Do you tip in China?
Short answer
No. Tipping is not customary, and handing over extra money will often be refused outright.
Refusing is the polite response
Service is priced into what you pay, and staff are not working against a tipped wage. Offering extra puts the person in the position of explaining why they cannot take it, which is a small burden rather than a gift.
The refusal is not modesty to be pushed past. Insisting a second and third time turns a brief moment into an uncomfortable one for everybody at the table.
Where a service charge appears instead
Hotels and upscale restaurants may add a service charge to the bill. Where that happens it is printed on the bill, and it replaces the entire question — there is nothing further to add.
Ordinary restaurants, street food, taxis and shops do not add anything. The number you are shown is the number you pay.
The one common exception
Private guides and drivers booked through a tour operator, especially on trips sold to overseas visitors, are used to being tipped and will accept it without confusion.
That is a tourism-industry convention rather than a local one. It does not extend to the restaurant you find on your own that evening.
Good to know
- A printed service charge on the bill settles it — nothing further is expected
- Refusal is standard; take it at face value rather than offering again
No. Tipping is not expected, and money left behind is usually treated as forgotten, not as a gift.
Optional, and never expected at street level. Leaving the coins from your change is the usual gesture.
Not required, and not a local habit. It has become common only where tourism is the main business.
No. Tipping is not a Korean custom and staff do not expect it. Where a charge exists, it is printed on the bill as a service charge.
No. Sit-down restaurants may add a service charge, and where they do, that settles it.