How to calculate 20% of bill?

How do you calculate 20% of a bill? Gosh, it’s always a bit of a brain-freeze moment for me, isn’t it? But seriously, it’s easier than it seems! I mean, figuring out a 20% tip? Piece of cake, once you get the hang of it.

What I always do – and this works every time, even when I’m tired and just want to get out of the restaurant already – is to multiply the total bill by 0.20. It’s basically the same as finding a fifth of the total, right? Think about it – five 20%s make 100%. Makes sense, huh?

For example, last week I had this amazing pasta dish at that little Italian place downtown. The bill came to, let’s see… $72, if I remember correctly. So, I just punched 72 x 0.20 into my phone’s calculator (because, let’s be honest, my mental math skills are… questionable at best!). That came out to $14.40. I rounded it up to $15 because, well, the waiter was super sweet and even refilled my water without me having to ask – twice!

Honestly, I think 20% is a pretty fair tip if the service was decent. But if they really went above and beyond? Maybe a little more. Like, that one time I went to that fancy seafood restaurant, the server remembered my shellfish allergy even though it was packed. Now that deserves a bigger tip! Maybe even 25%, I dunno. You know? It just depends, doesn’t it? But 20% is my go-to unless there’s a compelling reason to adjust!