Tipping etiquette: massage therapist in chiropractor's office?

October 24, 2017 11:09 PM

My friendly neighborhood chiropractor's office also offers massage therapy. I had a massage there. Should I have tipped the massage therapist? (This is in the Seattle area.)

The office accepts insurance, but I paid cash. I figured since insurance was potentially involved that I should consider the visit a medical procedure and therefore not tip.
However, as the person at the front desk (not the therapist) was writing out my receipt she asked if she should write in $75--which struck me as an odd question since that was the price I was quoted, but only later did it occur to me that perhaps she was hinting that a tip was expected or at least wouldn't have been out of place.
So, should I have tipped, and if so, how much?

posted by mpark to Society & Culture (9 answers total)

Yes, you should have tipped. I used to work in an alternative health and wellness office that had insurance based practictioners (chiropractors and acupuncturists). They rented out the massage rooms to the massage therapists at a daily rate. In essence, they were independent contractors and had nothing to do with the insurance side of the business.
To be fair, the receptionist should have given you a tip envelope or asked you if you’d like to leave a tip. Chalk it up to a miscommunication, but in the future, I would tip 20% or above.
posted by Champagne Supernova at 11:30 PM on October 24, 2017 [4 favorites]

I tip at restaurants, the skin, hair and nail salons, service people who come to my home.. I have not tipped a massage therapist before nor seen tip envelopes. The massage therapists I have been to have all been independent contractors renting space. I guess it didn't occur to me to tip because business owners don't usually accept tips, only wage employees. Maybe that policy is obsolete or doesn't apply here.
posted by waving at 11:57 PM on October 24, 2017

If I am inside a medical practice and someone asks or hints for a tip I would probably look for a new medical practice. What if they give you substandard care next time, either consciously or not, because they feel you stiffed them?
posted by ftm at 3:16 AM on October 25, 2017 [3 favorites]

I've tipped every massage therapist I've ever had -- either directly in the case of smaller set-ups, or at the front desk when offered a tip envelope (at swankier places, thanks Groupon). Yes they are often basically renting space, but so do hairdressers and tattoo artists, and I tip both of them too.

I have not been to a massage in a medical practice, though, and I'd be curious to read the reactions of actual massage therapists. I would be inclined to tip, though. Even my "I just want to give myself a self-care treat" massages are therapeutic, exactly as if I'd gone for a physical problem.
posted by kalimac at 4:51 AM on October 25, 2017

Yeah, I always tip massage therapists, no matter the context. I wouldn’t worry about that one time but in future I would tip.
posted by latkes at 8:49 AM on October 25, 2017

I don't tip in similar situations (also Seattle-area). It would feel weird, like tipping my dentist. I get massages all the time and nobody in that sort of office has ever hinted that I should tip. I walk out without paying and they bill me after dealing with my insurance.

I've tipped when I've gone to spas for massages, but that was when insurance wasn't involved and it was just for feeling good, not for specific medical issues.
posted by The corpse in the library at 10:20 AM on October 25, 2017 [1 favorite]

I wouldn't tip in a clear Physical Therapy situation. But if it is fuzzy, I would. I generally tip massage therapists.
posted by AlexiaSky at 12:27 PM on October 25, 2017

While I totally acknowledge it being a bit weirder in the context of a medical office, I would always tip. My therapist of choice recently moved from a very health/spa type setting into a more medical one. Same therapist, same level of service, no reason she shouldn't be tipped in both contexts. So extrapolating from there, I vote for making it rain.
posted by SpiffyRob at 6:52 AM on October 26, 2017

Hi, I am a massage therapist.

If you cannot afford to tip, if you do not want to or are uncomfortable with tipping, if your therapist has specifically indicated that they are opposed to tipping or not allowed to take tips, you should not tip.

If you are in an ultra-clinical setting like a motor vehicle accident rehab center, you probably should not tip; ask the receptionist first.

In all other situations, including a chiro office, it is typically acceptable to tip your massage therapist.

We never want our clients to feel pressured to tip us or for tipping to be an impedement to recieving or enjoying a massage, and when asked in person by my clients about tipping I give a polite non-answer in order to respect both their autonomy and their vulnerability. It always feels a little like a pop quiz on professional ethics.

My practice does not offer tip envelopes. We do not want clients to feel pressured or solicited for tips. Tipping should be 100% voluntary.

My clients usually leave my tips on the massage table or give them to me or to the receptionist. Most people who tip leave between $5 and $20.

I tip whenever I go for a massage and I greatly appreciate the tips that I recieve.

If you are uncertain, it is ok to ask the therapist or the receptionist what the norm is. You will probably get more of a straight answer from the receptionist. Your therapist will probably just tell you to do whatever you want.
posted by windykites at 1:20 PM on October 26, 2017