Configuring Tip Pool Distribution

The Problem

Your team pools tips, but you're not sure how BarSight calculates who gets what. Should it include cash tips only, or card tips too? How does the system know which employees get a share? What about cash register transactions—when do those get created?

The Solution

BarSight's Tip Setup settings control whether tips are pooled, which tips go into the pool, how they're split among employees, and how tip activity affects your cash register balance. Configure once, and the system automatically calculates daily tip totals and distributions based on your rules.

How to Configure Tip Setup

You can access Tip Setup from two places:

• Settings → Locations → edit your location → Tips and Posting Hours section
• Schedule → Post Hours → click Settings in the top right

Choose Your Tip Mode

The Tip Setup section uses a two-option selector:

No Tip Pooling

Tips are not pooled. Employees keep their own tips. In this mode, you can configure how employee-reported tips affect your cash register balance:

• Tips Received Transaction: Automatically creates a cash-in transaction when employees report tips received. Use this to keep your register balance accurate when tip cash is added to the drawer.
• Tipout Transaction: Automatically creates a cash-out transaction when tipout is submitted. Use this to deduct tipout amounts from your register balance.

Tip Pooling

Tips are pooled and distributed at the end of the shift. When Tip Pooling is active, two settings are enforced automatically:

• Tips Received is locked to Both Cash and Card — all employee-reported tips flow into the pool correctly
• Tipout Transaction is disabled — payouts are handled through the tip pool distribution instead

In this mode, configure:

• Tips to Pool: Choose Cash, Card, or Both Cash and Card to control which tips are included in the pool
• Distribution Method: How pooled tips are divided among employees (see below)

Set Distribution Method

The distribution method determines how pooled tips are split among employees. Click the distribution method link in the Tip Setup section to open the distribution editor.

• Equal Share: All eligible employees who worked that day receive an equal share of the tip pool, regardless of hours worked.
  Example: $120 in tips, 4 employees → each receives $30
• Equal Share with Reserved: Works like Equal Share, but a portion of the pool is set aside for specific roles (e.g., a tip-out to kitchen staff) before the remainder is split equally.
• Weighted by Role: Each role has a percentage weight. Employees receive a share proportional to their role's weight multiplied by hours worked.
• Selected Roles Only: Only employees in specific roles participate in the tip pool. Others are excluded entirely.

How Tip Pool Works

Daily Tip Collection

BarSight collects tips from two sources:

1. Employee-Reported Tips: Cash and card tips entered by employees when they clock out
2. POS-Reported Tips: Tips synced from your POS system (if integrated)

Based on your Tips to Pool setting, the system totals the relevant tip types each day.

Manager Adjustments

Managers can adjust the daily tip pool total in Logbook → Cash Transactions. Adjustments are tracked separately and added to the calculated total.

Tip Pool Payout

When you're ready to pay out tips:

1. Navigate to Logbook → Cash Transactions
2. Click Payout Tip Pool
3. Review the total amount and per-employee breakdown
4. Click Confirm Payout

The tip pool is marked as locked and a "Tips Out" cash transaction is created, reducing your drawer balance by the payout amount.

Pro Tip

If you're enabling Tip Pooling for the first time, start with Tips to Pool: Both and Equal Share distribution—it's the most common setup and the easiest to explain to staff. You can always switch to a weighted or role-based method once your team is comfortable with the system.

Learn More

For managing daily tip pools and payouts, see Managing the Daily Tip Pool. For recording tips when employees clock out, check out Recording Tips on the Punch Clock.