Man sparks intense debate online after claiming he saved $153 in a week by not tipping

There is a lot of discussion around tipping culture. A debate is always up in the air about whether one should tip their server at a restaurant. A TikTok user who goes by @idontip shared that he saved a lot of money by not leaving tips at restaurants in Los Angeles, which led to yet another debate on the topic online. The video began with a text overlay, "This is how much money I made in a week in Los Angeles by leaving zero tips."

In the 18-second video, he showed the different restaurants and coffee shops he went to. On one tablet, he was seen paying $12.80 and when it asked if he wanted to pay a tip, the person refused. In the next place, he paid about $99 for the food but again did not tip. He also paid a bill of $6.75 at a coffee shop and did not leave a tip. In the fourth place, he was seen again paying about $12.75 and clicked on "No Tip" before making the final payment.

Then he showed two printed bills of $6.95 and $389.47, where again he did not add any tips. He just made a line over the spot where he was supposed to leave an amount to tip. For every purchase he made, he was asked if he would like to pay a tip of 18 to 22 percent and he denied it in every place. In the end, the voiceover said, "This week, I made $152.92 and let me know where to go next to leave zero dollar bills." The video was captioned, "How much money I made in a week of leaving zero dollar bills?"

People were divided when it came to not paying tips at restaurants. @yora_khunt commented, "Tip when served at sit-down restaurants. No tip anywhere else. Maybe a tip for the togo meals at small family-owned businesses." @alex.hkc wrote, "I get no tip policy if they are not serving, but no tip on a regular restaurant is devious." @user6141065868110 expressed, "You are an inspiration to us all."

@z.hyz said, "Gonna channel this energy whenever I go to self-serve kiosks now." @wttrbttl said, "I don't agree with doing this personally, but you should write zero instead of a line because most high-end places will auto grat. your bill like that." @fatslug69 commented, "Counter service is fine, but if you're not tipping when you are at a sit-down restaurant, you shouldn't eat there."

The man, a Los Angeles resident who wished to stay anonymous, told Newsweek that excessive tipping is going out of hand, so now, he refuses to leave a tip. He also said that people forget that tipping is optional and no one should feel obligated to leave a tip "because of social judgment." He shared, "I was in one of the bakeries in LA and after ordering a Danish that costs $3, the waitress turned the iPad and I saw: $1, $2, $3 tips options; $3 tips in a bun that costs $3, man. That was the moment when 'NoTip' was born."

He has been documenting this series for the past few weeks. He went on to say that he has received a lot of curious and unhappy glances since he started to his no-tipping practice. He said, "I've gone to all kinds of places without leaving a tip. Some of them include coffee shops, nice sit-down restaurants, smoothie bars and nightclubs. And I went to a notoriously dangerous bar in Los Angeles where I didn't leave any tip and it was crazy." The man added that with this experience, he realized that people "seem to care way too much about other people's money, more than their own."

You can follow @idontip on TikTok for more content on not tipping at cafes and restaurants.