Map: How much of a restaurant worker’s income comes from tips

FILE-A waiter conducts a credit card payment for a customer at a restaurant. (Photo by: Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
The restaurant industry can be demanding and challenging for employees when it comes to the nature of the work and even the pay. 
And depending on the state a restaurant worker is employed in, there is a chance a higher percentage of their income could come from tips. 
Square released a fall quarterly restaurant report which in part evaluated how much tips account for a restaurant worker’s income. 
RELATED: Has tipping gone too far? 1 in 3 Americans think so 
The business technology platform determined that the average restaurant worker earns almost 23% of their income in tips in 2024 compared to 22% last year (nationally).  
According to the report, states where tips make up the highest percentage of overall wages are Wyoming (33%), South Dakota (31%), Alaska (31%), and Kansas (30%). 
Moreover, restaurant workers in Oklahoma, Mississippi, Arkansas, and Nebraska see their tips make up the smallest percentage of their income compared to other states.
In 2024, the average tip on a restaurant transaction nationally was 15.4% compared to 15.5% last year. 
Square noted that the states with the highest average tip are Virginia (17.16%), Iowa (17%), and Delaware (16.77%), but California (14%), Hawaii (14.17%), and Connecticut (14.75%) have the lowest average tip, as of September 2024. 
With tipping surging nationwide, some people believe that it has become a bit much. 
In a Bankrate survey on tipping culture released in June 2024, 59% of Americans viewed tipping negatively. And this included individuals who believe companies should give their workers better pay, while others said they are annoyed about pre-entered tip screens or would be willing to pay higher prices to be done with tipping completely. 
Information for this story was provided from a Square 2024 fall quarterly restaurant report which includes data on the amount that tips accounted for restaurant workers pay by state and the average tip amount nationally.  This story was reported from Washington, D.C.