consider a dollar amount.
"Since Starbucks is a quick-service cafe, the tipping norms differ from those at a sit-down restaurant," says Kayla Stavridis, a former Starbucks barista and the head of marketing at Barista HQ. "A common practice is to leave small change from your cash transactions or tip a dollar or two when paying with a card. The digital tipping system on the Starbucks app makes it easy to tip $1, $2, or more with a simple tap after your purchase."
Frankel agrees with the dollar approach, emphasizing the bar in barista.
"You should tip at all coffee shops the same way as you would at a bar — $1 for each drink ordered, especially if it requires skill," Frankel says.
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Starbucks vs. Local
Frankel's advice raises a good point: Should you tip less at a mega-chain like Starbucks or Dunkin' Donuts than at the indie coffee shop down the street? Frankel says no.
Another former local coffee shop barista supports her one-time colleagues at chains. "If your drink order is the same, then the tip you are choosing to give would be the same at either coffee shop," says Jessica Kopach, a former barista and current public relations expert and founder and partner of JKO. "It doesn't matter if it's local or a chain — the barista is still working hard at both locations."
Frankel points out that baristas at Starbucks (and Dunkin', for that matter) may have to deal with longer lines and larger workloads because the brand recognition around chains may lead to more foot traffic.
Should You Tip Your Barista at a Drive-Thru?
Yes, it's best practice to tip if you're ordering at a drive-thru.
"The same amount of work goes into preparing beverages whether you go through the drive-thru or pay inside, so I think applying the same tipping guidelines of 10%-20% to the drive-thru makes sense," Babcock says.
What If You're Using a Gift Card or Getting a Free Coffee?
"I'd pretend you're paying full price in these situations," Babcock says.
But things can get tricky if you're getting a free drink — like Starbucks offers on birthdays. "If you’re doing a free transaction, they’re most likely not running your card, so try to make sure you have cash on you," Frankel says. "By the way, if you can, always tip in cash — always. If you don’t [have cash and are getting a free drink], ask them if they can ring up a $.01 transaction so you can throw a tip on top of it."
What About Drip Coffee?
Things get dicey here, and even current and former baristas have differing views.
"I think it's OK to tip less for a drip coffee instead of a specialty drink if you choose," Kopach says. "I do believe you should always tip something, but the amount can absolutely be based on your own views and the complexity of your drink order."
Babcock has a similar view.
"As long as you've received decent service, I think a 10% tip on drip coffee is fine," Babcock says. "As someone who previously worked at Starbucks, I tip 20% on all drinks, including drip coffee."
Frankel says drip coffee is the lone exception to his "full stop, tip all the time" advisory. "Drip coffee is the only instance where I believe tipping isn’t necessary," he says. "There isn’t additional skill involved to pull the lever and fill the cup with drip coffee."
Yet, Mayfield points out that there might still be some skill involved. "There is the labor of grinding the beans and making the drip coffee, right?" he says. "But, then there’s the self-service of adding your own milk and sugars to it. It is definitely OK to not tip for drip coffee. If you want to be gratuitous, I’ve noticed that the standard for drip coffee is anywhere from $.50 to $1 into the tip jar."
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Is It Ever OK Not to Tip?
Unpopular opinion time: "It is always OK not to tip, especially when there are financial constraints and poor service," Mayfield says.
Yet, regarding poor service, consider giving the barista a chance to make up for it before withholding a tip. "If you are not 100% satisfied or your drink order is wrong, the barista will almost always make you another one, so there really should be no reason not to," Kopach says.
Remember, there's a human behind the counter. While kindness in the form of a tip is not free, the small token can reap dividends for baristas. "While tipping at Starbucks isn’t mandatory, it remains a powerful way to show appreciation for the hard work and personalized service baristas provide," Stavridis says. "As a former barista, I can say that every tip, big or small, was appreciated and made a difference in my day."
And when they don't get a tip? "It just feels like you are not appreciated, and the time you are taking to perfect their drink order is not noticed, especially if they are a regular," Kopach says.
Sources
Lance “Boo” Mayfield, a barista with Virgin Hotels
Alex Frankel, the CEO and founder of the Hot Fat Guy Club, who was a barista in New York for four years in college
Lindsay Babcock, a writer, proofreader and former Starbucks barista
Jessica Kopach, a former barista and current public relations expert and founder and partner of JKO
Kayla Stavridis, a former Starbucks barista and the head of marketing at Barista HQ
