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You finish a great dinner in Chengdu, leave some cash on the table, and head out. Half a block later, the waiter catches up with you, slightly out of breath, holding your money. You forgot this.
You didn’t forget it. But in China, that’s the most likely way a tip gets read.
In mainland China, tipping isn’t expected in restaurants, taxis, cafés, or most hotels. Nobody there is counting on your extra cash. The main exception is tours for international visitors, where tipping guides and drivers is common.
Do You Tip in China?
No, not as a rule. Tipping never became part of everyday life in China the way it did in the US or Canada. Staff are paid a wage, not a base rate that assumes tips, and the price on the menu or the meter is the whole price.
Paying the bill and saying thank you is all that’s expected, one of the easier parts of Chinese table manners.
So a tip can go a few ways. Some staff will politely refuse it, and some aren’t allowed to take money from customers. Others will happily pocket it once they realize it’s on purpose. And a few will assume you forgot it and chase you down the street to give it back.
Is It Rude to Tip in China?
It’s not usually rude to tip in China. It’s just not expected, so it can cause a moment of awkwardness instead of the warm thank-you you meant.
The one place to be careful is anything official. Don’t offer extra money to police, customs officers, or anyone at a government office. There, extra cash can look like an attempt to buy favorable treatment, so keep any official payment strictly to the stated fee.
Can You Tip in China If You Want To?
Yes, and plenty of visitors do. An American friend of mine gives a DiDi driver or a hardworking server 10 or 20 yuan whenever the service is especially good, sometimes through an in-app thank-you option after the ride.
If you’d like to do the same, keep it small and low-key, and make it clear it’s on purpose. A quick xiexie ni, zhe shi gei ni de (谢谢你，这是给你的, thank you, this is for you) clears up any confusion.
The only downside is subtle. If enough visitors tip, it can start to feel like something foreigners are supposed to do, which isn’t fair on the next traveler who doesn’t know, or on locals who never would. So tip because you want to, not because you think you have to.
Tipping in China by Situation
| Situation | Tip? | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| Restaurants and cafés | No | Upscale and hotel restaurants may add a service charge, fuwufei (服务费), often 10 to 15%. If it’s on the bill, you’re done |
| Street food and small eateries | No | Just pay and say thank you |
| Taxis and DiDi | No | Pay the meter or the app price. A good rating matters more |
| Local hotels | No | Staff won’t expect anything |
| International luxury hotels | Optional | A small tip for a porter or housekeeping is welcome, but not required |
| Massage and hair salons | No | Hotel spas may accept a small tip; local shops don’t expect one |
| Tour guides | Often | Common on tours for international visitors, but optional. Guides aren’t allowed to ask for one |
| Tour drivers | Often | Tipped along with the guide, usually a smaller amount |
How Much to Tip a Tour Guide in China
There’s no official rate, but some China tour companies suggest roughly 50 to 100 yuan per person per day for a guide on a private tour, and less per person in a bigger group. Drivers usually get less than the guide, often around half.
A few things make it smoother:
- Check your booking first. Some tour prices already include gratuities, so read the fine print before adding more.
- Give it at the end, on your last day with that guide.
- Put it in an envelope. Handing over loose cash can feel a bit abrupt. A red envelope, hongbao (红包), turns it into a gesture instead of a transaction.
- Hand it over with both hands and a simple thank you. It’s a small detail that people notice.
Tipping in the App Age
Mainland China doesn’t have a broad everyday tipping culture, but its apps have created a few payments that look a lot like tips.
Some ride-hailing apps let you send a driver a small thank-you after the ride. On carpool apps, a ganxiefei (感谢费, thank-you fee) works more like a sweetener, added before pickup to make your ride more tempting to drivers at a busy time. And delivery apps like Meituan let you send dashang (打赏, a small reward) to a rider after a rainy-night order.
None of it is expected. It’s simply there if you want it. The same word, dashang, is also how people tip their favorite livestreamers and writers online, which is where a lot of China’s real tipping happens.
Better Ways to Say Thank You in China
If a tip doesn’t fit, there are other ways to show you’re grateful, and they often mean more.
Say it. A warm xiexie (谢谢) is the simplest way to say thank you in Chinese, and said with a smile, it goes a long way.
Leave a great review. Five stars on the ride-hailing app helps a driver, and a kind review on Dianping, China’s big restaurant review app, helps a small restaurant win its next customers.
Bring a small gift. For a guide you’ve spent a week with, a little something from your home country feels personal. Keep it light and easy to pack, and skip the few items that carry bad luck in Chinese gift giving, like clocks.
Come back. For a neighborhood noodle shop, becoming a regular is the best compliment you can pay.
One last note: Hong Kong and Macau work differently. In Hong Kong, most restaurants add a 10% service charge. In Macau, service charges are also used in hotels and some restaurants, so check the bill before adding anything.
In most of China, the kindest thing you can do is pay the bill, say thank you, and mean it. Save the envelope for your guide.
Share this before your trip, and spare a few waiters the sprint. And if you like knowing what people in China actually do, and why, the Stellar Chinese newsletter has more of it, from everyday etiquette to language and culture. You’ll find the sign-up on this page.