# Automatic gratuity on large parties: how to split it

Canonical URL: https://www.evenoutapp.com/guides/automatic-gratuity-for-large-parties
Updated: 2026-10-06

When a large-party check already includes gratuity, treat it as the tip and split it with the rest of the bill. Read the line for the rate and whether it is figured before or after tax, then divide by what each person ordered or equally. At 18 percent it already sits inside Emily Post's 15 to 20 percent range for sit-down service, so extra is your choice.

Key points:
- Find three things on the check: the gratuity rate, whether it is figured before or after tax, and the party size it applies to.
- On a $400 pre-tax subtotal with 7% tax, an 18% gratuity is $72.00 on the subtotal or $77.04 on the post-tax total, a $5.04 gap.
- Splitting by what each person ordered moves $25.00 off the diner with a $30 order, compared with an equal split of the $500 check.
- Emily Post lists 15 to 20 percent of the pre-tax amount for sit-down service, so an included 18 percent is inside that range.

## What is automatic gratuity on a large party check?

It is a gratuity line the restaurant adds to the check for a large party, so the tip is already on the bill and nobody has to work it out. The restaurant picks the rate and the party size that triggers it, which means the numbers on your own check are the only ones that apply. If the line says "service charge" instead of "gratuity", the [difference between a service charge and a tip](https://www.evenoutapp.com/glossary/service-charge-vs-tip) has its own entry. This page covers what to do once the line is there.

## How do you read the gratuity line?

Look for three things: the rate, the amount it is figured on, and the party size that triggered it. The amount matters most, because a gratuity on the post-tax total is larger than the same percentage on the pre-tax subtotal.

Say eight people run up a $400.00 subtotal, with 7 percent tax of $28.00. An 18 percent gratuity on the pre-tax subtotal is $72.00, and the check comes to $500.00. The same 18 percent on the $428.00 total is $77.04, and the check comes to $505.04, which is $5.04 more.

Emily Post lists 15 to 20 percent of the pre-tax amount for sit-down wait service, and says it is acceptable to tip on the pre-tax amount. On $400.00 that range is $60.00 to $80.00, and an included $72.00 is inside it. The [tip on pre-tax or post-tax](https://www.evenoutapp.com/guides/tip-on-pre-tax-or-post-tax) guide has the full comparison of the two bases.

## What should you ask before you order?

Ask when the table sits down, not when the check arrives. Two questions cover it:

1. **"Is a gratuity already added to our check, at what percent, and is it figured before or after tax?"** This gives you the rate and the base.
2. **"If we pay separately, how does the gratuity get split?"** This tells you whether separate payments are possible and how the gratuity follows each person.

The reason to ask early is the multiplier. With 7 percent tax and an 18 percent gratuity on the pre-tax subtotal, the check is 1.07 + 0.18 = 1.25 times the menu prices. A $20.00 entree is $25.00 on the check, and knowing that at ordering time lets each person see what a dish will cost them.

## What are three ways to split the included gratuity?

Splitting by what each person ordered moves $25.00 off the diner with the $30 order, compared with splitting the $500.00 check equally. Here is the same eight-person check split three ways. The first column is each person's pre-tax order.

| Diner, pre-tax order | By items, tax and gratuity on top | Own items and tax, gratuity equal | Equal split |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ana, $62 | $77.50 | $75.34 | $62.50 |
| Ben, $48 | $60.00 | $60.36 | $62.50 |
| Cal, $55 | $68.75 | $67.85 | $62.50 |
| Dee, $30 | $37.50 | $41.10 | $62.50 |
| Eli, $44 | $55.00 | $56.08 | $62.50 |
| Fay, $71 | $88.75 | $84.97 | $62.50 |
| Gus, $38 | $47.50 | $49.66 | $62.50 |
| Hal, $52 | $65.00 | $64.64 | $62.50 |

Each column adds up to $500.00.

- **By items.** Everyone pays their order times 1.25, so tax and gratuity travel in proportion to what was ordered. Whichever base the restaurant used for its gratuity, split the final check total in proportion to each person's pre-tax order.
- **Own items and tax, gratuity equal.** Each person pays their order times 1.07, plus $72.00 divided by 8, which is $9.00. The gratuity is flat on the view that the server's work was for the whole table, not for each plate.
- **Equal split.** $500.00 divided by 8 is $62.50. It is the simplest, and it suits a table whose orders are close. Here it costs Dee $25.00 more than the by-items method and gives Fay $26.25 less.

Pick one before the check arrives and say it aloud, so nobody argues about it afterward.

## Is adding more on top a choice or a duty?

That is up to the table. An included 18 percent already sits inside Emily Post's 15 to 20 percent range, so the table has left a tip before anyone adds anything. Adding another 18 percent would bring the tip to $144.00, which is 36 percent of the $400.00 subtotal and well past the top of that range.

If the table wants to reward good service, reaching 20 percent adds $8.00 on this check, which is $1.00 a person.

## How do you record it in EvenOut?

Add the $500.00 as one expense, choose "By shares" and type each person's pre-tax order as their shares: 62, 48, 55, 30, 44, 71, 38 and 52. EvenOut shows each person's dollar share under their name, at $1.25 a share, which gives the by-items column above. "Split equally" gives the $62.50 version in one step.

For the wider case of splitting a check among a big group, [how to split the bill with a large group](https://www.evenoutapp.com/guides/how-to-split-the-bill-with-a-large-group) goes through it, and the split bill calculator with tax and tip works out the totals for any base.

## What to do next

Ask the two questions at the start of the meal, agree the method while you are ordering, and use the numbers on your own check rather than the ones in this example. The rates and party sizes here are examples. Your restaurant sets its own.

## Frequently asked questions

### How can you tell whether the gratuity was figured before or after tax?

Divide the gratuity by the pre-tax subtotal. In the example, $72.00 divided by $400.00 is 18 percent, so the base was the subtotal. If that gives an odd figure, try the post-tax total: $77.04 divided by $428.00 is 18 percent, so the base was the total after tax.

### Do you write a tip on the card slip when gratuity is already on the check?

Only if you mean to add more. If the slip has a tip line, anything written there is a second tip on top of the one already on the check, so write 0 or leave it blank when the included amount is what the table wants to leave.

### How much extra gets an 18 percent gratuity up to 20 percent?

If the 18 percent was figured on the pre-tax subtotal, it is 2 percent of that subtotal: $8.00 on $400.00, or $1.00 each across eight people. If it was figured on the post-tax total, the included $77.04 is already 19.26 percent of the $400.00 subtotal, and reaching 20 percent of the subtotal ($80.00) takes only $2.96 more.

### What if one person left before the check came?

Settle their share first, using whichever method the table agreed, and leave the rest of the check with the people who stay. Under the by-items method, a diner who ordered $30.00 owes $37.50 of the $500.00 check, so the other seven owe $462.50 between them.

## Sources

- [Emily Post: Tipping etiquette 101, a comprehensive guide on tipping](https://emilypost.com/advice/general-tipping-guide)
- [Emily Post: Finer points of tipping](https://emilypost.com/advice/finer-points-of-tipping)