...Your tips generally fall within the 15 to 20 percent range. But don't go thinking that the more you spend on services, the less you can shell out on gratuity.

"Think of it as a fine dining experience," says Carol Phillips, owner of Skinsational Day Spa in San Diego, Calif. "The more fine dining it is, the higher percentage your tip should be, if it's commensurate with the service. If you're in a high-end salon, 18 to 20 percent. If you're in a budget facility, you might be at 15 percent or a little less," she says.

Cover image via Imaxtree

A salon is not a restaurant, and salon workers do not rely on tips to get by like waiters and waitresses do -- at least they shouldn't. "Any facility should be paying enough to their employees so that they are totally compensated off the service alone," says Phillips. "If a hairstylist is relying on tips for lunch money, that's totally off focus from why we should be giving gratuity. You should be getting gratuity because you did an amazing job."

That said, that doesn't mean you can leave the tipping line blank at the salon, guilt-free. Phillips stands by the rule, "If the service provider was good, tip them." In fact, Philips and Scott Fontana, owner of Newport Beach, Calif. salon Christophe, say that tips make up 20 to 30 percent of their salary.

For those of you signing up for a series of glycolic peels with $100-plus price tags each, you can breathe a sigh of relief. According to our experts, tipping at a medical spa is not required. A medical spa that employs doctors and nurses should not make a patient feel obligated to tip, since they're usually charging a premium price.

Phillips, who has owned a spa for over 30 years, says that tipping at a medical spa goes against social norms. "Do you tip your OB-GYN, orthodontist or dentist? No. You just pay them their service fee," she says.

If you're wondering whether or not to tip the owner, we've got bad news: The jury is still out. According to Diane Gottsman, national etiquette expert and owner of The Protocol School of Texas, "It's always subjective."

Years ago, omitting a tip when the owner serviced you was completely acceptable. In fact, it was sometimes considered an insult. But now owners are more hands-on, says Gottsman. "If you ask, most of the time an owner appreciates the tip," she says.

Phillips, on the other hand, disagrees. "I think the owner should be charging enough off of the service that [a tip is unnecessary]. I think it's very odd to tip the owner," she says.

Gottsman says the best way to avoid confusion is to ask the owner if they accept gratuity, or to check with the receptionist when you make your appointment.

Consider this scenario: You're headed to your usual salon, where you always place a $20 bill in the hand of your stylist when she's done with your service. But this time, she has an assistant shampoo you, and a colleague take over the blow-dry while she sorts out another client. Suddenly, anxiety strikes. Do you need to tip all three of the people working on you?

Usually, yes, says Fontana. The standard tip for a shampoo is anywhere from $3-$10 (a great scalp massage tends to incite generosity in clients), and if separate people did your cut and color, you should pay them the standard 15 to 20 percent of that fee, if their service warrants a good tip.

If, at the end of your service, you're panicked over what to leave with whom, ask the person at the front desk before you start shredding that $20 bill into thirds. She or he is used to handling tipping situations and can advise you on the standard policy (and perhaps provide some change).