Set up tips and tip pooling
Record tips at payment, set tip pooling rules by role points or hours, and read the close-of-day tip report before you pay staff.
About 20 minutes · updated
- 1Check your local rules Find out who may share in a tip pool where you operate before you set any rule.
- 2Confirm your roles Make sure every person who shares tips has the right role and their own login.
- 3Choose the pooling method Decide whether the pool is shared by role points or by hours worked.
- 4Set the rules Enter the points per role, or the roles that share by hours, in the tip pooling settings.
- 5Record tips at payment Train servers to enter every tip at payment so it reaches the pool.
- 6Read the tip report At close of day, open the tip report, check it, and pay out tips.
What you’ll do: You will set how tips are recorded and how the tip pool is shared. Then you will read the close-of-day tip report before you pay your team.
Before you start
- Read our guide to tip pooling rules for restaurants. This article is not legal advice. Rules differ by country, state and city.
- Finish adding staff and roles. Pooling uses roles.
- Decide with your managers who shares in tips. Write it down and share it with staff.
Steps
- Check your local rules. Before you set anything, find out who may share in a tip pool where you operate, and whether tip credits or service charges change that. Ask a local employment adviser if you are not sure.
- Confirm your roles. Every person who shares tips needs the right role and their own login or PIN. If two servers share one login, the report cannot split their tips correctly.
- Choose the pooling method. Pick one:
- By role points: each role has a weight. A server might be 10 points, a bartender 8, a busser 5.
- By hours: each person’s share follows the hours they worked that day.
- Set the rules. Enter the points per role, or choose which roles share by hours, in the tip pooling settings. Leave out any role that may not share in the pool.
- Record tips at payment. Servers enter the tip when they take payment, for card and cash. A tip that is not entered never reaches the pool. See split a check and take payment.
- Read the tip report. At close of day, open the tip report. Check the total tips against card batches and the cash drawer. Then pay out tips the way you agreed.
Tips from the onboarding team
- Write the rule down. Post the tip-sharing rule in the back of house. Staff trust a rule they can read.
- Points are easier to explain. If your team works similar shifts, role points are simple and fair. If shifts vary a lot, hours may be fairer.
- Check before payout, every day. A wrong tip found the same night is a two-minute fix. Found on payday, it is an argument.
- Keep records. Save or print the tip report each day. Many places require tip records to be kept.
- Clock times matter. If you pool by hours, check staff start and end times are right before reading the report.
- See how it works on our tips and tip pooling page.
If something goes wrong
| Problem | Fix |
|---|---|
| A server’s tips are missing | The tips were not entered at payment, or they used someone else’s login. Fix the payment and remind staff to use their own PIN. |
| A role gets no share | The role is not in the pool, or has zero points. Check the tip pooling settings. |
| The tip total does not match card batches | Compare payment by payment. Look for tips added on the terminal but not entered on the POS. |
| Shares look wrong when pooling by hours | Check each person’s hours for the day. A missing end time gives the wrong share. |
| Staff ask if the pool is legal | Point them to your written rule and get local advice. Do not guess. |
Related help
Questions about this step
Onboarding desk · usually replies within a business day
Is tip pooling legal for cooks and dishwashers?
It depends on where you operate and how you pay staff. This article is not legal advice. Read our tip pooling rules guide and check with a local employment adviser.
What is the difference between role points and hours?
With role points, each role gets a share weight, for example server 10 and busser 5. With hours, each person's share follows the hours they worked.
Do managers share in the pool?
Only set this up if the rules where you operate allow it. Many places do not allow managers or owners to take from a tip pool.
Where do cash tips go?
Enter cash tips at payment too, so the tip report shows the full total.
When should I check the tip report?
At the close of every day, before you pay out tips, and again before payroll.