[Someone1234]

Is a 20% tip the norm for cabs? I don't live in NY and don't take cabs often, but I would just assume tipping would be similar to eating out in the US (10% for bad service, 15% norm, and 20%+ for good service). Anyone care to weigh in?

Also I always heard how "cheap" taking a taxi was in NYC. That's why people did it all the time. But looking at his example fares ($40+), that doesn't seem cheap to me, in fact quite unaffordable.

Still cheaper than London's insane taxi fares however.

[raldi]

> Is a 20% tip the norm for cabs?

Not historically. It used to be 10% or 15%. But then they put a screen in the back of the cab whose software says, "How much would you like to tip? [20%] [25%] [30%]" and then in a less enticing spot, "[Other]".

The power of evil, manipulative UI design is being used to make riders think that 25% is the typical taxi tip, and in a short amount of time, they'll have managed to use this fake-it-till-ya-make-it strategy to turn that lie into the truth.

[berberous]

$40+ fares, like in that table, are almost exclusively airport fares. A trip to the airport is usually around $50 in a cab.

If you are taking a cab within Manhattan for example, a very short trip is usually $5-10, and a fair from say, midtown to downtown, is usually $15-20. So yes, much more affordable than a London black cab, and much more similar to a London minicab.

As another sibling stated, 20% is now the norm entirely because the software defaults are 20%, 25%, and 30%. That was way higher than historical, but people are lazy and feel cheap if they click "Other."

Also, in NYC at least, 18-20% is increasingly pretty much the norm for food service. I almost exclusively tip 20%, regardless of the level of service.

[nostromo]

The table of example fares only includes trips with tolls, which are going to have higher totals, even without the toll.

The fare for people jumping around Manhattan would be quite a bit cheaper on average.

[hbosch]

Within Manhattan, you can usually get where you're going for under $20 sans tip. When I lived there, I wouldn't necessarily call that "cheap" compared to the underground alternative... but definitely just cheap enough that, after a long day, I would raise my hand if I saw the light on instead of walking the next block to the subway.

[pkaye]

But how often do people use cabs in Manhattan? If you used it say twice a weekday then that is like $10K a year on cabs alone!

[heyheyhey]

> I would just assume tipping would be similar to eating out in the US (10% for bad service, 15% norm, and 20%+ for good service)

It's actually 15% for bad service and 20% for normal. Kinda strange that tipping has been inflated from the standard 10-15% the past decade or so.

[rifung]

How do you define what it "actually" is?

The 10,15,20% is still what I hear. Perhaps it differs based off where you live in the US? I've lived in CA (both northern and southern) and the norm is generally accepted to be 15%.

[jmccree]

I would say 18% is the standard tip as that is what most restaurants (in GA at least) will charge as "automatic gratuity" for parties of 6 or more. The math on 20% is easier so a lot of people default to 20%

[rifung]

I always thought that 18% is standard for 6+ parties because 6+ parties are much harder to deal with and so require a higher tip. It seems a little silly that they would require a "normal" tip

[jayd16]

Its just that it's the lowest automatic option. If the choices were 10, 20, and 30 10 would probably be the most selected option.

In fact, ~10% seems to be the most punched in option.