Millennials Are The Most Anti-Tipping Generation

Millennials are more likely than any other generation to skip tipping, according to a new survey from Omni Calculator.

While most Americans still tip at least occasionally, the survey showed clear age‑based differences in how much and how often people are willing to do so.

Based on responses from 500 U.S. adults, millennials were the generation most likely to spend nothing on tips in a typical month, with 6 percent saying they leave $0 in gratuities.

By comparison, baby boomers were far more likely to cluster in modest but consistent tipping ranges, with 35 percent spending $10 to $24 per month on tips, the highest concentration of any age group.

Why It Matters

While tipping remains common, data shows that many people feel overwhelmed by the spread of tip prompts at checkout screens and self‑service businesses. However, millennials stand out as the most likely to opt out entirely, even as a majority of Americans say they are being asked to tip more often than in the past.

Despite spending less or nothing in certain situations, millennials do not appear to have abandoned tipping entirely. Like other generations, they report tipping most consistently at sit‑down restaurants, which remain the most widely accepted tipping context across age groups, with 93 percent of respondents saying they always or often tip there.

What To Know

Across all respondents, the most common monthly tipping range was $10 to $24, reported by 28 percent of adults. But when broken down by generation, baby boomers were the most likely to land in that range, while millennials showed the highest share of people who spent nothing on tips in a typical month.

"Millennials have grown up in a culture of convenience where fast has become the default. A lot of their spending is tied to drive-thru, delivery, or app-based ordering, where service is already priced in," Kevin Thompson, the CEO of 9i Capital Group and the host of the 9innings podcast, told Newsweek. "Adding another layer for tipping can feel excessive, especially when the interaction is minimal."

Millennials' reluctance to tip may also reflect growing frustration across all age groups. According to the survey, 62 percent of Americans say they are asked to tip in more situations than two years ago, and 40 percent say they actively avoid certain businesses to escape tip prompts.

"We are all suffering from tip fatigue," Drew Powers, the founder of Illinois-based Powers Financial Group, told Newsweek. "Tipping really ramped up during COVID, where those who were not affected financially and could work from home felt a greater responsibility to help those who had to work on location. Tipping expanded into job roles that were not historically a tipped position. It was all well and good then, but it hasn't stopped."

Fifty percent of respondents view pre‑selected tip options on digital payment screens negatively, and 66 percent say they feel pressure to tip when payment screens are visible to employees.

"The real headline isn’t that millennials are cheap," Michael Ryan, a finance expert and the founder of MichaelRyanMoney.com, told Newsweek. "It’s that they’re the most ideologically opposed to tipping as a system. Boomers tip reflexively out of social conditioning; millennials who tip do so consciously, and millennials who don’t are making an intentional statement about labor economics."

While baby boomers still hold the most traditional tipping habits, millennials appear more willing to opt out entirely, signaling a cultural shift that could have implications for service workers and businesses, experts said.

"From an economic standpoint, the frustration runs deeper," Thompson said. "Wealth concentration has tilted toward older generations, while younger cohorts deal with higher costs of living, housing constraints, and wage pressure. When you combine that with constant messaging that they are funding systems they may not fully benefit from, you get pushback in areas like tipping."

What Happens Next

Across different types of businesses and services, younger consumers are likely showing greater resistance to tips they don't perceive as earned or expected.

"Many believe compensation should fall on the business, not the consumer," Thompson said. "The idea that workers rely on tips to make a living doesn't sit well with a generation that prefers transparent, all-in pricing."

2026 NEWSWEEK DIGITAL LLC.

This story was originally published May 5, 2026 at 11:58 AM.