Tip pool calculator
Add your card and cash tips, then share the pool by hours worked and optional points. Shares add up to the pool to the cent.
Not legal, tax or payroll advice. General information only; results are estimates. Read the full notice.
Example: a pool of $850.50 shared by 4 people by hours and points. The table shows each share; they add up to the pool exactly.
Estimate based on what you entered. Not legal or payroll advice; check it against your employer's records.
How to use it
- Type the card tips and the cash tips for the period.
- For each person, type a name, hours worked and points.
- Use points of 1 for everyone to split by hours only, or a lower number such as 0.5 for a smaller share.
- Read each person's share.
What the sources say about tip pools
- The U.S. Code says the tip rules do not prohibit pooling tips among employees who customarily and regularly receive tips. Federal regulations say an employer does not keep tips by requiring employees to share tips with other employees who are eligible to receive tips, and that employers may not require employees to share tips with managers or supervisors.
- Under the U.S. Code, an employer may not keep tips received by its employees, including by letting managers or supervisors keep any part of them.
Questions
How do points work?
Each person's weight is their hours times their points. A person with 20 hours and 0.5 points counts the same as one with 10 hours and 1 point.
What about odd cents?
Every share is rounded down, then the leftover cents go to the largest remainders so the shares add up to the pool exactly.
Who can be in a tip pool?
The sources below describe what federal law and regulations say. Your employer or your state labor department can confirm what applies to your workplace.
Official sources
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29 U.S.C. § 203(m)(2)(A) (opens in new tab), U.S. Government Publishing Office (U.S. Code).
“except that this subsection shall not be construed to prohibit the pooling of tips among employees who customarily and regularly receive tips.”
Checked November 11, 2026. Rules change; verify with the source. -
29 CFR § 531.54 Tip pooling (opens in new tab), Electronic Code of Federal Regulations (eCFR).
“An employer does not violate section 3(m)(2)(B)'s prohibition against keeping tips if it requires employees to share tips with other employees who are eligible to receive tips.”
Checked November 11, 2026. Rules change; verify with the source. -
29 CFR § 531.54 Tip pooling (opens in new tab), Electronic Code of Federal Regulations (eCFR).
“Section 3(m)(2)(B) expressly prohibits employers from requiring employees to share tips with managers or supervisors”
Checked November 11, 2026. Rules change; verify with the source. -
29 U.S.C. § 203(m)(2)(B) (opens in new tab), U.S. Government Publishing Office (U.S. Code).
“An employer may not keep tips received by its employees for any purposes, including allowing managers or supervisors to keep any portion of employees' tips, regardless of whether or not the employer takes a tip credit.”
Checked November 11, 2026. Rules change; verify with the source.
These are summaries of what the official sources say, not legal advice. Laws change and exceptions apply. Check with your employer or your state labor department about your own job.