Toronto’s tipping culture has been called out in a viral TikTok, describing the expectation for tips for the simple act of rotating an iPad as “out of control.”
A clip posted a few weeks ago by TikToker @aleslayfillet has been making the rounds on social media through reshares on other platforms like X, demanding that people in Toronto normalize selecting the “no tip” option.
The user starts the video off with a warning, saying, “This is controversial, and it will piss off some of you, but normalize clicking ‘no tip’ on the iPad. Normalize it!”
“I am dead tired of paying for things that should not be tippable.”
@aleslayfillet It really is getting out of control #tippingculture #tips #toronto ♬ original sound – Alessandro
The user explains how “I just went to a coffee shop to buy a bottle of water, and the lady turns around, opens the fridge door and pulls out a bottle of water, shows me the iPad, like she turns it around, and then it’s like 15, 18, 20 [%]. I’m like, ‘Girl, forgive me, no tip.’”
While the TikToker acknowledges that this option is pre-selected for all orders, regardless of how small, he argues that it adds pressure on customers when employees at businesses show a tip option.
“But like, look me dead in the eyes, and you flip that iPad, and you show it to me, pretending like we don’t both know what you’re doing,” he rants.
Many users sounded off in the comments section, agreeing with the video.
One commenter wrote, “Went to Craig’s Cookies, bought a singular cookie for $2.60… tip options: $1, $2, $3. What?!”
Even some of the recipients of these tips seem to be okay with ending the practice.
One user wrote, “I’m a barista and I agree, today I just gave someone a couple bottles of water and she tipped a whole dollar and I was like… why? I’ll take it though.”
Another chimed in, saying, “Omg yes! I COMPLETELY AGREE! 99% of the time, if I’m not sitting down, I’m not tipping.”
The video and the many comments it spurred are just the latest in a growing movement to ditch tipping entirely in Canada, and instead just pay more for services up-front. A similar model is common elsewhere in the world, while tipping culture remains the norm primarily in North America.