‘That’s Too Much’; Woman Criticizes $84 Target Tip Request on Top of $49 Subscription Fee

In March this year, Target said they'd start bringing stuff to people's homes if they paid $49 a year. A news story in the Los Angeles Times said, "The plan, Target Circle 360, starts April 7 for $49 a year, promising deliveries in just one hour. But after May 18, it'll cost $99 a year if you don't have a Target card." This got the attention of TikTok user @bbsmallsmb, who signed up and then talked about it on TikTok. In her video, she said Target seemed like they were trying to copy Amazon Prime. She ordered an Apple Watch, some toilet paper, Vitamin Water, and shorts. But when her stuff arrived, not everything was there. “When the lady dropped off my order, I realized that only my Apple Watch and the two things of toilet paper were there,” she says. “So I go into the app to see if something was canceled or she forgot something. And before I can go into my app, I have a suggested tip of $84.”

This surprised her a lot. “I guess I should have figured, because of the way that we tip on everything, that this was going to be a tip service. But I really thought it was, like competing with Amazon Prime,” she said. “So I feel terrible. I put myself through college serving tables. I understand the value of a good tip, but there’s no way I’m paying someone $84 for getting the Apple Watch, walking across the aisle, getting the toilet paper, and then driving three minutes to my house.”

So, the TikToker decided to call Target's customer service to cancel her subscription. But they told her she could just give the delivery people a smaller tip. "I didn't want to be mean to the workers. If they're expecting a tip, I don't want to ruin their day with a bad one," she said. "That's not cool with me." When she looked at her order again, she noticed something strange. Some of the stuff the delivery person canceled was actually available at the store. "It seems like she only wanted to deliver the expensive things and didn't care about the rest because she wouldn't get a big tip," the TikToker guessed.

In the comments, people shared their own stories about tipping. One person said, "Tips for delivery should be about how far the driver has to go and how long it takes, not how much you spend."

Another person added, "It feels like everywhere you go now, they expect tips. People are getting fed up with big companies making us pay their employees."

Later, the TikToker commented that she didn't mind tipping if it's how the service works, but Target should have been clearer about it before she signed up. "Target should've been upfront about this when they were selling the service," she said. "That's why I canceled. I don't want to take money away from someone who relies on tips. And I don't want to pay a yearly fee and still have to tip on top of it."

You can follow @bbsmallsmb on TikTok for more such videos.