Tip-Out Calculator

Free for everyone

Split tip-out between roles by hours worked or by sales percentage. Two modes — pick the one your house uses.

Last reviewed Apr 23, 2026

Method

Try a typical scenario

Sales-based tip-out

Your take-home

$0.00

How this is calculated

% of sales mode: add the tip-out percentages (bar + busser + runner), apply that to your sales, add any flat amount → that’s your tip-out.
Subtract tip-out from your tips → your take-home.
Tip pool by hours: your share = pool total × (your hours ÷ total pool hours).

Stop doing this math after every shift

Shiftips logs tips and tip-out in seconds, then shows your real take-home automatically.

FAQ

How is tip-out usually calculated?

Two common methods: a percentage of total sales (typical for support roles like bar, busser, and runner) or a share of a pool weighted by hours worked. The right one depends on house policy.

Is tip-out paid before or after tax?

Tip-out paid to other tipped workers reduces your reportable tip income for federal purposes. Keep daily records of both gross tips and tip-out paid.

What’s a "fair" tip-out percentage?

It varies by venue. Common ranges are 1–3% of sales to bar, 1–2% to bussers, and 0.5–1% to runners. House rules and state law set the actual numbers.

Why a tip-out calculator at all?

Most servers, waiters, bartenders, and hosts never see what they actually keep. Card tips post to the POS, then a percentage gets shaved off for the bar, the bussers, the runners — sometimes a flat amount for the kitchen — and the closeout sheet hands you a number that’s smaller than what was on your tickets. A calculator that does the math the same way the closeout sheet does makes the gap obvious.

This tool covers the two formulas every restaurant uses: percentage-of-sales (one role at a time) and tip-pool by hours (one shared pool, weighted by hours worked).

How it’s calculated

% of sales mode

For each support role (bar, busser, runner), apply the house percentage to your net sales for the shift.
Add any flat-dollar tip-out (kitchen, sommelier, host).
Sum those into your total tip-out.
Subtract total tip-out from your tips → your take-home.

Tip-pool by hours mode

Add up the entire pool for the shift.
Take your share = pool × (your hours ÷ total pool hours).
That’s your cut.

Worked examples

Friday dinner, % of sales. $2,400 in net sales, $480 in tips. House: 1.5% to bar, 1% to busser, 0.5% to runner.

Bar: 2,400 × 0.015 = $36
Busser: 2,400 × 0.01 = $24
Runner: 2,400 × 0.005 = $12
Total tip-out: $72
Take-home: 480 − 72 = $408

Brunch tip pool. Pool of $2,200 across 38 server-hours. You worked 7.5.

Your share: 2,200 × (7.5 ÷ 38) = $434.21

Common mistakes

Tipping out on gross instead of net. If your house ties tip-out to net sales (after voids/comps), don’t use the gross number — it’ll overstate what you owe by 5–10%.
Double-counting tip-out in qualified tips. When you also use the No Tax on Tips estimator, the tip-out you enter there should match what you handed off here. Otherwise the deduction math is wrong.
Ignoring kitchen tip-out. Kitchen tip-out is increasingly common (often a flat $20–$50/shift). Use the “Other tip-out” field, even if your POS doesn’t track it.
Tip-pool with uneven hours. A mid-shift cut means your hour count for the pool may be smaller than your scheduled hours. Use clocked hours, not scheduled.

Glossary

Tip-out — Money you hand off to other tipped workers (bar, busser, runner) per house policy.
Tip pool — A shared fund of all tips from a shift, divided among participants by hours or by share.
Net sales — Food + beverage sales after voids and comps.
House percentage — The tip-out rate set by the venue. Common ranges: 1–3% to bar, 1–2% to bussers, 0.5–1% to runners.
Take-home — Tips received minus tip-out paid. The number that pays your rent.