Tipping / Gratuities

Here’s a helpful guide on who needs to be tipped. Make sure to read your contracts closely as some vendors will include tips directly in the contracts. For the most part it’s people who are “working” during your wedding (ie serving food, taking pictures, playing music). It annoying but unfortunately true. https://www.theknot.com/content/wedding-vendor-tipping-cheat-sheet

I've always been told don't tip vendors that own the business. Catering should be tipped if it in't already incorporated into your payment (our gratuity is included!) and same with the bar staff. I've never heard of tipping for bakeries, We purposely hired vendors who are self-employed because we want to support small/single owned businesses. Our florist is an online rent-and-return, so there's no option to tip. I am probably tipping my hair stylist and MUA because they are working on multiple people and have both given me a discount since I've used them before, but they are very high quality and I'd like to tip, just as I normally would if i used their services for something else. I will also offer lunch to them and the photographers, and all of my vendors will be allowed to eat off of our buffet for dinner.

Hope this helps ♡♡♡

Hi Katherine!

Welcome to the WeddingWire community

Great question! Figuring out which wedding vendors to tip and how much can be tricky. It's important to show them how much you appreciated their hard work.

This WeddingWire article makes it extremely clear who needs to be tipped, and at what amount - Exactly How Much To Tip Wedding Vendors: A Complete List

Are you feeling any clearer on how much, and who you need to tip?

Speaking as a server who was recently screwed over on contract/wedding tips as service charges, where we each made $34 for tips for the entire night and the rest went to the house, it is best you tip everyone in cash on the side, so management doesn't rip us off. Also, your guests and relatives will be cheapskates and you need to cover for their very poor tipping etiquette. I won't work catering, banquets and weddings ever again after this. I barely had enough gas to make it to work and it actually cost me money to come in to serve for your wedding and it wasn't worth it just to keep my job. Just saying...

View Quoted Comment

Guests and relatives should not be expected to tip at a wedding at all. The tipping etiquette is that the hosts tip, not the guests. They are not being cheapskates or having poor tipping etiquette by not tipping.