Is tipping expected at restaurants in Morocco?

Tipping in Morocco is real but gentle — it's woven into daily life rather than formalised the way it is in, say, the United States. At a proper sit-down restaurant where you've had a multi-course meal and attentive service, around 10% is a warm, generous tip and will be genuinely appreciated; nobody is expecting the 18–20% some travellers brace for. Wages in hospitality are modest, so tips do matter, but the cultural register is 'a kind extra' rather than 'an obligatory surcharge'. I've watched plenty of locals leave a handful of coins and a smile, and that's perfectly within the spirit of the thing.

At the more casual end — a café where you've nursed a mint tea and watched the square, a quick lunch at a snack counter, a pastry and coffee — the convention is simply to round up or leave the loose change. If your coffee comes to 13 dirhams, leaving 15 and waving away the change is the everyday gesture. Café culture here runs on these small kindnesses, and the waiter who's looked after your table all afternoon notices. You don't need to calculate percentages on a 20-dirham tea; a couple of coins is exactly right.

Two practical things to watch. First, check whether 'service' is already on the bill — in some smarter restaurants a service charge may be added, in which case an extra tip is optional and you can leave just a little more if the service was lovely. Second, carry small denominations in cash. Card payment is spreading in upscale city venues, but the tip itself is almost always a cash affair — left on the table, tucked under a plate, or pressed into the waiter's hand. Many smaller places are cash-only anyway, so keeping a stash of 5, 10 and 20-dirham notes makes tipping (and paying) frictionless.

Beyond restaurants, it helps to know the wider tipping rhythm because it sets the tone of a trip. A few dirhams to the porter who carries your bags, 10–20 to a helpful café or hammam attendant, a more meaningful sum at the end for a private guide or driver who's been excellent — these small courtesies are part of how things work and are warmly received. My one piece of advice: tip for genuine good service, not out of guilt or because someone's pressuring you. A confident, friendly 'thank you' with a fair tip is respected; over-tipping out of awkwardness just distorts the dynamic.