The year-over-year growth highlights how hotel staff and housekeepers are being recognized in a cashless economy.
SAN FRANCISCO (September 10, 2025) — Canary Technologies, the award-winning global leader in hotel guest management technology, today announced more than 3X year-over-year growth in digital tips to hotel staff, with nearly 70% of gratuities going to housekeepers.
This milestone underscores how hotel teams are being recognized in an increasingly cashless economy and highlights the essential role housekeepers play as the backbone of hospitality, as the industry prepares to celebrate Housekeeping Week, Sept. 14–20.
For housekeepers, this surge in digital tipping means higher earnings, improved job satisfaction and a boost in morale. Digital tips are frequently accompanied by personalized messages from guests expressing appreciation for their hard work and dedication to hospitality.
“Housekeepers are the heartbeat of hotel operations, and their work often happens behind the scenes,” said SJ Sawhney, President & Co-Founder at Canary Technologies. “At a time when cash tips have been declining, digital tipping is a powerful way to express appreciation. It’s clear just how much guests value housekeepers — and how easy it can be to say thank you when hotels make tipping seamless.”
Industry research by Canary shows that 70% of guests want to tip hotel staff but often don’t, since many no longer carry cash. At the same time, staff are far more likely to stay in their jobs when tips increase. Canary’s Digital Tipping helps bridge this gap — and looking back over the past year, the impact is undeniable:
Digital Tipping By the Numbers*:
Hotel leaders are seeing the difference. In addition to signaling appreciation for housekeepers, Canary’s Digital Tipping has been shown to improve guest service scores by 7 to 10%, reduce staff turnover by up to 75%, and improve employee engagement.
“The team loves reading the messages from guests. It’s a little boost of retention. You might have had a bad day and feel like, ‘I’m not coming back tomorrow,’ but then you see a $20 tip and a note saying, ‘Thank you for all you do.’ That can be the thing that makes you stay.” — Tom Anderson, General Manager at Hotel 1620, Linchris Hotels
Join the Celebration
Throughout Housekeeping Week, Canary will share standout guest notes of appreciation from the past year on its LinkedIn page. Follow along and help us celebrate the people who keep hospitality running.
*Source: Canary Technologies product usage data, August 2024–August 2025
Canary Technologies is modernizing the hotel tech stack with its award-winning AI-powered Guest Management Platform. Digitizing guest touchpoints from booking to checkout, Canary’s cutting-edge solutions simplify hotel operations, increase revenue, and elevate the guest experience. Enabling these innovations is Canary AI, the most advanced artificial intelligence model built specifically for hotels.
Trusted by over 20,000 hotels in 100+ countries, Canary powers hospitality at the world’s most renowned brands, including Marriott International, Four Seasons, Choice Hotels, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, BWH Hotels, and Intercontinental Hotel Group. Recognized as the #1 Guest Experience Platform by HotelTechReport for multiple years, Canary has earned accolades such as Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies in 2023, the 2024 Deloitte Fast 500, and Business Insider’s 2025 list of Companies Most Likely to Become a Tech Unicorn.
For more information, visit http://canarytechnologies.com.
Hotel management company adopts Canary’s guest experience solutions across its 34-property portfolio.
Canary’s platform lets Sales & Catering teams close business faster and easily get paid.
McMenamins selects Canary’s Guest Management System to digitize operations and elevate service across its portfolio.
Arlo Hotels modernizes arrivals, guest communication, and transactions with mobile-first Canary technology.
Danish boutique hotel group modernizes arrivals and guest communication with Canary’s Guest Management System.
