By: In a recent Business Insider post, the topic of how to tip in every situation was discussed. It did not, however, cover one of the biggest questions we get asked, how much do you tip the DJ?
What You Should Tip in Every Situation (Business Insider)
Tipping your DJ can be a big amount when you consider how much DJs are getting paid. When you break it down, the $1,000 or more you’re paying for a DJ for four hours equals $150 if you tip 15%. The servers that are working your event, may make an extra $20-$40 each. There’s a big offset there.
We don’t feel it necessary to tip your DJ if you hire from Metro DC DJs & Entertainment. If you would like to tip your DJ, please feel free to do so, but none of our DJs expect to be tipped.
When tipping your DJ, keep a few things in mind:
- How much equipment did your DJ bring with him/her to set up?
- How much of the equipment was set-up by your DJ?
- Is there a DJ assistant and how much work did they do?
- How much work has your DJ put into your event? Think to all the e-mails and communications you’ve had with your DJ.
- Did your DJ exceed expectations? Exceed is very important because you hire a DJ to play music, and as long as the DJ did the very basic and played music, the DJ met expectations.
Now, how much should you tip your DJ? That requires a few other questions to be answered.
- How hard did your DJ work for you?
- Did the DJ just show up and play a set playlist, or did the DJ interact with your guests, interact with you, go above-and-beyond expectations?
- If you purchased a package, how much of the price was for extras, and was your DJ responsible for those extras?
Once you decide how much here, you can figure to pay 10-20% based on your experience. Like mentioned before, our DJs don’t expect to be tipped as they receive a big majority of the total paid because they’re doing all the work. Professional DJs do not put out tip jars and don’t expect guests to hide money in their hands to play songs. Professional DJs are there to make sure your guests have a great time while also facilitating the entire event so all you have to do is have fun!
