Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between dietary aides and registered dietitians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a dietary aide and a registered dietitian. Additionally, a registered dietitian has an average salary of $58,227, which is higher than the $28,005 average annual salary of a dietary aide.
The top three skills for a dietary aide include patients, meal trays and food service. The most important skills for a registered dietitian are patients, patient care, and home health.
| Dietary Aide | Registered Dietitian | |
| Yearly salary | $28,005 | $58,227 |
| Hourly rate | $13.46 | $27.99 |
| Growth rate | 9% | 7% |
| Number of jobs | 44,494 | 6,144 |
| Job satisfaction | 3 | - |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 50% | Bachelor's Degree, 70% |
| Average age | 41 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A dietary aide is responsible for assisting food preparations and ensuring that the meals adhere to an individual's specific diet plans. Dietary aides must strictly follow sanitation standards and hygiene procedures to guarantee the safety and quality of the service. They also help in facilitating kitchen maintenance, keeping every area clean and organized. Dietary aides must also have comprehensive knowledge of nutritional guidelines to provide information and share suggestions as necessary to improve the service and preparations.
A Registered Dietitian assesses the health of individual patients with medical conditions such as diabetes or renal failure. They work in hospitals, doctors' offices, nursing homes, or other care facilities.
Dietary aides and registered dietitians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Dietary Aide | Registered Dietitian | |
| Average salary | $28,005 | $58,227 |
| Salary range | Between $22,000 And $35,000 | Between $43,000 And $78,000 |
| Highest paying City | Vancouver, WA | Richmond, CA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Lifespan | CVS Health |
| Best paying industry | Hospitality | Health Care |
There are a few differences between a dietary aide and a registered dietitian in terms of educational background:
| Dietary Aide | Registered Dietitian | |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 50% | Bachelor's Degree, 70% |
| Most common major | Business | Dietetics |
| Most common college | - | University of Maryland - College Park |
Here are the differences between dietary aides' and registered dietitians' demographics:
| Dietary Aide | Registered Dietitian | |
| Average age | 41 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 28.2% Female, 71.8% | Male, 7.9% Female, 92.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 14.5% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.3% Asian, 5.8% White, 62.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | Black or African American, 8.1% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 11.1% Asian, 9.3% White, 66.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 8% |