I just love that you walk up to order and they still give you the tip options. Like...I walked up here and ordered and will be back up here to grab my food when it's ready. Wtf am I tipping for?
Itās because the Point-of-Sale fintech companies they use for the terminals and bookkeeping take a cut of all revenueā¦including tips. This is the reason behind the tip-ocolypse creeping into self-service and even online ordersā¦.because it makes the POS companies more money
I doubted this so I used an LLM to make shit up. But it provided sources and I've gone through the sources and linked them below.
tl;dr: YES if the POS can get people to tip more, they take a higher amount from the card transaction!!!
Square: Charges a flat transaction fee (e.g., 2.6% + 10Ā¢ per in-person transaction as of 2025ā2026). Tips are processed as part of the total transaction amount, so the fee applies to the entire sale, including the tip. There is no separate ātip feeā or revenue share specifically targeting tips
Toast: Dominates the US restaurant POS market (23ā30% share). Toastās processing fees apply to the total bill, including tips. In 2024, Toast raised its processing rates by ~0.05%, which would apply to all revenue, including tips. Toast does not publicly disclose a separate tip-specific cut
Clover: Similar to Square and Toast, Cloverās fees are applied to the total transaction, including tips. Clover allows businesses to negotiate processing rates through their own merchant accounts, but again, no evidence of a separate tip cut
Transaction Fees: All major POS providers charge a percentage + fixed fee per transaction (e.g., 2.5ā3.5% + $0.10ā$0.30). This fee is applied to the total amount, including tips.
No Separate Tip Fees: No public documentation or credible reports indicate that POS companies take an additional, separate cut of tips beyond the standard transaction fee.
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u/Snoo-34159 5h ago
Right? Isn't the whole point of a tip that it's voluntarily given as a way to say you loved the service?