Tip Calculator

Overview

The tip is `amount` multiplied by `percentage` / 100, and the total is the bill plus the tip. `percentage` accepts 0 to 100 and defaults to 15; a 0 is honoured rather than replaced by the default. `people` defaults to 1, and the bill, tip and total are each divided by it to give the `per_person` object.

Every money figure is rounded to two decimal places independently, after the division. Because the per-person values are rounded from unrounded totals, multiplying `per_person.total_amount` back by `split_between` can differ from `total_amount` by a cent or so; if you collect money from each person, decide in your own code who covers the remainder.

`currency` is a display setting only and no exchange conversion takes place. It is echoed back as sent, and it chooses the symbol used in `formatted`: USD, EUR, GBP, JPY, CNY, INR, CAD, AUD and MXN have built-in symbols (CAD shows C$, AUD A$, MXN MX$), and any other code is printed as the code followed by a space. The match is case-sensitive, and all currencies are formatted with two decimals, including JPY.

`common_tip_amounts` repeats the calculation for 10, 15, 18, 20 and 25 percent, each with `tip_amount`, `total` and `per_person`, regardless of the percentage you asked for. `formatted` and `common_tip_amounts` are null on the Free plan; all other fields are returned on every plan.

Live Test Tip Calculator Source →

Formula

One function covers the whole catalog: the first argument names the source, the next are its inputs, and the field after them says which single value lands in the cell. Formulas covers the grammar that applies to all of them.

=VERVE("tipcalculator", A2, "bill_amount")

=VERVE.CALL("tipcalculator", A2, "bill_amount")

A2 holds the amount you are looking up. Drag the formula down and each row resolves on its own.

With literal values

Nothing has to come from a cell — typed values work the same way.

=VERVE("tipcalculator", 100, "bill_amount")

=VERVE.CALL("tipcalculator", 100, "bill_amount")

Inputs

Required inputs are positional, in the order below, followed by the field. Everything else is passed as a "name", value pair after that — the same shape as SUMIFS. Premium inputs are accepted on every plan but only take effect on plans that include them.

Passing an option

=VERVE("tipcalculator", A2, "bill_amount", "percentage", 18)

=VERVE.CALL("tipcalculator", A2, "bill_amount", "percentage", 18)

What lands in your sheet

The field — the argument after the inputs — is what makes the formula resolve to one cell. Its value is a dot-path from the table below, so swapping it is how you pull a different value — one formula per column.

Seeing everything at once

Leave the field out and the formula returns the whole response instead: two columns, field name on the left and value on the right, spilling from the cell you typed in.

=VERVE("tipcalculator", A2)

=VERVE.CALL("tipcalculator", A2)

Response fields

Paths are relative to data. Each one is exactly what the field argument accepts, so swapping it is how you pull a different value into a cell. On a plan without a Premium field the cell reads #PREMIUM(field) rather than a value, so a locked field never looks like a real answer.

Filling a whole column

Both platforms make one batched call for a column rather than one request per cell, and both cost the same — 1 credit per row looked up. How you write it differs, because the two runtimes batch at different points.

=VERVE("tipcalculator", A2:A100, "bill_amount")

In Google Sheets, give the arguments ranges and the answers spill down from the cell you typed in. Custom functions there run synchronously and in isolation, so dragged cells cannot be coalesced — the range form is how a column becomes one call. The field is required here: a per-row two-column table has nowhere to spill. Use a full column per input (A2:A100, not A2) — a single-cell reference is read as row 1 only and the rest of the column comes back blank.

In Excel, type the formula once and fill down — no range form and none needed, because its runtime is asynchronous and the add-in coalesces the calls a fill produces into a single batched request. Do not hand VERVE.CALL a range: Excel flattens it into positional arguments, so A2:A100 arrives as a hundred separate arguments and the cell reads #ERR rather than filling.

Either way, column A holds your amount values and the answers land beside them, one row each, blank rows skipped.

When a cell doesn't fill

A failed lookup returns readable text starting with #ERR rather than a spreadsheet error, because Excel cannot show a custom message on a real error — you would get a bare #VALUE! with no reason. The trade-off is that IFERROR() will not catch it; test with LEFT(cell, 4) = "#ERR" instead. Error handling covers the rest.

Before the formula works

The add-in reads the API key you saved once in the side panel — the key never goes in the formula, so a shared sheet does not leak it and a collaborator without access simply sees the last calculated values.

1. Install the add-in for Google Sheets or Excel.
2. Open the side panel and sign in, or paste a key from your dashboard.
3. Type the formula above into any cell.

Supported Currencies

170+ world currencies supported including fiat currencies, cryptocurrencies, and precious metals.

Use cases

Dining Apps

Integrate tip calculation features into restaurant and food delivery applications

Expense Tracking

Calculate and track tip expenses for budgeting and expense reporting

Bill Splitting

Split restaurant bills fairly among groups with automatic tip calculation

Financial Tools

Provide tip guidance and calculation in personal finance and budgeting apps

Other ways to use Tip Calculator

Set up Tip Calculator on VerveSheets, or reach the same source a different way. Your VerveSheets account and credits work on all of them — one key, one balance.

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