Starbucks Will Soon Let You Tip Your Barista From Your iPhone

Starbucks announced this morning that it’s rolling out changes to its mobile application that will allow customers visiting its stores to tip their baristas from their iPhones. The feature will be made available beginning on March 19th, the company says, and will work at any of its more than 7,000 company-owned stores across the U.S., U.K. and Canada.

The app will suggest tip amounts on the transaction screen, allowing users to pick from $0.50, $1.00 and $2.00 tips, as well as a “no tip” option. In addition, it appears that you’ll be able to tip up to two hours after the transaction takes place, according to the provided screenshot.

TippingAlso in this release is a new feature that will allow customers to “shake to pay” – meaning that customers will be able to shake their phones in order to bring their Starbucks Card’s barcode on the screen at any time.

The company has already been a forerunner in mobile payments and digital loyalty programs, having brought its own payment card and its “Starbucks Rewards” program to smartphone users on both iOS and Android through its applications. Today, Starbucks reports that over 11 percent of its transactions are now taking place via a mobile device in its stores, and nearly 10 million customers have downloaded its apps.

The decision to introduce digital tipping was prioritized for inclusion in the mobile application due to it being a top request on the company’s customer feedback portal, MyStarbucksIdeas.com, which serves as an online suggestion box where customers can add, search and vote for ideas and improvements.

The company says digital tipping will come to the Android version of the Starbucks application later this year.