Tipping hotel housekeeping staff involves leaving a small amount of money for the individual employees who clean your hotel room. It is a great way to show appreciation and can help staff who often have a low base wage.
Understanding the standard for tipping housekeeping staff is important because it is an area of anxiety for guests. Many guests want to leave a tip, but fear leaving too little or too much.
In this article, we will explore the etiquette around tipping hotel housekeeping staff, explain how much people tend to leave as a tip and provide some helpful tips so you can tip confidently and avoid faux pas.
Table of Contents:
What is Hotel Housekeeping?
Hotel housekeeping is the process of keeping a hotel or similar property safe, clean, comfortable, and tidy. Typical housekeeping duties include cleaning surfaces, vacuuming carpets and floors, and changing bed sheets.
Housekeeping is important for ensuring a hotel is a pleasant environment to be in and this helps to explain why tipping hotel housekeeping staff is common. The housekeeping team also helps to create a positive first impression.
In the “Hotel Housekeeping Guide: 11 Tips & Tricks to Clean Your Hotel” article, you can explore housekeeping responsibilities and learn some of the best methods for creating a welcoming environment.
The Importance of Tipping Hotel Housekeeping
Tipping hotel housekeeping staff is a key way for guests to show their appreciation for staff in a hotel. The housekeeping department works hard to ensure rooms are clean and other parts of the hotel are visually appealing.
Tips are important for hotel staff, too, as they often have a low base wage and rely on tips for top-ups. In some parts of the world, a hotel room attendant may depend on tips to have a reasonable standard of living.
It is also worth noting that tips can provide an incentive for hotel staff to continue to deliver a good service. When hotel housekeeping relies on tips, staff cannot become complacent or allow standards to slip.
Do You Need to Tip Hotel Housekeeping Staff?
Tipping housekeeping staff in the hotel industry is not compulsory, but it is greatly appreciated. Although most housekeeping staff do not entirely rely on tips, they can make a big difference to total earnings.
In most hotels, there is no firm expectation of receiving a tip, and it is not a social faux pas in the same way as not tipping in a restaurant. Nevertheless, tipping hotel housekeeping is seen as polite and courteous.
The expectation that you should leave a tip also grows if you know you are an untidy or messy guest, providing housekeeping staff with more work to do. Try to remember that housekeeping staff have some of the most unpleasant tasks in the industry, including cleaning up after guests. A generous tip can help to make the job feel worthwhile.
Tipping Hotel Housekeeping: How Much is Enough?
There are no firm rules on how much you should give when tipping hotel housekeeping. However, to provide some general advice, it is recommended to leave a minimum tip of around $3 to $5 per night.
Depending on the type of hotel you are staying in, and the size of the hotel rooms, a more generous tip may be in excess of $10 per night. In high-end luxury hotels, average tips may even be significantly higher than this.
Ultimately, you will need to make your own personal decision about the size of the tip you leave. This may depend on the level of service you feel you have received, the frequency of cleaning activities, the housekeeping technology used, the size of the room you are staying in, how messy you have been as a guest, and a variety of other factors.
Here’s How Much You Should Be Tipping Hotel Housekeeping | Southern Living
Housekeeping Did Not Enter My Room; Should I Still Leave a Tip?
Housekeeping activities vary from one hotel to another and it is possible your room will not be cleaned during your stay. However, it is worth remembering that staff still needed to prepare the room for you and will need to clean up after you.
If you are in the room for a week, the process of cleaning up after you and preparing the room for the next guest can be lengthy and will require hard work. Many guests do still leave a tip, even if housekeeping staff do not enter the room while they are there, because it expresses a level of gratitude for this hard work.
Again, tipping hotel housekeeping is a personal choice; you are free to judge how well you feel you have been treated. However, it is worth understanding this full context before making your decision.
7 Practical Pieces of Advice for Tipping Hotel Housekeeping
In the following sections, you can read advice on tipping hotel housekeeping teams:
Hotel Tipping Etiquette
1. Leave a Tip Each Day
It is recommended to leave a small tip daily, rather than leaving one large tip at the end of your stay. The tip you choose to give staff can be left in your room for them to collect.
Leaving a daily tip is important because it ensures your money goes to the right people. If you leave one large tip at the end of your stay, it is possible it will be collected by people who did not actually work in your room.
Hotel staff often work irregular shift patterns, so it may not otherwise be possible to anticipate when staff will be back in your room. By leaving a daily tip, those who work on your room can benefit directly from your generosity.
2. Try to Use Small Denominations
When tipping hotel housekeeping staff, it is a good idea to try to leave your tip using smaller banknote denominations. When it is possible to do so, aim to use low-value banknotes or even coins.
While any and all tips are appreciated by staff, there is an added convenience associated with smaller denominations. If your room is cleaned by multiple people, it makes it easier to divide the tip evenly and fairly.
Try to avoid situations where you require change from staff for the tip you have left. This can feel awkward for staff and may lead to an uncomfortable interaction that could be easily avoided.
3. Label Your Tip Clearly
When you leave your tip for the housekeeping team, make sure you clearly label it as a tip. The best way to do this is to place a note next to the money, making it clear that it is intended for housekeeping staff.
Labeling your tip is essential for ensuring staff actually receive the money you have left for them. If you do not clearly label the money, staff may feel unsure about whether or not it is being left for them.
Tipping hotel housekeeping staff is a kind gesture, but staff may not take the money unless you are completely clear in your intentions. Avoid any ambiguity and take care to let staff know it is okay to take the money.
4. Make Sure Your Tip is Visible
Another important piece of etiquette when tipping hotel housekeeping is to make sure the money is visible. This means leaving it in an obvious place, where it will definitely be seen by hotel staff.
If you do not take steps to ensure your tip is visible, you risk hotel staff failing to see it. This can lead to situations where staff do not actually ever receive the tip that was intended for them.
Tables, nightstands, and kitchen counters are all good examples of visible places to leave your tip.
5. Adjust Your Tip Based on Circumstances
It is important to make adjustments to your tip, based on the circumstances in the hotel and the service you receive. The process behind tipping hotel housekeeping teams should always include an element of flexibility.
For example, you might want to adjust your tip if you receive exceptional service, or if you know you have left a lot of mess for housekeeping to clean up. You could also make an adjustment based on the hotel technology used.
Children or large groups in the same room can often result in more work for housekeeping staff. Think carefully about how you are leaving your room and whether your individual circumstances are making life more difficult for staff.
6. Give Consideration to Special Occasions
Consider tipping hotel housekeeping staff a little bit extra if you are staying with them during special occasions. Examples of this include Christmas, New Year’s Eve, and Valentine’s Day.
Some of the biggest hotel trends revolve around stays during holidays or important events. By providing a little bit extra for your tip, you can show appreciation for staff who are sacrificing their own time.
Hotel staff also often go the extra mile during these periods, so think about rewarding that effort.
7. Factor in Your Length of Stay
Your length of stay can also have a significant bearing on etiquette when tipping hotel housekeeping staff. Generally, it stands to reason that a longer stay will result in more mess for housekeeping staff to deal with.
You can still provide a daily tip, and you can still make this a relatively modest amount. However, if you are staying for multiple weeks, think about how this might impact the workload of the housekeeping team.
By contrast, if you are only staying for a night or two, you are less likely to cause major disruption.
When to Tip Housekeeping a Little Extra
While there are few firm rules when it comes to tipping hotel housekeeping, it is common to tip a little extra in some circumstances. Consider leaving a higher tip if:
- You checked in early or arrived at the hotel late
- You brought a pet to the hotel
- You know you have been a messy guest
- Your room is large and will take longer to clean
- You have three, four, or more guests in the same room
- You stayed for longer than a few days
- You had special requirements or made special requests
- You received excellent service
Why Housekeeping is So Important
One of the reasons why tipping hotel housekeeping is common is because the department is so important. Housekeeping staff contribute to general upkeep, influence guest satisfaction, help to keep the hotel a safe and pleasant environment, and prevent problems from occurring.
In the “Housekeeping Department in Hotel Businesses: Why Is It So Important?” article, you can dive deeper into the value housekeeping staff offer hotel management and learn why housekeeping really matters.
Hotel Room Maintenance Checklist
The concepts of hotel housekeeping and maintenance go hand-in-hand. For staff, it is important to remember that customers tipping hotel housekeeping and maintenance staff is contingent on all duties being carried out. To assist with this, it can be helpful to use a hotel room maintenance checklist, outlining what needs to be done.
In the “Hotel Room Maintenance Checklist: Ensuring Comfort and Quality (Free Template)” article, you can find out more about checklists and access a free template for your own use.
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Tipping hotel housekeeping staff is optional, but is a common way of expressing gratitude for the work they do. Tips are generally recommended to begin at around $5 per night, but there are no strict rules about this. Tips will not only help to top up wages, they can also motivate staff to do a great job.
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This article is written by:
Hi, I am Martijn Barten, founder of Revfine.com. With 20 years of experience in the hospitality industry, I specialize in optimizing revenue by combining revenue management with marketing strategies. I have successfully developed, implemented, and managed revenue management and marketing strategies for individual properties and multi-property portfolios.
