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DANISH HABITS

What’s the tipping culture in Denmark you should know about?

Beyond the complexities of tipping etiquette across cultures, tipping in Denmark can just be physically difficult. Here's how to handle it.

Published: 22 July 2022 16:09 CEST
Updated: 3 July 2023 10:08 CEST
What's the tipping culture in Denmark you should know about?
Should you tip at Danish restaurants? Photo: Mads Claus Rasmussen/Ritzau Scanpix

The short answer 

Tipping in Denmark is certainly not expected, but it’s certainly not frowned upon either. If you’ve received excellent service, you can either round your bill up to the nearest 10 or 100 kroner or aim for 10 percent of your total, which is considered generous.  

One exception, according to several travel websites including Fodor, appears to be hotel porters. These sources recommend tipping them between 1 and 5 kroner per bag. 

Restaurants that cater to tourists, particularly in Copenhagen, seem to be more likely to present opportunities to tip — but you shouldn’t feel pressure to do so. 

READ MORE: What wages can you expect when working in Denmark?

The reasons why, and how tipping can be tricky in practice 

It’s not just that people in the service industry are paid a living wage (they are) and receive universal social benefits from the Danish government (they do) — it’s that cash simply isn’t king in Denmark. 

Over the past twenty or so years, it’s become uncommon to carry cash in Denmark (both the higher-denomination bills or lower-denomination coins) and most transactions are by card or the now-ubiquitous MobilePay app. So while in Spain it’s very easy to leave a few Eurocents on the table if you’ve received exceptional service, it can actually be a challenge to tip in Denmark if you don’t have any pocket change (which you won’t). 

If you do pay by card, it’s very rare to receive a receipt to sign (unless you’re paying with a foreign credit card), meaning there’s no opportunity to fill in the ‘tip’ line item. Some card readers at cafés and restaurants have begun offering an opportunity to tip by percentage, but often the person checking you out will select ‘no tip’ before they even hand it to you to approve the charge. 

READ ALSO: Why is Denmark opposed to an EU minimum wage law? 

Member comments

  1. Worth remembering that a service charge is already added by law in catering establishments.

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DANISH HABITS

‘Just rude’: The Danish cycling habits most annoying to foreigners

We asked our road-using readers in Denmark what they thought were the worst habits displayed on the country’s bike lanes.

Published: 8 April 2024 16:57 CEST
'Just rude': The Danish cycling habits most annoying to foreigners

A recent survey in Denmark has found that a significant proportion of cyclists admit to breaking traffic rules.

This might mean cycling through a red light or across a pedestrian crossing, which could land the offender with a fine if spotted by traffic police.

Having similarly asked for your thoughts about motorists in the past, we wanted to know your thoughts on the worst habits Danish cycle lane users should try to cut out.

Unusually for our reader surveys, everyone who responded and gave their location in Denmark said they live in or near Copenhagen – there were no responses from Jutland or Funen.

READ ALSO: IN NUMBERS: How much do Danes use bicycles?

The most common habit cited by readers as the worst one was ignoring red lights.

“Sometimes I feel like the only person in Denmark that actually stops at a red light,” as one reader, David, put it.

This can go as far as ignoring red lights at pedestrian crossings, according to some.

“[Cyclists] think if they don’t look at you then there’s no one coming so they can ignore the red light,” Ed from the UK, who lives and cycles in Copenhagen wrote.

“I have observed a number of cyclists pausing, then proceeding through red lights,” said Ray from the US, who mainly encounters cyclists as a driver.

The clear second-most popular choice among our readers was using a phone while riding, a habit a relatively low number of cyclists themselves have admitted to.

“Using the phone at traffic lights and being slow to start when the light turns green” is one of the problems this causes, an anonymous reader said.

Paul, a reader from the US who lives in Copenhagen’s Østerbro, said his biggest gripe was with cyclists who sneak ahead of other cyclists at red lights.

This behaviour “creates bike traffic flow problems, dangerous passing situations, and is just rude,” he said.

Two readers who responded to our survey selected the “other” option and elaborated on their choice.

Sriram from India said he most objects to smoking while cycling, while for Nicola from Italy it was “having two bikes riding together next to each other, while chatting, especially during rush hours.”

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