First cook vs lead cook

The differences between first cooks and lead cooks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a first cook and a lead cook. Additionally, a lead cook has an average salary of $35,964, which is higher than the $34,044 average annual salary of a first cook.

The top three skills for a first cook include cleanliness, patients and food handling. The most important skills for a lead cook are customer service, food handling, and culinary.

First cook vs lead cook overview

	First Cook	Lead Cook
Yearly salary	$34,044	$35,964
Hourly rate	$16.37	$17.29
Growth rate	16%	16%
Number of jobs	149,060	160,223
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 44%	Associate Degree, 35%
Average age	38	38
Years of experience	4	4

First cook vs lead cook salary

First cooks and lead cooks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	First Cook	Lead Cook
Average salary	$34,044	$35,964
Salary range	Between $27,000 And $42,000	Between $27,000 And $46,000
Highest paying City	-	Seattle, WA
Highest paying state	-	Washington
Best paying company	-	Freeport-McMoRan
Best paying industry	-	Health Care

Differences between first cook and lead cook education

There are a few differences between a first cook and a lead cook in terms of educational background:

	First Cook	Lead Cook
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 44%	Associate Degree, 35%
Most common major	Culinary Arts	Culinary Arts
Most common college	-	-

First cook vs lead cook demographics

Here are the differences between first cooks' and lead cooks' demographics:

	First Cook	Lead Cook
Average age	38	38
Gender ratio	Male, 77.2% Female, 22.8%	Male, 72.6% Female, 27.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.8% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 20.5% Asian, 9.3% White, 55.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%	Black or African American, 9.3% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 18.3% Asian, 9.4% White, 57.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between first cook and lead cook duties and responsibilities

First cook example responsibilities.

Maintain all charts and records according to ServSafe and Michigan USDA standards
Provide technical instruction and expert guidance on food preparation to earn culinary arts competitions.
Measure ingredients, using measuring cups and spoons.
Assist in loading and unloading of groceries to vessel.
Cater special menus for people with allergies and special diets.
Do inventory, order groceries, implement company policies and procedures.

Lead cook example responsibilities.

Manage food expo; facilitate food temp logs; creation of menu specials; management and supervision of production staff
Manage inventory and purchasing of groceries.
Operate standard cooking equipment including slicers, food choppers, fryers, refrigerators, ovens and stoves.
Operate ovens, stoves, grills, microwaves, turbo chefs, and fryers.
Use and clean commercial ovens, meat slicers, steamers, combination ovens and steam kettles.
Operate ovens, stoves, grills, microwaves, kettles, and tilt skillet.

First cook vs lead cook skills

Common first cook skills

Cleanliness, 33%
Patients, 14%
Food Handling, 8%
Culinary, 7%
Kitchen Equipment, 6%
HACCP, 4%

Common lead cook skills

Customer Service, 14%
Food Handling, 14%
Culinary, 11%
Food Service, 11%
Kitchen Equipment, 7%
Math, 5%

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Food Preparation and Restaurant Industry
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First Cook vs Lead Cook

Updated January 8, 2025

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