Living Spaces is a super popular bespoke furniture company with over 1000 employees and with a gross annual turnover of in excess of $500 million per year.
If you’re having some furniture delivered; perhaps a new couch or bed, you might be wondering whether you need to tip the delivery driver when he or she arrives.
Tipping is practiced widely across the US and making sure you do it right is essential to keeping your budget in check and making sure you don’t fall short of shared customs.
To help you decide whether to tip Living Spaces, we’ve done some digging for you.
Here we’ll look at what the etiquette is, what Living Spaces drivers earn, and other important key factors such as the likely cost of a Living Spaces delivery.
Keep reading to find out more…
Do You Tip Living Spaces Drivers? The Short Answer
There is no obligation to tip a Living Spaces driver but many people do just on the basis that they’re having to lug around extremely heavy goods and many find it is in good conscience to do so.
Keep reading to find out the amounts we suggest below.
How Much Do Living Spaces Delivery Drivers Earn?
We’ve learned from some of our other articles that certain drivers earn fairly poor salaries compared to the national average.
For example, Bob’s Discount delivery guys earn only $32k to $33k per year which is well below average.
Whereas Nebraska Furniture Mart drivers earn close to $60k.
But what about Living Spaces drivers?
According to Indeed, the hourly rate for a driver at Living Spaces looks something like this:
| Level of Salary | Salary |
| Low end | $20.45 per hour |
| Mid-level | $24.00 per hour |
| High end | $27.93 per hour |
If we take the mid-level salary as an average and say the driver does a 40-hour work week, then we’re looking at a salary of around $3,830 per month or $46,080 per year.
According to Mint.intuit, the average salary in the US is $56,310 per year.
On that basis, while Living Spaces drivers aren’t quite hitting that mark, they’re not far away and probably get close to this with overtime pay and bonuses.
They certainly earn a lot more than those who drive for Bob’s discount.
Given this data, it’s clear that Living Spaces drivers probably aren’t using tips to boost their income as you find in some industries like catering and restaurant work.
On that basis, you might conclude that a tip isn’t warranted and doesn’t have to be paid.
We’ll leave that to your judgment.
How Much Does Delivery Cost from Living Spaces?
Furniture delivery costs can vary hugely depending on the store you shop at.
For example, Pottery Barn charges up to 10% of the cost of the item for larger goods, and Raymour and Flanigan up to an eye-watering $175, whereas some retailers such as Amazon offer free delivery on items over $25.
Having looked at Living Spaces’ website, it would seem that they offer free delivery on most of their goods:
On this basis, you might decide that you can stretch to providing a tip given you’ve saved on delivery by shopping at Living Spaces.
However, it is likely that the cost of delivery is factored into the price of the goods, so bear that in mind when deciding whether you think a tip is required.
How Much to Tip a Living Spaces Delivery Driver?
The standard rate in the US is 10 – 20% of the cost of the goods or services in this case.
However, this is clearly of no help here as delivery is free unless you apply that percentage rate to the price of the furniture.
A better way of tipping Living Spaces drivers is to simply offer a fixed amount.
We’d suggest that $5 – $20 is plenty depending on the size of the goods.
If the driver is having to lug a huge bed around your home then we’d suggest tipping towards the top end.
If it’s a small coffee table, then a tip towards the lower end is probably enough.
Can Living Spaces Drivers Accept Tips?
We couldn’t find anything to suggest they aren’t allowed to accept tips.
Some companies do bar their employees from taking tips but we couldn’t find any specific policy to show this is the case at Living Spaces.
Should You Ever Increase Your Tip or Not Tip?
Tipping is a great way to brighten up any worker’s day and we generally always advocate doing it when there are no hard and fast rules or set etiquette, especially for good service and if you can afford to.
Here are some relevant examples of when we think you should dip into your wallet:
- If the driver has done more than expected. For example, if he/she has dragged a sofa up some stairs or to a faraway location in your house;
- If it’s bad weather. For example, if a delivery has been made in snow or ice;
- Around the holidays;
- If assembly is provided;
- If the driver has delivered on time, been professional, and provided excellent service.
On the other hand, think twice about tipping if:
- The delivery is late or to the wrong address;
- The driver damages your goods;
- The driver is unprofessional or rude;
Final Thoughts
There are no hard and fast rules when it comes to tipping delivery drivers but many people do tip just because of the sheer size of the goods.
Living Spaces drivers earn around the level you’d expect for this type of work so it’s not like they’re living on the poverty line.
However, a tip is still likely to be welcomed and we’d propose offering $5 – $20 depending on the size of the goods and how satisfied you are with the service.
After all, delivery is free from Living Spaces and that alone is a fairly good reason to persuade you that tipping is warranted on this occasion.
Of course, you don’t necessarily have to provide a monetary tip and you could show your gratitude in other ways such as:
- With food or drink
- With a positive review on Google
- A thank you card
- Gift Vouchers
Even good ol’ verbal praise will be enough to give the driver a good morale boost.
If you do tip with money, hand it to the driver as this will ensure they actually receive it.
