and local sales tax rate stands at 5 percent; Florida has a state sales tax rate of 6 per-
cent. And in various counties of New York, the sales tax rates start as low as 7.25 per-
cent to as high as 8.75 percent.How is the sales tax calculated at the checkout? Take, for instance, a purchase of a
$100.00 ring in New York City, a place with a sales tax rate of 8.265 percent. Multiply
$100 times 8.265 percent, or $100 0.08265 $8.265, which rounds up to $8.27 for
sales tax. The merchant would then charge the customer a total of $100.00 $8.27
$108.27. If the same $100.00 ring was purchased in Florida, the sales tax would be
$100.00 6 percent, or $100 0.06 $6.00, with a total purchase price of $106.00.
Of course, not every purchase will be as straightforward as this, since some cities can
410 also add local taxes and/or surcharges and fees to the bill.
How does a person calculate the amount of a tip?
A
tip, or gratuity, is the money given to a person who performs a service for a
customer, such as a waiter or waitress at a restaurant. Depending on the ser-
vice, in the United States a 10 percent to 20 percent tip is usually left, with the
most common being 15 percent, although many people have stories about the 0
percent tip they left after a bad experience. The tip is based on the total bill—the
meal and the tax—although some people base the gratuity on just the meal. For
example, if a meal at a restaurant costs a total of $10.00 (meal and taxes), a 15
percent tip would be $10 0.15 $1.50. The tip is usually left at the table (or
given to the waiter or waitress), or taken out by the establishment and added to a
“tip pot” shared by all the wait staff.
There are some mathematical tricks to remember when leaving a tip at a
restaurant, to a hairdresser, doorman, or in other appropriate circumstances. A
good way to estimate a tip is to round the total bill to the most significant place
value. For example, an $18.50 meal would round to $20. Next, move the decimal
point of the rounded amount one place to the left ($20 to $2.00), or 10 percent
of the total cost. Then divide this amount in half to determine 5 percent (or
$2.00/2 $1.00). Add the two resulting amounts to estimate 15 percent of the
total—in this instance, $2.00 $1.00 $3.00 tip. (In reality, 15 percent of
$18.50 is $2.78, which is close enough to $3.00.)
But remember, not every country tips the same. Tipping is a way of life in
Egypt, but taxi drivers don’t accept tips; French restaurants must add the tip,
usually at 15 percent, to the bill by law; tipping in Australia is almost nonexis-
tent; no one tips in mainland China (mainly because the government tacks on
enough charges to visitors); there is no tipping in New Zealand, either, as the
price usually includes services; and don’t even think about tipping in Japan!