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The differences between waitresses and food servers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a food server has an average salary of $25,209, which is higher than the $24,770 average annual salary of a waitress.
The top three skills for a waitress include food orders, food preparation and customer orders. The most important skills for a food server are beverage orders, wine, and cleanliness.
| Waitress | Food Server | |
| Yearly salary | $24,770 | $25,209 |
| Hourly rate | $11.91 | $12.12 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 9% |
| Number of jobs | 87,315 | 125,455 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 36% | High School Diploma, 36% |
| Average age | 28 | 42 |
| Years of experience | - | - |
Waitresses are responsible for ensuring that guests are given proper attention during their visit to the restaurant. They guide guests to their table, provide menu boards, answer any questions the guests may have, take the guests' order, and communicate the order to the kitchen. Once the order is ready, waitresses collect the food from the kitchen and serve it to the guests. They then give guests time to finish their meal. Upon the guests' request, waitresses bring them their bill and wait for them to finish paying up. Once the guests leave, waitresses are responsible for ensuring that the table is ready for the next guests.
A Food Server specializes in helping customers attain a pleasant dining experience while ensuring to meet all food handling and health regulation standards. Most of the responsibilities revolve around greeting customers and directing them to comfortable seats, responding to their inquires and taking their orders, and courteously suggesting options. Aside from serving meals, Food Servers must also accept payments, organize order receipts, replenish stocks in food containers and drinking stations, and clean tables for the new customers.
Waitresses and food servers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Waitress | Food Server | |
| Average salary | $24,770 | $25,209 |
| Salary range | Between $17,000 And $35,000 | Between $18,000 And $34,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | Los Angeles, CA |
| Highest paying state | New York | Vermont |
| Best paying company | New York Institute of Technology | Gettysburg College |
| Best paying industry | Hospitality | Retail |
There are a few differences between a waitress and a food server in terms of educational background:
| Waitress | Food Server | |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 36% | High School Diploma, 36% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between waitresses' and food servers' demographics:
| Waitress | Food Server | |
| Average age | 28 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 19.9% Female, 80.1% | Male, 36.0% Female, 64.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.9% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 20.2% Asian, 8.6% White, 53.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 4.2% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 20.4% Asian, 8.7% White, 60.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 7% |