Team & events

Tip Pool Split Calculator

How does tonight's pool divide, and can everyone see why?

Most tip disputes are arithmetic disputes. Enter the pool and the team, choose whether you split by hours worked or by role points, and every share is shown with the fraction it came from.

Your figures stay here. The calculator runs on this device; the share link stores its numbers after the # in the URL.

Worked answer$62.37See it ↓

Your numbers

A worked example is already loaded. Replace any field with the figures from the source named beside it.

Total pool to distributePOS tip report

$1,840.00

The amount being split, after any tip-outs to other departments have already been removed.

Split methodYour written tip policy

By hours worked

Hours is the simplest and easiest to defend. Points weight roles differently. Points × hours does both.

TeamTimeclock report

Name	Role	Hours	Points
Bartender A	Bar	8	10
Bartender B	Bar	6	10
Server A	Floor	7.5	8
Barback	Support	8	5

One row per person on the shift.

The answer

Pool per unit

$62.37

$1,840.00 across 29.5 hours

Bartender A, Bar8 of 29.5 hours, or 27.1%$499.00
Bartender B, Bar6 of 29.5 hours, or 20.3%$374.23
Server A, Floor7.5 of 29.5 hours, or 25.4%$467.79
Barback, Support8 of 29.5 hours, or 27.1%$498.98
Total hours29.5
Pool per unitWhat one hour is worth in this pool.$62.37
DistributedShould equal the pool exactly. Rounding remainder goes to the largest share.$1,840.00

Federal tipped wage floor

Law or regulation

Minimum cash wage to a tipped employee$2.13
Maximum federal tip credit (derived: $7.25 federal minimum minus $2.13 required cash wage)$5.12
Tipped employee threshold (more than this in tips per month)$30.00

A legal floor or definition, not a performance target.

This figure is derived rather than reported directly.

This is the federal floor. Many states set a higher cash wage, and several prohibit the tip credit entirely. Your state rule governs where it is more generous to the employee. This is not legal advice.

Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Fact Sheet #15: Tipped Employees Under the FLSA (current)

Source: 29 CFR 531.56: definition of a tipped employee (current)

Source: 29 CFR 531.59: tip-credit conditions (current)

Tip pooling is regulated. Under federal law an employer, manager, or supervisor may not keep any portion of an employee's tips, and a pool that includes non-tipped staff is only permitted where the employer takes no tip credit. State law is frequently stricter. This calculator divides a number you supply; it does not assess whether your pool is lawful.

03 Show the arithmetic

Total weight = sum of every person's hours, points, or points × hours

Each share = pool × (that person's weight ÷ total weight)

Shares are rounded down to the cent; the remainder goes to the largest share so the total reconciles exactly

04 What the answer leaves out

Federal law bars employers, managers, and supervisors from keeping any part of an employee's tips. Including back-of-house in a pool is only permitted where no tip credit is taken.
Several states prohibit the tip credit entirely or restrict who may be in a pool. Check your state, and put your policy in writing.
This tool divides a number. It does not determine whether your pool complies with the law.

05 Sources

Your numbers

The answer

Federal tipped wage floor

Three more numbers worth knowing.