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GroomBoard on your phone.
Your day, your route and checkout in your pocket. Sign in with the account you already have.
- iPhoneApp StoreIn review
- AndroidGoogle PlayComing next
Free Tool
Dog Groomer Tip Calculator
How much should you tip your dog groomer? Enter the price of the groom and get a low, typical and generous tip in whole dollars, for one dog or several, the holidays, or a groomer and bather sharing it.
The price of the groom before tax, for one dog.
What kind of visit?
Suggested Tip
On a $70 groom, a typical tip is $14.
Low
$11
15%
The usual minimum
Typical
$14
20%
What most owners give
Generous
$18
25%
For a great groom
The standard is 15 to 20 percent of the groom price before tax. Owners who go to 25 percent usually have a reason.
Cash, when you can: it reaches your groomer whole, the same day. Tipping is appreciated, never required.
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Dog groomer tipping, the quick answers
The calculator uses the same numbers as our full guide to how much to tip a dog groomer: 15 to 20 percent of the groom price before tax, and 25 percent or more when the job was harder than usual. These are the questions owners ask most at the counter.
Do you tip the owner of the grooming salon?
The old rule said you never tip the owner. Groomers today mostly disagree. A solo owner groomer does the same physical work an employee would, and most accept tips gladly. If your groomer owns the shop, let the service decide, not the etiquette book.
Is it better to tip a dog groomer in cash or on the card?
Cash, when you can. A cash tip reaches your groomer whole, the same day. Card tips are welcome too, but depending on how the salon runs payments they can arrive with the next paycheck or lose a processing slice on the way. At a corporate salon such as PetSmart or Petco, ask how card tips are paid out before you add one at the register.
Do you tip a mobile dog groomer?
Yes, the same 15 to 20 percent, which is why the mobile switch in the calculator does not change the numbers. Mobile grooming costs more than a salon visit, but that premium pays for the van, the fuel and the one on one time slot, not extra wages. The groomer at your door bathed, dried, groomed and cleaned up alone.
How much do you tip a dog groomer at Christmas?
December is when regulars say thank you for the year. The two common patterns are a doubled tip on the December visit or, from clients who have come every 4 to 6 weeks for years, a bonus of roughly one groom's price. The holiday setting in the calculator shows both. None of it is expected from a newer client, and a normal 20 percent tip in December is never wrong. A card with a note about your dog lands nearly as well.
What if you were unhappy with the groom?
Tell the salon, kindly and soon. A silently shrunken tip teaches the groomer nothing, and a good salon wants the chance to fix it. Tipping is optional, so what you leave after a poor groom is your call, but the conversation is what gets you a better groom next time. If money is simply tight one month, skip the tip and keep the appointment: groomers would rather keep a punctual, regular client than get one stretched tip.
How much do you tip for a nail trim or a quick bath?
A quick nail trim or a walk in bath does not demand a percentage. A few dollars is a kind gesture, which is why the calculator never suggests less than $3 to $5 per dog.
For the full table of tips by groom price, tipping at PetSmart and Petco, and what groomers say matters more than the tip itself, read How Much to Tip a Dog Groomer.