Sommelier vs head server

The differences between sommeliers and head servers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a head server has an average salary of $111,194, which is higher than the $40,584 average annual salary of a sommelier.

The top three skills for a sommelier include wine, fine dining and POS. The most important skills for a head server are customer service, new servers, and POS.

Sommelier vs head server overview

	Sommelier	Head Server
Yearly salary	$40,584	$111,194
Hourly rate	$19.51	$53.46
Growth rate	10%	10%
Number of jobs	1,802	64,405
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 64%	Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Average age	28	28
Years of experience	-	-

Sommelier vs head server salary

Sommeliers and head servers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Sommelier	Head Server
Average salary	$40,584	$111,194
Salary range	Between $24,000 And $68,000	Between $51,000 And $238,000
Highest paying City	New York, NY	-
Highest paying state	New York	-
Best paying company	Del Frisco's Restaurant Group	-
Best paying industry	Hospitality	-

Differences between sommelier and head server education

There are a few differences between a sommelier and a head server in terms of educational background:

	Sommelier	Head Server
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 64%	Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Sommelier vs head server demographics

Here are the differences between sommeliers' and head servers' demographics:

	Sommelier	Head Server
Average age	28	28
Gender ratio	Male, 68.3% Female, 31.7%	Male, 34.4% Female, 65.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.3% Unknown, 6.0% Hispanic or Latino, 21.5% Asian, 9.0% White, 51.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	Black or African American, 11.0% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 18.7% Asian, 9.3% White, 54.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between sommelier and head server duties and responsibilities

Sommelier example responsibilities.

Manage sales and inventory for premier wine destination restaurant.
Wine, spirits and fine products sale.
Direct guest interaction and up-sell of wine and spirits.
Inventory, purchasing and cost control monitoring, transaction reconciliation, POS programming, payroll, sommelier work.
Purchase wines for one of the largest menu varieties in NYC.
Market wine selections with sales team through upselling or pouring wine product samples for testing.

Head server example responsibilities.

Train and manage all BOH employees.
Manage all servers' end of night cash out and prepare host and bartending tip out.
Manage opening and closing duties, including restocking items and insuring the FOH are clean and shut down correctly.
Manage technical support, business analysis, project management, application development and support, training, and facilitation.
Help drive and increase restaurant sales by upselling and highlighting off menu items.
Train new employees on operating the micros system and on self-presentation and customer service.

Sommelier vs head server skills

Common sommelier skills

Wine, 44%
Fine Dining, 13%
POS, 5%
Culinary, 5%
Spirits, 4%
Sommeliers, 3%

Common head server skills

Customer Service, 33%
New Servers, 9%
POS, 6%
Fine Dining, 5%
Bartending, 4%
Safety Procedures, 3%

Sommelier vs. similar jobs

Sommelier related careers

Sommelier related jobs

What similar roles do

Zippia Careers
Food Preparation and Restaurant Industry
Sommelier
Sommelier vs Head Server

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse food preparation and restaurant jobs