Host/waiter vs waitress

The differences between host/waiters and waitresses can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a host/waiter has an average salary of $25,593, which is higher than the $24,770 average annual salary of a waitress.

The top three skills for a host/waiter include customer service, food handling and waiter. The most important skills for a waitress are food orders, food preparation, and customer orders.

Host/waiter vs waitress overview

	Host/Waiter	Waitress
Yearly salary	$25,593	$24,770
Hourly rate	$12.30	$11.91
Growth rate	10%	10%
Number of jobs	73,399	87,315
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 43%	High School Diploma, 36%
Average age	28	28
Years of experience	-	-

Host/waiter vs waitress salary

Host/waiters and waitresses have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Host/Waiter	Waitress
Average salary	$25,593	$24,770
Salary range	Between $18,000 And $34,000	Between $17,000 And $35,000
Highest paying City	-	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	-	New York
Best paying company	-	New York Institute of Technology
Best paying industry	-	Hospitality

Differences between host/waiter and waitress education

There are a few differences between a host/waiter and a waitress in terms of educational background:

	Host/Waiter	Waitress
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 43%	High School Diploma, 36%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Host/waiter vs waitress demographics

Here are the differences between host/waiters' and waitresses' demographics:

	Host/Waiter	Waitress
Average age	28	28
Gender ratio	Male, 90.0% Female, 10.0%	Male, 19.9% Female, 80.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.4% Unknown, 5.8% Hispanic or Latino, 22.2% Asian, 10.1% White, 50.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	Black or African American, 11.9% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 20.2% Asian, 8.6% White, 53.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between host/waiter and waitress duties and responsibilities

Host/waiter example responsibilities.

Manage restaurant sections in order to equalize seating arrangements for each waiter and ensure the restaurant are stocked and well maintain.
Train employees on job duties and POS system.
Edit POS system to adjust for changes in prices and new inventory to assist ease of usage for employees.
Establish a positive relationship with co-workers and managers through a solid work ethic, positive attitude, punctuality and dependability.
Maximize profits by upselling food and alcoholic beverages and utilizing excellent customer service skills to ensure guests repeat business.

Waitress example responsibilities.

Manage a recurring book of business of top VIP clients secure through networking.
Relay orders to bar and kitchen by quickly and accurately recording guest selections and keying them into the POS computer system.
wait tables, handle money, exceed guest expectations, serve food and drinks, micros, clean, side work.
Increase store sales by upselling merchandise.
Enter order/payment information into micros system, deliver receipt and change to the customer.
Bring wine selections to tables with appropriate glasses, and pour the wines for customers.

Host/waiter vs waitress skills

Common host/waiter skills

Customer Service, 27%
Food Handling, 21%
Waiter, 10%
Food Orders, 6%
Food Preparation, 5%
Customer Orders, 3%

Common waitress skills

Food Orders, 13%
Food Preparation, 9%
Customer Orders, 8%
POS, 7%
Drink Orders, 5%
Customer Service, 5%

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Food Preparation and Restaurant Industry
Host/Waiter
Host/Waiter vs Waitress

Updated January 8, 2025

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