Pastry baker vs pastry decorator

The differences between pastry bakers and pastry decorators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a pastry baker and a pastry decorator. Additionally, a pastry baker has an average salary of $32,209, which is higher than the $31,862 average annual salary of a pastry decorator.

The top three skills for a pastry baker include food safety, culinary and mixers. The most important skills for a pastry decorator are custom orders, specialty cakes, and .

Pastry baker vs pastry decorator overview

	Pastry Baker	Pastry Decorator
Yearly salary	$32,209	$31,862
Hourly rate	$15.49	$15.32
Growth rate	8%	8%
Number of jobs	7,096	3,176
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 42%	Bachelor's Degree, 35%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	12	12

Pastry baker vs pastry decorator salary

Pastry bakers and pastry decorators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Pastry Baker	Pastry Decorator
Average salary	$32,209	$31,862
Salary range	Between $24,000 And $42,000	Between $23,000 And $43,000
Highest paying City	West Sacramento, CA	-
Highest paying state	Washington	-
Best paying company	Hyatt Hotels	-
Best paying industry	Retail	-

Differences between pastry baker and pastry decorator education

There are a few differences between a pastry baker and a pastry decorator in terms of educational background:

	Pastry Baker	Pastry Decorator
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 42%	Bachelor's Degree, 35%
Most common major	Culinary Arts	Culinary Arts
Most common college	-	-

Pastry baker vs pastry decorator demographics

Here are the differences between pastry bakers' and pastry decorators' demographics:

	Pastry Baker	Pastry Decorator
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 40.6% Female, 59.4%	Male, 18.7% Female, 81.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.6% Unknown, 5.5% Hispanic or Latino, 21.6% Asian, 10.2% White, 53.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 19.9% Asian, 8.6% White, 57.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between pastry baker and pastry decorator duties and responsibilities

Pastry baker example responsibilities.

Manage inventory of ingredients and culinary supplies.
Use of mixers, and sheeter for fold doughs.
Prepare recipes for a variety of bake items including cookies, pies, cakes, short breads, and muffins.
Prepare glazes and dough, baking cinnamon rolls, baking bacon, creating donuts, piping, preparing pastry frosting and inventory
Work independently to replenish product to pars -mix and portion muffins, scones, cookies, pies, cakes, etc.
Prepare donuts following instructions and safety guidelines.

Pastry decorator example responsibilities.

Maintain high CIA standards in all dessert preparation and presentation
Decorate cupcakes to owner's specifications using different decorating tools and techniques.
Keep slicers clean to health department standards between usages.
Handle the meat slicers, clean and sanitize after use.
Compete in Walmart cake decorating competition.

Pastry baker vs pastry decorator skills

Common pastry baker skills

Food Safety, 31%
Culinary, 26%
Mixers, 13%
Kitchen Appliances, 8%
Kitchen Equipment, 6%
Customer Service, 2%

Common pastry decorator skills

Custom Orders, 59%
Specialty Cakes, 41%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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