Hostess vs lead hostess

The differences between hostesses and lead hostesses can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a lead hostess has an average salary of $31,365, which is higher than the $26,298 average annual salary of a hostess.

The top three skills for a hostess include reservations, exceptional guest and seat guests. The most important skills for a lead hostess are reservations, customer service, and cleanliness.

Hostess vs lead hostess overview

	Hostess	Lead Hostess
Yearly salary	$26,298	$31,365
Hourly rate	$12.64	$15.08
Growth rate	9%	9%
Number of jobs	82,629	9,634
Job satisfaction	4	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 37%	Bachelor's Degree, 48%
Average age	23	23
Years of experience	-	-

Hostess vs lead hostess salary

Hostesses and lead hostesses have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Hostess	Lead Hostess
Average salary	$26,298	$31,365
Salary range	Between $20,000 And $34,000	Between $23,000 And $41,000
Highest paying City	Portland, ME	-
Highest paying state	Maine	-
Best paying company	V-Soft Consulting	-
Best paying industry	Hospitality	-

Differences between hostess and lead hostess education

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

	Hostess	Lead Hostess
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 37%	Bachelor's Degree, 48%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Hostess vs lead hostess demographics

Here are the differences between hostesses' and lead hostesses' demographics:

	Hostess	Lead Hostess
Average age	23	23
Gender ratio	Male, 14.1% Female, 85.9%	Male, 5.8% Female, 94.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.7% Unknown, 6.8% Hispanic or Latino, 19.7% Asian, 5.8% White, 57.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 7.2% Hispanic or Latino, 21.3% Asian, 6.3% White, 55.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	5%	5%

Differences between hostess and lead hostess duties and responsibilities

Hostess example responsibilities.

Assist guests in booking reservations and manage guest history data using OpenTable reservation system.
Welcome guests upon arrival and provide seating arrangements base upon OpenTable reservations and guest preference.
Greet by name and escort patrons to their personalize private dining area while coordinating reservations and exemplifying customer service
Help bar back when need and learned minimal skills in bartending.
Make managers aware of guests' special dining requirements and allergies.
Set up and maintain continental breakfast buffet, hors d'oeuvres and VIP bar.

Lead hostess example responsibilities.

Manage delivery schedules, outside vendors, and budget requirement, operations, and culinary staff.
Train new hostesses of policies and operation of the POS and OpenTable.
Supervise servers and create the wine list, including selection ordering and extensive inventory.
Coordinate guest seating in the restaurant using OpenTable.
Maintain VIP guest listing and coordination of special events.
Act as operational liaison between culinary and service staff.

Hostess vs lead hostess skills

Common hostess skills

Reservations, 49%
Exceptional Guest, 9%
Seat Guests, 4%
To-Go Orders, 4%
Bus Tables, 3%
Telephone Calls, 2%

Common lead hostess skills

Reservations, 35%
Customer Service, 12%
Cleanliness, 12%
Greeting Guests, 4%
Food Orders, 4%
Floor Plan, 3%

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Food Preparation and Restaurant Industry
Hostess
Hostess vs Lead Hostess

Updated January 8, 2025

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