Culinary chef vs assistant chef

The differences between culinary chefs and assistant chefs can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a culinary chef and an assistant chef. Additionally, a culinary chef has an average salary of $49,417, which is higher than the $37,670 average annual salary of an assistant chef.

The top three skills for a culinary chef include culinary, fine dining and food service. The most important skills for an assistant chef are kitchen equipment, safety standards, and culinary.

Culinary chef vs assistant chef overview

	Culinary Chef	Assistant Chef
Yearly salary	$49,417	$37,670
Hourly rate	$23.76	$18.11
Growth rate	15%	15%
Number of jobs	20,066	18,054
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 46%	Associate Degree, 32%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	6	6

Culinary chef vs assistant chef salary

Culinary chefs and assistant chefs have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Culinary Chef	Assistant Chef
Average salary	$49,417	$37,670
Salary range	Between $34,000 And $70,000	Between $22,000 And $63,000
Highest paying City	-	Atlantic City, NJ
Highest paying state	-	New Jersey
Best paying company	-	Ncar - The National Center For Atmospheric Research
Best paying industry	-	Hospitality

Differences between culinary chef and assistant chef education

There are a few differences between a culinary chef and an assistant chef in terms of educational background:

	Culinary Chef	Assistant Chef
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 46%	Associate Degree, 32%
Most common major	Culinary Arts	Culinary Arts
Most common college	Boston University	Stanford University

Culinary chef vs assistant chef demographics

Here are the differences between culinary chefs' and assistant chefs' demographics:

	Culinary Chef	Assistant Chef
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 63.9% Female, 36.1%	Male, 71.4% Female, 28.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.0% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 17.3% Asian, 11.3% White, 54.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 9.8% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 18.7% Asian, 11.0% White, 54.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between culinary chef and assistant chef duties and responsibilities

Culinary chef example responsibilities.

Manage a kitchen of military personal and Japanese civilian chefs.
Provide informative culinary instruction and product knowledge to create exceptional customer experiences.
Balance emerging trends and culinary creativity with cost, utilization and operational execution.
Develop seasonal menus focusing on classical French cuisine with consideration to customer base, product availability and cost.
Develop and open a USDA inspect production facility.

Assistant chef example responsibilities.

Direct daily activity of staff (prep cook, dishwashers and wait staff), and receive and manage inventory.
Manage food inventory and assist chefs with menu development.
Attain a broad knowledge of ingredient functionality in diverse culinary applications and comfort in a culinary setting.
Learned the cuisine and intricacies of Tuscan style cooking as well as the influences from other regions.
Prep vegetables and meat for chefs, wash and dry dishes, cups, and utensils, and stock new shipments.
Maintain cleanliness and ensure proper preparation of orders.

Culinary chef vs assistant chef skills

Common culinary chef skills

Culinary, 30%
Fine Dining, 10%
Food Service, 8%
Cuisine, 7%
Kitchen Equipment, 6%
Recipe Development, 4%

Common assistant chef skills

Kitchen Equipment, 14%
Safety Standards, 13%
Culinary, 12%
Customer Service, 10%
Compassion, 7%
Kitchen Sanitation, 6%

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Culinary Chef
Culinary Chef vs Assistant Chef

Updated January 8, 2025

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