Prep person vs fry cook

The differences between prep people and fry cooks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a prep person and a fry cook. Additionally, a prep person has an average salary of $33,901, which is higher than the $30,622 average annual salary of a fry cook.

The top three skills for a prep person include cleanliness, food products and dishwashers. The most important skills for a fry cook are kitchen equipment, customer service, and safety standards.

Prep person vs fry cook overview

	Prep Person	Fry Cook
Yearly salary	$33,901	$30,622
Hourly rate	$16.30	$14.72
Growth rate	16%	16%
Number of jobs	165,758	246,323
Job satisfaction	-	4
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 41%	High School Diploma, 53%
Average age	38	38
Years of experience	4	4

Prep person vs fry cook salary

Prep people and fry cooks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Prep Person	Fry Cook
Average salary	$33,901	$30,622
Salary range	Between $19,000 And $57,000	Between $24,000 And $38,000
Highest paying City	New York, NY	Fresno, CA
Highest paying state	New Jersey	Washington
Best paying company	24 Carrots Catering and Events	Anthony
Best paying industry	Professional	Hospitality

Differences between prep person and fry cook education

There are a few differences between a prep person and a fry cook in terms of educational background:

	Prep Person	Fry Cook
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 41%	High School Diploma, 53%
Most common major	Business	Culinary Arts
Most common college	-	-

Prep person vs fry cook demographics

Here are the differences between prep people' and fry cooks' demographics:

	Prep Person	Fry Cook
Average age	38	38
Gender ratio	Male, 40.5% Female, 59.5%	Male, 80.8% Female, 19.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.6% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 7.8% White, 60.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	Black or African American, 10.5% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 17.0% Asian, 8.5% White, 58.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between prep person and fry cook duties and responsibilities

Prep person example responsibilities.

Manage the POS system (adding/deleting specials, editing prices, viewing server appetizer/dessert sales and their server report information).
Receive and put away all food orders utilizing FIFO.
Prepare and produce food using large-volume cooking equipment such as grills and deep-fat fryers.
Help with waste control and FIFO.
Promote from dishwasher to prep person with the lead over dishwashers
Cook foods by baking, roasting, frying, sauteing and grilling.

Fry cook example responsibilities.

Develop ability to manage multiple stations simultaneously while maintaining high levels of culinary excellence.
Grill burgers and used the deep fryers for various foods, clean all equipment at the end of the shift.
Bread and cook chicken, fry foods, run and clean fryers, clean coolers, do dishes general utilities.
Job responsibilities include preparing and executing dishes, as well as assuming responsibility for cleanliness of restaurant.
Provide friendly, quality, customer service to each Chipotle customer.

Prep person vs fry cook skills

Common prep person skills

Cleanliness, 59%
Food Products, 30%
Dishwashers, 5%
Food Handling, 4%
Customer Service, 1%
Kitchen Equipment, 0%

Common fry cook skills

Kitchen Equipment, 23%
Customer Service, 11%
Safety Standards, 10%
Deep-Fat Fryers, 9%
Food Products, 5%
Fine Dining, 5%

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Food Preparation and Restaurant Industry
Prep Person
Prep Person vs Fry Cook

Updated January 8, 2025

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