Biggest tippers come from emerging markets in Asia-Pacific: MasterCard

The report on dining is based on interviews conducted between 7 November 2012 and 2 February 2013, with 7,678 respondents from 16 markets in Asia-Pacific, including Thailand, Bangladesh, China, Japan, Korea, Australia, Malaysia, Myanmar, New Zealand, Taiwan, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Singapore, India and the Philippines.

On the other hand, developed markets that are tightening their purse strings with regard to tipping include Hong Kong (-12 per cent), Singapore (-11 per cent) and Malaysia (-11 per cent).

When it comes to deciding on where to dine out, the report says more than one-third of consumers regularly look for online reviews beforehand, led by Asia’s most advanced tech markets including Taiwan, Japan and Singapore.

However, consumers in the emerging markets, such as Indonesia, Vietnam and Bangladesh, still prefer recommendations from family and friends.

Infographic: Click to enlarge

Meanwhile, the findings show that Chinese, Malaysian and Thai consumers are the most likely to post reviews on social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter after their dining experience, with about 1 in 2 respondents in these markets reporting that they regularly post comments online following their meals.

In terms of spending, Singaporeans are the region’s top spenders on dining with an average monthly dining spend of US$262, followed by Japanese (US$225) and Chinese (US$203). In contrast, Indians and Indonesians are the region’s smallest spenders at US$17 and US$19 monthly, respectively.

Markets including Singapore, Hong Kong and China have at least one in two respondents going online to check for credit card promotions available. However, the frequency drops slightly to an average of one in four markets across Asia-Pacific.

“There are big differences between the various cultures in the Asia-Pacific region and their tipping habits,” said Georgette Tan, MasterCard's group head of communications for Asia/Pacific, Middle East and Africa. “It is also interesting to see the convergence of the growing online connectivity of Asia/Pacific consumers and their passion for food.”

“Food blogs are playing an increasingly influential role in Asia’s food scene, turning both locals and tourists alike to the best eats in town and placing lesser-known eateries on the radar of the keen, tech-savvy diners,” she added.