A restaurant receipt has sparked a heated debate online, with some social media users left bemused by a “living wage fee”. Instagram Threads user @ant.really.do.this shared a photo of a bill from a recent restaurant trip apparently in the US.
The receipt includes a note at the bottom from the establishment flagging the 18% fee “added to each dine-in check” (which is what the bill is sometimes called in the US). The unknown restaurant adds that the fee “goes directly to staff payroll and provides a living wage to our team”. The restaurant continues: “If you choose to tip, tips are pooled amongst the entire team.”
Irate responses to the post noted the various extra costs people already face in bars and restaurants.
One reply to the claimed it was a: “Price increase without having to update the menu”, as reported by The New York Post.
Brits are sometimes taken aback by the tipping culture in the US, were punters face an additional 15-20% addition to the cost as standard.
A Reddit user responding to a post including the photo on the platform wrote: “You put 18% on my bill for “living wage” there ain’t gonna be a tip.”
Another wrote: “Eating at a restaurant has never been a less attractive proposition than in 2025.”
However, a user on Threads was supportive of the move, writing: “Y’all have been asking for no tipping, this is what it looks like. It could reflect in drink/food prices, but then you all would say the place was too expensive.
“No one is trying to trick you — if they were transparent about the service fee, STFU,” one empassioned viewer responded.
These fees are used by some restaurants in the US to help them offer better pay to staff facing high living costs that are oustripping pay. It can also be a welcome boost for people in roles that often get many tips.
However, specific rules about tipping and charging vary from state to state.
Denise Mickelsen, communication director at the Colorado Restaurant Association and Foundation explained to The Hill that any “non-discretionary charge added to a restaurant or bar customer’s bill, regardless of what it’s called, is a service charge”.
“Because service charges are considered revenue, they can be allocated to employees as operators see fit; they do not count towards the tip credit,” she said, adding: “Tips, on the other hand, are non-compulsory gifts given from patrons directly to employees.”
Michelsen said service charges normally appear on bills “with a brief explanation of the purpose of the charge – i.e., to replace tipping, add to back-of-house wages, or offset expenses, depending on the circumstance” as well as “the amount or percentage of the charge”.
“Some restaurants also post signage at tables or on menus to communicate their approach to service charges, and train their customer-facing staff members to explain the reasoning behind the service charges,” she added.