Mixologist vs barkeep

The differences between mixologists and barkeeps can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a mixologist and a barkeep. Additionally, a barkeep has an average salary of $28,654, which is higher than the $25,161 average annual salary of a mixologist.

The top three skills for a mixologist include wine, bartending and excellent guest. The most important skills for a barkeep are professional customer service, POS, and bartending.

Mixologist vs barkeep overview

	Mixologist	Barkeep
Yearly salary	$25,161	$28,654
Hourly rate	$12.10	$13.78
Growth rate	18%	18%
Number of jobs	53,872	25,046
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 48%	Bachelor's Degree, 50%
Average age	34	34
Years of experience	2	2

Mixologist vs barkeep salary

Mixologists and barkeeps have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Mixologist	Barkeep
Average salary	$25,161	$28,654
Salary range	Between $15,000 And $40,000	Between $21,000 And $37,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between mixologist and barkeep education

There are a few differences between a mixologist and a barkeep in terms of educational background:

	Mixologist	Barkeep
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 48%	Bachelor's Degree, 50%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Mixologist vs barkeep demographics

Here are the differences between mixologists' and barkeeps' demographics:

	Mixologist	Barkeep
Average age	34	34
Gender ratio	Male, 44.2% Female, 55.8%	Male, 71.0% Female, 29.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 5.1% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 20.2% Asian, 3.5% White, 64.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 5.8% Unknown, 6.3% Hispanic or Latino, 18.2% Asian, 3.7% White, 65.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	8%	8%

Differences between mixologist and barkeep duties and responsibilities

Mixologist example responsibilities.

Book VIP tables and provide high quality service.
Count down all registers in VIP sections.
Open new restaurants and bars across the country.
Cut fruit for garnishing as well as ingredients for cocktails.
Operate POS terminal without error totaling approximately $20k in sales on a weekly basis.
Keep records and enter all the items of food and beverage in the POS system.

Barkeep example responsibilities.

Provide seamless beverage service, managing inventory and operating POS terminal.
Perform all duties of bartending.
Direct bartending operations, overseeing seamless beverage service inventory management, and customer service.
Hire and train new employees in reservation management, facility cleanliness, and bookkeeping supporting daily routine operations.
Clean, prepare and re-stock stations in support of the restaurant and co-workers.

Mixologist vs barkeep skills

Common mixologist skills

Wine, 31%
Bartending, 11%
Excellent Guest, 7%
Cleanliness, 7%
Drink Orders, 5%
Fine Dining, 4%

Common barkeep skills

Professional Customer Service, 49%
POS, 26%
Bartending, 25%

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Food Preparation and Restaurant Industry
Mixologist
Mixologist vs Barkeep

Updated January 8, 2025

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