How much to tip: Valet Parking
$2-5 when your car is returned to you, handed directly to the attendant — not when you drop it off. Tipping at drop-off is unnecessary and doesn't buy better treatment of your vehicle.
Valet Parking quick reference
Who tips, and how
Cash handed directly to the attendant who brings your car back is the standard method — this differs from most tipping situations in that the tip is given at the end of the transaction (getting your car back) rather than the beginning, and it's worth having small bills ready specifically for this moment. The attendant who parked your car and the one who retrieves it are frequently different people on a busy shift, but the tip still goes to whoever hands you your keys, since valet stands typically pool tips among the crew working that shift rather than tracking who parked which specific car. At a restaurant or hotel with a valet stand out front, tip the attendant directly rather than adding anything to your dinner check or room bill — valet operations are very often run by a separate contracted company, not the venue itself, so a tip left on a restaurant check has no way of reaching the valet crew at all.
When to skip it
If a mandatory valet fee is already charged separately from the tip (common at some hotels and event venues, printed as a distinct line item), that fee generally goes to the parking operation itself, not the individual attendant — a tip is still customary on top of it, but knowing the fee doesn't already cover the tip matters. Dropping to a dollar, or skipping it altogether, is fair if you notice reckless handling — speeding across a lot, slamming doors, an obviously careless parking job — since valet is one of the few services where you get direct, visible evidence of care (or lack of it) right at the moment you're deciding what to hand over. Free valet at a casual daytime errand (some grocery stores, medical offices) that isn't part of restaurant or nightlife culture is far less consistently tipped, and a couple of dollars or nothing at all is both acceptable there.
Cash vs. app
Cash remains the near-universal method for valet tipping — there's essentially no app or card-based alternative for this specific interaction, since it happens curbside in a brief, in-person handoff, making cash the only practical option in the vast majority of cases. A small number of upscale hotels and event venues have started adding a valet gratuity option to the folio or checkout screen, but this is still uncommon enough that showing up without cash genuinely risks having no way to tip at all — planning ahead by pulling out a $5 or two $1 bills before you arrive somewhere you know has valet is worth the minor effort.
Regional notes
This is predominantly a US custom, tied closely to American restaurant, hotel, and event-venue valet culture. In much of Europe and Asia, valet service is less common outside luxury hotels, and where it does exist, tipping expectations are generally lighter than the US norm — a euro or two, or a small note in local currency, functions similarly to the US $2-5 range without escalating for luxury venues the way American valet tipping sometimes does.
Related reading
How this plays out in a few different countries, plus the wider category this situation belongs to.
Frequently asked questions
Is $2 too little at an upscale hotel or restaurant?
At a genuinely upscale venue, $5 is a more appropriate baseline than $2, since attendants there are often handling higher-value vehicles with more care and the overall price point of the venue tends to track with slightly higher tipping norms across the board.
Do valet attendants rely on tips as a significant part of their income?
Often yes — many valet positions, especially at restaurants and event venues, are paid at or near minimum wage with the expectation that tips make up a meaningful share of actual take-home pay, similar to other tip-dependent service roles.
Do I tip when I drop off my car or when I pick it up?
When you pick it up — tipping at drop-off is unnecessary and unusual, since the standard custom is to tip upon return of the vehicle, which is also when you can reasonably judge whether the car was handled carefully.
Should I tip more if the weather is bad (rain, snow)?
Yes, a modestly higher tip in poor weather is a common and appreciated gesture, since the attendant is dealing with less pleasant conditions to fetch and return your car quickly.
Is it normal for a group of friends to pool one tip for a shared valet drop-off?
If everyone arrived in one vehicle, one shared tip covering that single car is standard — the tip is per vehicle retrieved, not per passenger, so there's no need to calculate anything per person.
What if there's already a valet fee charged to my bill?
That mandatory fee typically covers the parking operation's costs generally, not the individual attendant directly — a separate cash tip when your car is returned is still the standard expectation even when a fee has already been charged.
Does it matter if a different attendant parked my car than the one who returns it?
No — valet stands typically pool tips across the shift, so the attendant handing you your keys is the right person to tip regardless of who originally parked the car.
Can I add a valet tip to my restaurant or hotel bill instead of handing over cash?
Usually not effectively — valet is very often run by a separate contracted company rather than the restaurant or hotel itself, so a tip added to your dinner or room bill often has no direct route to the valet crew. Cash handed directly to the attendant is the more reliable option.
Sources: National Parking Association (US) consumer service guidance (checked 2026-06-22).