Marlene's advice below is very good. Tipping here is definitely different than back home. Here are some suggested tipping amounts:
- Restaurants. 10% normal service or 15% for good service.
- Hotel maids - 10 pesos per day.
- A bellman - 5 pesos per bag.
- Baggers at the grocery store - 2-3 pesos.
- Parking lot attendants - 2-3 pesos.
- Gas station - 3-5 pesos depending on the services performed (washing windshield, checking oil).
- Garbage collectors at Christmas - my neighbors all give 50 pesos. Same for the mailman on the Day of the Mail Carrier.
- I tip the gas delivery guy 10 pesos when he fills our tank. That's probably a little unusual, but I see him around town quite a bit and I always get a smile and he asks if I need gas. Hell, the poor guy has to climb to the top my damn roof!
- Our 1/2 day per week housekeeper gets a Christmas bonus of 2 weeks pay.
We have a local street sweeper that comes by every day. He picks up trash on the off days and sweeps our sidewalk. I try to make sure he gets 10 pesos every week. His salary after 15 years is 70 pesos a day, so I know this helps out and our street always looks extra clean. In fact, he is out in front of the house now - on Sunday. Tipping is obviously a personal choice and decision. The above are simply guidelines.
DavidShafer October 16, 2005
MarleneSantana - 04 Dec 2003
When I moved to Mexico I quickly discovered many workers who rely on tips as their sole source of income. Some of these include the grocery baggers at the supermarkets (usually children but at Soriana they are also elderly workers on certain days) A couple of pesos per bag that they pack for you is truly appreciated. You will notice that they change quickly and then sit to wait their turn again. If you are the first customer of the day, you will see some of them bless the money before it goes in the pocket. This is done for luck and good fortune for the rest of the day.
Out of the store and into the parking lot - the attendant who helps with loading groceries, collecting your carts and guiding you out of the parking spot with his whistle, is also working for straight tips. Budget for another of couple pesos here. These fellows are usually always elderly and it isn't easy out there in the hot sun all day.
Another place that we aren't accustomed to tipping is the gas station. A small tip to the service attendant is appreciated especially if he washes the windows or offer to check under the hood. One day in November is Postman Day. That is the day to tip your letter carrier whatever you feel appropriate. I usually try to find a way to give the garbage collectors something near the holidays, as they have a tough job with little pay. I also tip the water delivery guy too, as he has to climb a spiral staircase and then gets to face a growling dog in the process. A couple of pesos extra insures that we have a continuous supply of drinking water.
You aren't expected to tip the taxi drivers, something which foreign visitors may not be aware of. The fare you negotiate with him is all he is expecting unless he carries your groceries up the stairs and into the house for you. Then you may want to offer him a little something extra.
Tipping does add up so we budget for it. We also keep a small amount of change in the vehicles for something I call the cuota or the tolls. At many stop lights throughout the city there are charity collectors, newspaper salespeople, etc. Sometimes it feels like being on a toll road, but it's all part of life here and one gets used to it.