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What is a lead hostess and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
2 min read
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There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a lead hostess. For example, did you know that they make an average of $15.08 an hour? That's $31,365 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 9% and produce 372,900 job opportunities across the U.S.
ScoreLead HostessUS Average
Salary
2.5

Avg. Salary $31,365

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level
5.8

Growth rate 9%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity
2.2
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.50%

Asian 6.32%

Black or African American 9.36%

Hispanic or Latino 21.29%

Unknown 7.22%

White 55.30%

Gender

female 94.23%

male 5.77%

Age - 20
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 20
Stress level
5.8

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level
3.7

Complexity level is basic

7 - challenging

Work life balance
10.0

Work life balance is excellent

6.4 - fair

Lead hostess career paths

Key steps to become a lead hostess

  1. Explore lead hostess education requirements

    Most common lead hostess degrees

    Bachelor's

    48.0 %

    High School Diploma

    24.2 %

    Associate

    19.6 %
  2. Start to develop specific lead hostess skills

    SkillsPercentages
    Reservations34.91%
    Customer Service12.20%
    Cleanliness11.56%
    Greeting Guests4.49%
    Food Orders3.67%
  3. Complete relevant lead hostess training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New lead hostesses learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a lead hostess based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real lead hostess resumes.
  4. Research lead hostess duties and 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.
  5. Get lead hostess experience

  6. Prepare your lead hostess resume

    When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your lead hostess resume.

    You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a lead hostess resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

    Choose from 10+ customizable lead hostess resume templates

    Build a professional lead hostess resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your lead hostess resume.
    Lead Hostess Resume
    Lead Hostess Resume
    Lead Hostess Resume
    Lead Hostess Resume
    Lead Hostess Resume
    Lead Hostess Resume
    Lead Hostess Resume
    Lead Hostess Resume
    Lead Hostess Resume
  7. Apply for lead hostess jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a lead hostess job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

    1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
    2. Consult your professional network
    3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
    4. Watch out for job scams

How did you land your first lead hostess job

Zippi

Are you a lead hostess?

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Average lead hostess salary

The average lead hostess salary in the United States is $31,365 per year or $15 per hour. Lead hostess salaries range between $23,000 and $41,000 per year.

Average lead hostess salary
$31,365 Yearly
$15.08 hourly

What am I worth?

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How do lead hostesses rate their job?

-/5

5 stars

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1 star

Lead hostess reviews

profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Jul 2021
Pros

What I like about working as a hostess is that you get to greet and meet new people on a daily basis.

Cons

What I don’t like at times about being a hostess is sometimes running into those mean and rude customers at times.


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A zippia user wrote a review on Nov 2019
Pros

meeting and greeting people from different parts of the world which improves my communication skills

Cons

nothing


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A zippia user wrote a review on Jul 2019
Pros

I love to meet and greet with the cast the conversation that entertaining seeing offering wine watching the guests have a wonderful experience and do everything to while the guests so they returned

Cons

I just like the fake people that come into think they have a lot of money


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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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