by Alexis Jeffries
MONEY Magazine – Money Poll

It’s an annual dilemma: What’s an appropriate holiday tip for the people who serve you throughout the year? Etiquette expert Peggy Post recommends a gift of a week’s to a month’s pay for full time help like a nanny; and the cost of at least one visit for people who provide a regular, less frequent service, such as a hairstylist. But you probably also want to keep in line with what your neighbors are giving so you don’t look like a tightwad. In a MONEY poll, readers owned up to the tipping sums below; Post says they are suitably generous.

Average Tip

• Mail Carrier – $20
• Hair Dresser – $20
• Cleaning Person – $75
• Occasional Babysitter – $25
• Full-time Nanny – $270
• Gardener/Yard Worker – $50
• Newspaper Carrier – $15
• Garbage Collector – $20