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The differences between food servers and food runners can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a food runner has an average salary of $25,536, which is higher than the $25,209 average annual salary of a food server.
The top three skills for a food server include beverage orders, wine and cleanliness. The most important skills for a food runner are cleanliness, wine, and culinary.
| Food Server | Food Runner | |
| Yearly salary | $25,209 | $25,536 |
| Hourly rate | $12.12 | $12.28 |
| Growth rate | 9% | 14% |
| Number of jobs | 125,455 | 240,853 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | - |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 36% | High School Diploma, 38% |
| Average age | 42 | 23 |
| Years of experience | - | - |
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.
Food Runners are responsible for assisting waitstaff on serving customers at a restaurant or similar establishment. Among their duties include maintaining cleanliness in particular areas, setting tables, refilling drinks, assisting customers with everything that they need, and coordinating with the workforce in and out of the kitchen. Furthermore, Food Runners need to ensure that all deliveries are accurate according to what is ordered by a customer. It is essential to stay presentable and helpful at all times as the main priority is customer satisfaction.
Food servers and food runners have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Food Server | Food Runner | |
| Average salary | $25,209 | $25,536 |
| Salary range | Between $18,000 And $34,000 | Between $18,000 And $34,000 |
| Highest paying City | Los Angeles, CA | Seattle, WA |
| Highest paying state | Vermont | Vermont |
| Best paying company | Gettysburg College | University of Massachusetts Boston |
| Best paying industry | Retail | Hospitality |
There are a few differences between a food server and a food runner in terms of educational background:
| Food Server | Food Runner | |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 36% | High School Diploma, 38% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between food servers' and food runners' demographics:
| Food Server | Food Runner | |
| Average age | 42 | 23 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 36.0% Female, 64.0% | Male, 59.0% Female, 41.0% |
| Race ratio | 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% | 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 | 7% | 8% |