Tipping in Arkansas

Last reviewed October 2026

Arkansas Tipping Laws in 2026: Quick Facts

Effective January 1, 2021

Arkansas Minimum Wage

$11.00 per hour (employers with 4 or more employees)¹

Arkansas Tipped Minimum Wage

$2.63 per hour¹ ²

Maximum Tip Credit

$8.37 per hour²

Who Qualifies as a Tipped Employee?

An employee in a customarily tipped job, such as a server or bellhop, or any employee who receives more than $20 per month in tips²

Are Tip Pools Allowed?

Yes, with restrictions² ³

Are Mandatory Service Charges Tips?

No²

Can Employers Keep Employee Tips?

No. Tips belong to employees, apart from lawful tip pools.³

Can Credit Card Fees Be Taken From Tips?

Arkansas has no specific rule. Under federal law, employers can deduct only the actual card-processing percentage.³

Arkansas has its own rules for wages and tips, and its Ozark float trips, fishing and hunting guides, and Hot Springs bathhouses create tipping situations many visitors may not be familiar with.

Work in Arkansas? Learn about Arkansas's tipping laws, minimum wage, tip pools, and your rights when it comes to tips.

Visiting Arkansas? Explore popular Arkansas experiences where tipping is common and see what customers and workers report about tipping.

What Is Arkansas's Minimum Wage for Tipped Employees?

A tip credit lets an employer count part of an employee's tips toward the minimum wage, so it can pay a lower hourly wage as long as tips make up the difference.

Arkansas's minimum wage is $11.00 per hour for employers with 4 or more employees.¹ Tipped employees can be paid a direct wage of $2.63 per hour, with the employer taking a tip credit of up to $8.37 per hour.²

If tips don't bring an employee up to $11.00 per hour, the employer must make up the difference.¹ An employee who spends 20 minutes or more of an hour on non-tipped work must be paid the full minimum wage for that hour.²

Who Owns Tips in Arkansas?

Tips belong to the employee who receives them. In Arkansas, if an employer requires tips to be turned over to the business, the employer cannot take a tip credit and must pay the full minimum wage.²

Federal law adds that employers, managers, and supervisors cannot keep any part of employees' tips.³

Are Tip Pools Allowed in Arkansas?

A tip pool is an arrangement where employees' tips are combined and shared among a group, such as servers, bussers, and bartenders.

Yes. Arkansas rules allow servers to share tips with bussers and other staff, and allow employers to redistribute pooled tips on an agreed basis.² Federal rules also apply:³

With a tip credit: When an employer pays the tipped minimum wage, the pool can include only employees who customarily and regularly receive tips, such as servers, bartenders, and bussers.
Without a tip credit: When every employee is paid the full minimum wage, the pool can also include back-of-house staff, such as cooks and dishwashers.
Managers and owners are out. Managers, supervisors, and owners cannot take tips from the pool.

Are Service Charges Considered Tips in Arkansas?

No. A mandatory service charge, such as 10% of the bill, is not a tip under Arkansas rules, even if the employer passes it on to employees.²

The difference comes down to customer choice. A tip is a gift the customer chooses to give. A mandatory service charge is part of the required price.

Can Employers Take Credit Card Fees Out of Tips?

Arkansas rules don't address this, so federal law applies. An employer that pays a percentage-based card fee can deduct that same percentage from a card tip, but nothing more.³

Tipping While Visiting Arkansas

Arkansas's rivers, lakes, and mountain towns create tipping situations many visitors haven't run into before. The Ozark and Ouachita mountains draw paddlers, anglers, hunters, and mountain bikers, while Hot Springs has welcomed spa-goers for generations.

Whether you're spending a weekend in Hot Springs or heading into the Ozarks, here are popular experiences where travelers often have questions about tipping.

Tours and Outdoor Adventures

Float Trips

Canoe and kayak trips on the Buffalo National River and other Ozark streams usually start with an outfitter who rents gear and shuttles you to the put-in. Visitors often wonder whether the shuttle driver expects a tip.

Do You Tip a Canoe Outfitter?

Trout Fishing Guides

The White River and Little Red River are known for trout fishing, and many visitors book a guide with a boat. A full day on the water makes tipping less obvious than at a restaurant.

Do You Tip a Fishing Guide?

Duck Hunting Guides

Eastern Arkansas, especially around Stuttgart, draws duck hunters every winter. Hunters often wonder how to tip the guide and whether the camp staff and dog handlers should share in it.

Do You Tip a Hunting Guide?

Mountain Biking

Northwest Arkansas, around Bentonville, has become a major mountain biking destination. Visitors taking a guided ride or a skills lesson often aren't sure whether a tip is expected.

Do You Tip a Mountain Biking Guide?

Tour Guides

From Little Rock's historic sites to Eureka Springs walking tours, visitors meet many kinds of tour guides while traveling through Arkansas.

Do You Tip a Tour Guide?

Lodging and Wellness

Hot Springs Bathhouses and Spas

Hot Springs National Park's historic Bathhouse Row still offers thermal baths, and spas in town add massages and other treatments. First-time visitors often wonder whether to tip bath attendants as well as massage therapists.

Do You Tip at a Bathhouse?
Do You Tip a Massage Therapist?
Do You Tip at a Spa?

Cabins, Lodges, and Hotels

Much of Arkansas's lodging is cabins and lake rentals rather than large hotels. Guests often aren't sure whether to leave a tip for housekeeping when a cleaning fee is already on the bill.

Do You Tip Cabin Rental Housekeeping?
Hotel Housekeeping
Bellhops
Valet Parking

Food and Drink

Restaurants, Bars, and Barbecue

Restaurants and bars are the most familiar places to tip. Arkansas's barbecue joints, catfish houses, and diners often use counter service, which raises a common question: do you tip when you order at the counter?

Restaurant Tipping
Bartender Tipping
Do You Tip for Counter Service?

What Customers and Workers Report

Tipping customs and expectations don't always match people's real-life behavior.

TippingGuide.com collects feedback from both customers and workers to show the two sides of tipping.

Our Customer and Worker Averages compare what customers report tipping for average service with what workers report expecting to receive.

Explore the categories above to see what customers and workers report for different services and tipping situations.

Information about Arkansas wage and tipping laws is provided for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Laws, regulations, and minimum wages can change. This information was last reviewed in October 2026.

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