Food counter worker vs food service/cashier

The differences between food counter workers and food service/cashiers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a food service/cashier has an average salary of $28,481, which is higher than the $25,007 average annual salary of a food counter worker.

The top three skills for a food counter worker include food handling, basic math and safety standards. The most important skills for a food service/cashier are food service, POS, and cleanliness.

Food counter worker vs food service/cashier overview

	Food Counter Worker	Food Service/Cashier
Yearly salary	$25,007	$28,481
Hourly rate	$12.02	$13.69
Growth rate	14%	14%
Number of jobs	74,035	247,779
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 36%	High School Diploma, 48%
Average age	23	23
Years of experience	-	-

Food counter worker vs food service/cashier salary

Food counter workers and food service/cashiers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Food Counter Worker	Food Service/Cashier
Average salary	$25,007	$28,481
Salary range	Between $18,000 And $33,000	Between $22,000 And $35,000
Highest paying City	Andover, MA	Montclair, NJ
Highest paying state	North Dakota	New Hampshire
Best paying company	UC Merced	Aspen School District
Best paying industry	Start-up	Retail

Differences between food counter worker and food service/cashier education

There are a few differences between a food counter worker and a food service/cashier in terms of educational background:

	Food Counter Worker	Food Service/Cashier
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 36%	High School Diploma, 48%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Food counter worker vs food service/cashier demographics

Here are the differences between food counter workers' and food service/cashiers' demographics:

	Food Counter Worker	Food Service/Cashier
Average age	23	23
Gender ratio	Male, 41.2% Female, 58.8%	Male, 28.3% Female, 71.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 6.9% Hispanic or Latino, 18.6% Asian, 6.5% White, 57.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%	Black or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 6.9% Hispanic or Latino, 18.6% Asian, 6.5% White, 57.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	8%	8%

Differences between food counter worker and food service/cashier duties and responsibilities

Food counter worker example responsibilities.

Provide coffee and pastries for customers, make coffee and smoothies.
Assist with planning and directing food preparation and culinary activities along with safely handling and storing all products appropriately.
Sandwich making, cutting vegetables, cleaning fryers, washing dishes, cleaning of the dining area and cleaning the bathrooms.
Prepare personalized smoothies and meals for customers

Food service/cashier example responsibilities.

Cashier, serve food, manage calls, drawer counting, heavy lifting, heavy use of POS system and filing.
Greet guests, take food and drink orders, prepare and assemble food items, maintain the cash drawer and POS system
Time management while delivering patients orders and providing exceptional customer service in a fast pace environment.
Order and receive supplies for culinary needs of the fleet.
Maintain food safety and quality by applying HACCP principles throughout service.
Load and unload commercial dishwashers.

Food counter worker vs food service/cashier skills

Common food counter worker skills

Food Handling, 29%
Basic Math, 18%
Safety Standards, 16%
Cleanliness, 12%
Customer Complaints, 5%
Customer Service, 4%

Common food service/cashier skills

Food Service, 17%
POS, 13%
Cleanliness, 9%
Basic Math, 8%
Math, 7%
Customer Complaints, 7%

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Food Counter Worker vs Food Service/Cashier

Updated January 8, 2025

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