How does tipping work in Madrid?
Tipping in Madrid is genuinely optional, not a social obligation disguised as custom. At sit-down restaurants, leaving the small change or rounding up the bill is common and appreciated; 5-10% is generous and marks you as a considerate foreigner rather than a local. At a neighborhood bar or café, rounding up a few cents or leaving the copper coins from your change is the norm. Servers are paid a living wage with benefits, so the economic urgency that drives tipping in the United States does not apply here. At higher-end restaurants where a server has spent real time guiding you through the menu or wine list, 10% is appropriate. Taxi drivers expect nothing but don't mind if you tell them to keep the change. Hotel housekeeping and bellhops respond well to 1-2 euros per interaction. No one will be cold to you for not tipping, and no one will be particularly surprised if you do.
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