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Do you tip in Korea? No. Restaurant menu prices in South Korea have had to include tax and service since 2013, taxi drivers don’t expect a won beyond the meter, and a note left on the table is more likely to be run back to you than pocketed. There are a couple of edge cases, plus one Korean word, 배달팁, that looks like a tip and isn’t.
The short answer
- Restaurants, cafés, bars: no tip. The menu price is the final price, by law.
- Taxis: no tip, app rides included.
- Hotels: no tip. Upscale hotels may add a 10% service charge to the bill.
- Hair salons, spas, jjimjilbang: no tip.
- Tour guides and drivers: not expected. A small gift or ₩10,000–20,000 in an envelope is welcome on a private tour.
- Delivery “tip” (배달팁): a delivery fee, charged automatically. Not a gratuity.
Why there’s no tipping in South Korea
The main reason is legal. A 2013 revision of the Food Sanitation Act brought in “final price display”: the price on a restaurant menu must include VAT and any service charge, and the bill must match it. A compulsory tip or a surprise service line would break that rule. A voluntary tip is still legal, it’s just not part of the system.
Pay works the same way. Staff are paid a national minimum wage by their employer, ₩10,320 an hour in 2026, and nothing in that structure assumes money from customers. Then there’s the cultural side. Good service is simply the job, and many Koreans find tipping slightly awkward, a bit like pity or like paying twice. You’ll notice it in the details: refills of banchan side dishes and water are free, and nobody hovers waiting for a tip.
Tipping in Korea, situation by situation
| Situation | Tip? | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Restaurant, Korean BBQ, café | No | Pay the menu price at the counter on the way out. |
| Bar, pojangmacha tent | No | Nothing. |
| Taxi (meter) | No | Pay the meter and take your change. |
| Kakao T or other app taxi | No | Nothing. A 2023 in-app tip trial never became the norm. |
| Hotel porter, concierge | Not expected | Nothing. International luxury hotels will accept ₩1,000–2,000 a bag, but won’t expect it. |
| Housekeeping | No | Cash left in the room may be treated as forgotten. |
| Hair salon, nail salon, spa, jjimjilbang | No | Nothing. |
| Group tour (DMZ, day trips) | No | Not expected, even on tours sold to foreigners. |
| Private guide or driver | Optional | A gift from home, or ₩10,000–20,000 in an envelope. |
| Food delivery (Baemin, Coupang Eats) | No | The 배달팁 on the bill is the delivery fee. Nothing on top. |
The 10% service charge at upscale hotels
The menu rule covers restaurants. Hotel room rates are a different matter. Top-end hotels in Seoul and Busan often quote a room rate before 10% VAT and a 10% service charge, which together push the bill up by about 21%. Booking sites usually fold both into the total they show you; a hotel’s own website sometimes doesn’t, so read the small print before comparing prices.
That service charge is not a tip, and nothing extra is expected on top of it, whether for the room, room service or the hotel restaurant.
배달팁: the Korean “tip” that is really a fee
Order food on Baemin or Coupang Eats and the checkout shows a line called 배달팁 (baedal tip, literally “delivery tip”). Despite the name, it’s the delivery fee. The restaurant or the app sets it, it’s added automatically, and it doesn’t go to the rider as a gratuity. You don’t add anything else, at the door or in the app.
Tip jars, kiosk buttons and the backlash
Since 2023, a handful of Korean businesses have tried to import tipping. Kakao Mobility trialled an in-app tip of about ₩1,000–2,000 for its premium taxis, shown after the passenger rated the ride. Trendy cafés and bakeries put out tip jars. In 2025 a noodle shop added an optional ₩300 “staff dinner” button to its kiosk, and a pizzeria asked for ₩2,000 before taking an order.
Each one caused an outcry, and several jars disappeared quickly. The Korea Herald described the taxi trial’s reception as “mixed”, which is putting it gently. For a visitor, the practical rule is simple: any tip button or jar you see in Korea is optional, and ignoring it is what most Koreans do.
If you really want to leave something
Put the money in an envelope and hand it over with both hands and a short thank-you. Don’t leave it on the table: staff will assume you forgot it and come after you.
How to say thank you instead
Say gamsahamnida (감사합니다, thank you) when you pay, and jal meogeosseumnida (잘 먹었습니다, “I ate well”) as you leave a restaurant. Owners of small places genuinely like hearing it from foreigners.
Pay and receive with two hands, or with your right hand while your left touches your right wrist. For a guide or a host, a small wrapped gift from your own country lands better than cash. And a review naming the person on Naver Map or Kakao Map, the apps Koreans actually use, does more for a small restaurant than any tip.
Korea is the strict end of the scale in Asia, alongside Japan. Tipping in Thailand and Vietnam work differently, with small tips expected on the tourist circuit. If you’re still choosing dates, the best time to visit South Korea guide goes month by month.
Still planning the trip? Our K-ETA guide explains who needs one in 2026 and how the free e-Arrival card works.
For cards, Global ATMs, WOWPASS and when you still need cash, see our guide to money in Korea.
Looking for the rest? Every Korea guide we’ve published, from the K-ETA to the won, is sorted by topic in our South Korea travel guide.
Sources
- Ministry of Food and Drug Safety — Food Sanitation Act, final price display for restaurants (2013).
- Korea.net — 2026 minimum hourly wage set at ₩10,320.
- The Korea Herald — Kakao T tipping trial and its reception.
- The Korea Times, August 2025 — tip jars, kiosk tip buttons and the price-display rule.
- Korea Tourism Organization — official visitor information.
Data checked: 2026-09-28
