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The differences between prep cooks and head cooks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a prep cook, becoming a head cook takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a head cook has an average salary of $44,412, which is higher than the $32,292 average annual salary of a prep cook.
The top three skills for a prep cook include food handling, culinary and sanitation standards. The most important skills for a head cook are kitchen equipment, meal preparation, and food service.
| Prep Cook | Head Cook | |
| Yearly salary | $32,292 | $44,412 |
| Hourly rate | $15.53 | $21.35 |
| Growth rate | 16% | 15% |
| Number of jobs | 168,265 | 156,227 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 48% | High School Diploma, 42% |
| Average age | 38 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 6 |
Prep cooks are responsible for preparing ingredients. They are usually part of an assembly line-like structure in the kitchen. They are often the first station in this assembly line. Prep cooks are in charge of thawing, skinning, cutting, mincing, slicing, and chopping ingredients so that the line cooks can just get these ingredients for their own stations. Prep cooks may also start doing some of the initial activities in the cooking process, such as preparing water for boiling, laying out ingredients, and ensuring that the stoves are clear.
A head cook is responsible for organizing the food preparation, organizing the kitchen operations, and ensuring the quality of the food presented. Head cooks' duties include monitoring the food inventory, creating new recipes, researching current market trends, responding to guests' inquiries and complaints, distributing kitchen tasks to the staff, and maintaining budget goals while maintaining the highest food quality. A head cook must always adhere to the sanitary procedures and hygienic standards, as well as have a broad knowledge of the food industry.
Prep cooks and head cooks have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Prep Cook | Head Cook | |
| Average salary | $32,292 | $44,412 |
| Salary range | Between $25,000 And $40,000 | Between $32,000 And $61,000 |
| Highest paying City | Seattle, WA | San Antonio, TX |
| Highest paying state | Washington | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Kemps | Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Manufacturing |
There are a few differences between a prep cook and a head cook in terms of educational background:
| Prep Cook | Head Cook | |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 48% | High School Diploma, 42% |
| Most common major | Culinary Arts | Culinary Arts |
| Most common college | - | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between prep cooks' and head cooks' demographics:
| Prep Cook | Head Cook | |
| Average age | 38 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 61.3% Female, 38.7% | Male, 63.5% Female, 36.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.5% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 18.2% Asian, 8.6% White, 57.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1% | Black or African American, 10.4% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 15.5% Asian, 10.3% White, 57.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 9% |