Wedding tip calculator

How to use it

Tips are the last money of the wedding to plan, and the easiest to forget until the week before. This calculator turns the usual percentages into amounts from your own contracts, adds them up, and prints a sheet you can tape inside the box of envelopes.

1. List everyone working on the day. Start from the usual tipped vendors and remove the ones you don't have.
2. Add each contract price. The suggestion turns into amounts from your own contracts.
3. Pick a tip for each. Low, middle or high of the usual range, or your own amount.
4. Print the envelope sheet. Add who hands each envelope over and any balance due on the day.

How the suggestions work

Each type of vendor has the range most North American guides give. Catering staff, hair and makeup and drivers are usually tipped 15 to 20% of their bill, and a DJ or band 10 to 15%. Pick Low, Middle or High of that range and the tip is worked out from the contract price, in whole units of your currency; Middle is halfway between the two, rounded down.

Some vendors are tipped a set amount rather than a share of the bill: $50 to $200 for each hired photographer or videographer, and $50 to $100 for an independent officiant. For those, and for vendors who aren't usually tipped at all, such as the venue, the florist or the baker, the tip starts at No tip. Choose My own amount to give something anyway. A planner who runs their own company isn't expected to be tipped; the suggestion says so.

Read your catering contract before you tip the caterer. If it has a service charge or gratuity that goes to the staff, the tip is already paid, and anything more is up to you. The full reasoning, vendor by vendor, is in how much to tip wedding vendors.

On the day

Put each tip in an envelope with the vendor's name on it, and give the envelopes and the printed sheet to one person you trust, such as the best man or the maid of honor. The sheet lists who hands over each envelope and any balance still owed on the day, so nobody has to ask you during the reception. For deposits, final balances and when each is due, read final wedding payments.

Your list is kept in this browser, so it's still here when you come back on the same device. Clearing your browser's data clears it too. When you save it to a free account, your vendors come in as confirmed vendors with their contract prices. Planning tips in your account, with the tip guide and envelopes printed from your vendors, is part of Complete: see pricing and features for what it adds.

Questions couples ask

Do you tip wedding vendors who own their business?

It's not expected. A thank-you note, a good review or a small gift is the custom instead.

Is gratuity already in my catering contract?

Look for a "service charge" or "gratuity" line. If it's there, more is optional; the calculator's note on Food & Drinks says so.

When do you hand tips over?

At the end of each vendor's service, in a named envelope, by someone you trust. The printed sheet lists who hands over each one.

Should tips come out of the wedding budget?

Yes. Give the total its own line in the budget, so it isn't a surprise in the last week.

What if I'm not in the US or Canada?

Customs differ. The percentages are North American practice; treat them as an upper bound and follow local custom.

Can I keep this list?

It stays in this browser. Save it to a free account to keep your vendors with the rest of your wedding.

Want the rest of the toolkit? Browse the free wedding planning tools.