Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between bartender servers and food servers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a bartender server has an average salary of $32,591, which is higher than the $25,209 average annual salary of a food server.
The top three skills for a bartender server include bartending, POS and non-alcoholic beverages. The most important skills for a food server are beverage orders, wine, and cleanliness.
| Bartender Server | Food Server | |
| Yearly salary | $32,591 | $25,209 |
| Hourly rate | $15.67 | $12.12 |
| Growth rate | 18% | 9% |
| Number of jobs | 106,784 | 125,455 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 44% | High School Diploma, 36% |
| Average age | 34 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | - |
Bartender servers are employees who work in the restaurant's bar area. They are responsible for assembling customers' drink orders and serving these to customers. They should be sound drink mixers and must be familiar with cocktail combinations and other mixes. They should also know the ingredients of the restaurant's drinks and should be able to use alternatives should specific components be unavailable. Some bartender servers engage in flairtending, a way of mixing drinks that entertains the guests waiting for their drinks.
A Food Server specializes in helping customers attain a pleasant dining experience while ensuring to meet all food handling and health regulation standards. Most of the responsibilities revolve around greeting customers and directing them to comfortable seats, responding to their inquires and taking their orders, and courteously suggesting options. Aside from serving meals, Food Servers must also accept payments, organize order receipts, replenish stocks in food containers and drinking stations, and clean tables for the new customers.
Bartender servers and food servers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Bartender Server | Food Server | |
| Average salary | $32,591 | $25,209 |
| Salary range | Between $23,000 And $46,000 | Between $18,000 And $34,000 |
| Highest paying City | Edmonds, WA | Los Angeles, CA |
| Highest paying state | Hawaii | Vermont |
| Best paying company | Earth Fare | Gettysburg College |
| Best paying industry | Hospitality | Retail |
There are a few differences between a bartender server and a food server in terms of educational background:
| Bartender Server | Food Server | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 44% | High School Diploma, 36% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between bartender servers' and food servers' demographics:
| Bartender Server | Food Server | |
| Average age | 34 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 33.8% Female, 66.2% | Male, 36.0% Female, 64.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 5.9% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 18.4% Asian, 3.8% White, 65.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | Black or African American, 4.2% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 20.4% Asian, 8.7% White, 60.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 7% |