Tipping has always been a crucial part of American service work — especially for employees who legally rely on tips to survive. In the US, the federal minimum wage for tipped workers is still $2.13 an hour, and customers are often the only reason people in those jobs can pay rent. That’s not what this post is about.
This is about the other places you’re suddenly expected to tip — the ones where it makes absolutely no sense. Tip prompts are popping up for jobs that are fully salaried, automated, self-serve, or already expensive to begin with.
And recently, it feels like tip culture has turned into an extreme sport: Self-checkout kiosks asking for 25%. Parking meters with gratuity buttons. Even $180 lash appointments that prompt for another 20–25% on top. It’s fair to say tipping has gotten…a little out of hand.
So we want to know: Where’s the wildest place you’ve ever been asked to tip?
Maybe you were at a fully self-service frozen yogurt shop — you poured it, you weighed it, you cleaned the spill — and the iPad still suggested 20%.
Maybe you bought a bottle of water at a concert where the cashier didn’t even pick it up, and suddenly the screen flipped around asking for 25%.
Maybe you ordered something online that shipped from a warehouse and were still prompted to “tip the team” before checking out.
Maybe a cosmetic service that already costs $150+ (lashes, nails, facials) automatically adds a suggested 25% gratuity before the appointment even starts.
Or maybe you’ve even seen tip options at fully automated kiosks — robot baristas, museum ticket machines, or airport massage chairs — and genuinely wondered who, exactly, you’d be tipping.
No shame to workers, we all know it’s the companies designing these prompts. But some of them are truly unhinged, and honestly, they make it harder for the people who genuinely depend on tips. When customers are bombarded with confusing or unnecessary tip requests, it creates fatigue — and that fatigue hits actual service workers the hardest.
So tell us: Where’s the strangest, most unnecessary, or most unexpected place you’ve ever been asked to tip — and what did you do?
Share your experience in the comments below, or, if you prefer to remain anonymous, use the form at the bottom of this post. Your response could be featured in an upcoming BuzzFeed Community story. Because if we’re tipping vending machines now… we need to talk.
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