When it comes to tipping, there's pretty much no place else in the world where tipping is so engrained in the culture of everything you'll do. This is a city that lives and dies on tips, and because of this you can and should expect a very high level of service no matter what you're doing while in town. That being said, most people really don't know what's appropriate to tip for different services, so I wanted to compile a list that helps you figure out when and what to give as a gratuity. Keep in mind these are just general recommendations based on my experiences and you are free to tip as little or as much as your Vegas budget allows.
- For the ploppy, who is in the casino to be 'entertained,' and is willing to lose his or her money for the dubious 'entertainment value' they receive, the people skills of the dealer may add value to their entertainment experience. Such a person should, and almost always does, tip the dealer.
- This is a matter of internal house policy. The term 'pool' means that any tips received by a dealer are added to a pool which is split evenly by all the dealers.
Bartenders – If you're just ordering 1 or 2 drinks, leave around $1 – $3, otherwise I usually do 10-15% for a larger bill of drinks only.
TIP #5: TIPPING THE DEALER CAN BE VALUABLE FOR ADAVANTAGE PLAY Dealers can give you information regarding casino procedures, policies and shift times. Any information is valuable for APs, the more you have the stronger your position.
Bellmen – I never use these guys but I know a lot of people do, I think $5 is appropriate if they do a good job (meaning they are friendly, show you into your room and explain any features).
Bottle Service Girls – If you have a table in the club, you'll probably be subject to an auto gratuity of 18%, some people leave more on top but I think that's more than enough.
Cigarette Girls – These are the girls that walk around the casino selling smokes, I usually give them a few dollars.
Cocktail Waitresses – Specifically the ones that work inside the casino and bring you 'free' drinks while you gamble, I usually give $2-$5 (if I'm winning) but $1 per drink is acceptable.
Dealers – This is super subjective and depends on your limits, luck and generosity – throwing a bet for the dealers every so often is very appreciated however.
Front Desk Agents – You definitely don't need to tip them, however using the 20 dollar trick is a good idea if you are looking for an upgrade.
Go Go Dancers – Some hotels have Go Go Dancers in the casino pit that provide additional entertainment – seems a bit creepy to tip them but I'm sure they'll accept it, I suggest $5.
Maids – The rule of thumb is $3-$5 per day, but I prefer to just leave around $20 at the end of my trip if the room is clean and well serviced.
Nightclub Bouncers – You don't have to tip these guys, but you do if you want to skip the line and they usually want $50-$100 per person.
Restaurant Servers – If they are friendly, attentive and provide good service I usually give them 15%-20% of the total bill.
Room Service – There will usually always be an auto gratuity of 10%-15% but I still give a few bucks when they deliver the food.
Slot Attendants – These are the people that pay you when you win a slots jackpot, there is no fixed % and it depends on what you win, but I wouldn't tip too much.
Taxi Drivers – The standard tip for taxi drivers is around 10% to 20% of the fare, but only do this if they are nice and entertaining (which many in Vegas are).
Taxi Line Guy – At all hotels there is a 'taxi line guy' that manages the flow of cabs and opens the door for you, $1-$2 is totally fine.
Valet Attendant – Never have used this service before but the recommendation seems to be $2 for drop-off and $2 for pick-up.
VIP Host – If you have a VIP casino host it's nice to tip them if they do a good job, most can't accept cash so gift cards are a good idea.
Tipping Dealers
Should I Tip Casino Dealers Without
There exists a handful of different types of people that should receive tips at your typical casino, however few are more important than the dealer. As was briefly touched upon above, the dealer is a critical part of the equation when it comes to you winning or losing money. Though tipping the dealer is not going to see he or she cheat for you, it is generally considered a standard practice, and it is wise that you adhere to it.
Throughout the years many people have come up with many different methods or formulas for how they tip, but there is no single correct way to go about it. A popular way to tip is to simply base the quantity of money given on the quality of service you are receiving. If the dealer is helpful, cheerful, and generally contributing to your good time, I think it's safe to say that he or she deserves a better tip than someone who doesn't speak and rarely makes eye contact.
In addition to this, people tend to tip based upon how they are playing at the given moment in time. If they are playing well they are going to tip extremely well, if not, then they may be a bit more frugal. At the end of the day, there are few people who would offer an argument against the belief that dealers are the most important people to tip well.
Tipping Waiters/Waitresses
There must be a disclaimer made that how well or poorly you tip waiters and waitresses depends solely upon how much drinking you plan on doing at the casino. If you are on vacation and looking to gamble for fun while sipping on a few cocktails, then it would behoove you to tip the waiters and waitresses quite well.
If you are inexperienced as far as time on the casino floor is concerned, it may come as a surprise to you that many casinos offer your beer and liquor drinks free of charge so long as you are playing a game. Because the drinks are free, many new casino-goers assume that as soon as the beverage is handed over to them the transaction is complete. While this may technically be true, it is terrible casino etiquette and is frowned upon no matter who you are or where you are. When it comes to drinks and snacks, tipping is as close to an expectation as can be for something that is officially optional.
Tipping isn't just good manners, it is something that will ensure prompt service in the future. If you avoid tipping, word will spread quickly amongst the service staff, and before you know it you will be waiting long periods of time for a single drink.
Tipping, at its core, is nothing more than something you do out of the kindness of your heart. Something that Is also very important to remember is that it is optional. If you are receiving extremely poor service from a waitress who is also rude, very few people would be upset at your for avoiding a tip in that scenario. If, to the contrary, the waiter or waitress is making your experience more enjoyable in any capacity, he or she should be compensated accordingly. It really is that simple.
Tipping at Casinos FAQ
Will I be kicked out of a casino for not tipping?
This is not likely, but that should not serve as a deterrent to tipping.
How much should I tip for a drink?
This all depends on what the drink is, but a few dollars per drink is more than acceptable. If you are feeling more generous than that, then give more.
Should I tip more at nicer casinos?
Tipping is all experience-based. You may find a great dealer at a poor casino just like you may find a poor dealer at a top-class casino. Tip based on how enjoyable your experience was and how instrumental your dealer/waiter/waitress was in making your time enjoyable.
Similar pages:In my last two 'Casino Poker for Beginners' articles, I introduced you to the poker room personnel you're likely to meet. These people are paid to be there. Who pays them? You do, directly or indirectly. The 'indirectly' part is what they get in paychecks, which ultimately come out of the rake — those chips that the dealer drops into a bin under the table after every hand.
Let's talk about the 'directly' part.
Tipping is always a controversial topic. If you want to start an argument on a poker-related online forum, just ask how much you should tip poker dealers. Or, better yet, express a definite opinion on the subject, and watch how everybody proceeds to disagree with you. Ask 10 poker players how dealers should be tipped, and you'll get 11 different answers.
I won't pretend to have the definitive answer. But I can give you some general principles that I think should govern your decision, plus my own specific formula.
Let's start with the general. I will be so bold as to assert that if your recipe for tipping, whatever the specifics of it may be, fulfills these principles, you're doing it right, and you may safely and confidently ignore any detractors who think you should do it their way instead:
- If everybody tipped the same way you do, the dealers, waitresses, and others who depend on tips for their livelihood would make an hourly rate with which they're content.
- You either tip every person in the same position (e.g., every dealer) exactly the same, or the differences in your tipping are based on the person's performance. You do not tip either more or less based on gender, appearance, or other characteristics over which the recipient has no control.
- You do not withhold tips to punish service people for things that are outside of their control.
- You are neither so stingy that you breed resentment from the people who are serving you, nor so generous that you seriously cut into your own profits.
- You feel good about what you're doing. That is, you're not feeling guilty for being a tightwad, and you're not expending so much mental energy deciding how much to tip that it interferes with paying attention to and enjoying the poker game.
Now for the specifics — or at least the specifics that I settled on years ago, and that have stood me in good stead ever since.
Dealers
I tip cash-game dealers one $1 chip for every pot I win or chop. It's the same if I just pick up the blinds, or I win my biggest pot of the night. I increase that to $2 or occasionally even $3 if the hand takes unusually long to play out.
Hands might take longer because of multiple side pots, or because of the need to count down large stacks of chips, or because the floor had to be called to settle some matter, or because players had difficult decisions, each requiring time to think. The extra money is to compensate the dealer for the fact that he or she will get out fewer hands than usual in this down (a 'down' being the time dealing to one table, usually 30 minutes).
I will tip an extra $5 if I win a high-hand jackpot. I also like to give a little extra reward to dealers who are exceptionally good. Once in a while a dealer really impresses me with how he or she keeps the game running smoothly, rapidly, and enjoyably. For such outstanding performance, I give the dealer an extra $1 chip as he or she is leaving for the next table, along with the message, 'I like how you run the game.'
Similarly, I like dealers who consistently enforce the rules. Some dealers are reluctant to correct players who are talking about the hand in progress, or speaking in a language other than English, and so forth. Sadly, players who get called out — even in the most respectful manner — for breaking rules get embarrassed and tip less, which makes dealers gun-shy about rule enforcement. So when a dealer professionally handles a difficult situation like that, I do the same kind of end-of-down extra, with an encouraging message such as, 'Thanks for handling things so well.'
Just as an aside, one of the reasons I prefer the two seats next to the dealer is that I can deliver those tips and messages quietly and semi-privately. If I'm in another seat, I might wait until I can catch the dealer away from the table, rather than have all the other players watching and listening.
Maybe something like once a year, a dealer will do something so outrageously insulting or unprofessional that I will stiff him or her — no tips for the rest of the down or shift. It would take too long to explain the kinds of bizarre circumstances that have led me to that 'nuclear' option, but they're very, very rare.
Those are guidelines I follow when tipping dealers in cash games. Tipping of tournament dealers is a separate matter, which I'll address when I do an article on all aspects of tournament play.
Cashiers
There are only three ways to leave a cash game: If I lose all of my chips, I have no reason to stop at the cashier, let alone leave a tip. If I leave with a profit, I routinely tip the cashier $1. If I'm cashing out but with a loss, I don't tip.
I realize that this is not strictly logical; after all, the cashier is doing close to the same amount of work either way. I admit that it is mostly an emotional point for me, in that it's easier to give away a tiny bit of my profit than it is to deepen my loss.
So I repeat: On each of the specifics of my methods, one could argue that there are different, and even better, ways of doing it.
Chip runners
It's rare that I play in a casino that uses chip runners, so I haven't developed the habit of tipping them. On the occasions that I'm in a place that uses chip runners, I usually only think about tipping them long after it's too late. It's possible that this neglect means that I'm a horrible person. I'd like to think that if my regular places of play used chip runners, I'd have this process worked out better.
![Should Should](https://www.stylishbelles.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Stunning-Baby-Pink-Almond-nails-with-red-french-white-tips-and-white-accent-nail-with-rhinestones-1024x994.jpg)
Floor personnel
Do You Tip Casino Dealers
If the floor person does me some special service, such as counting out and bringing me a high-hand jackpot, I'll tip a dollar. Otherwise, I have not found much call for tipping them. It would be unseemly, for example, to tip such a person for making a call in a table dispute that goes your way, just as a baseball player doesn't tip the umpire for calling him safe at second base. Unlike the other people in this list, floor personnel are not being paid minimum wage, and are therefore much less dependent on tips to make a living.
Cocktail waitresses
I think $1 per drink (whether soft or hard) is both decent and standard.
I've asked a few dealer friends about my tipping protocol, and they have all endorsed it as one with which they have no argument, which pleases me.
One final thought: If there is a poker room where you think you will be spending a lot of hours over a long period of time — your 'home room,' so to speak — err on the side of tipping more generously. You might be pleasantly surprised at all the ways the staff can make your time there both more pleasant and more profitable if they decide you're a player who is worth extra effort to keep happy.
Robert Woolley lives in Asheville, NC. He spent several years in Las Vegas and chronicled his life in poker on the 'Poker Grump' blog.
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