I worked as a server for years, so I understand why tipping exists. In restaurants especially, tips can make up a large part of someone’s income. But over time I started noticing something strange — tipping expectations spreading into places where they never really made sense.
Here are a few that always made me pause.
Self-Serve Coffee Counters
If I’m ordering at a counter, carrying my own drink, and cleaning up afterward, it’s hard to understand what the tip is actually for. Traditional tipping was meant for table service, not self-serve transactions.
Pre-Packaged Bakery Items
Buying a muffin from a display case now often triggers a tip screen. But there’s no table service involved — it’s essentially the same interaction as buying packaged food in a store.
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Retail Stores With Tip Screens
Some clothing stores and small shops now use payment systems that ask for tips at checkout. Retail workers deserve fair wages, but tipping in a retail setting changes the expectation of what tipping was originally meant for.
Self-Checkout Food Counters
Some fast-casual places ask for tips even when the entire ordering process is automated through kiosks or apps. When there’s no direct service interaction, many customers find the request confusing.
Grab-and-Go Takeout
When customers pick up their own food and leave, tipping expectations can feel unclear. The traditional idea of tipping was tied to service throughout a meal, not simply packaging an order.
Event Merchandise Booths
Buying a T-shirt or souvenir at a concert or event sometimes now includes a tip prompt. For many people, that feels closer to retail than hospitality.
Convenience Stores With Tip Options
Some smaller convenience shops now use the same digital payment systems that automatically include tipping prompts — even when the transaction is simply scanning a product.
Automatic Tip Screens Before Service Happens
Some ordering systems ask for a tip before the food or drink is even made. As a former server, that feels backwards — tips were originally meant to reward service after it happened.
The biggest issue may simply be how often the prompt appears. When almost every purchase asks for a tip, it becomes harder for customers to tell when tipping is truly expected and when it isn’t.
Tipping absolutely makes sense in many service situations. But when the system expands everywhere, it starts to lose the original purpose.