Careers / Hosts and Hostesses, Restaurant, Lounge, and Coffee Shop

Hosts and Hostesses, Restaurant, Lounge, and Coffee Shop — Career Decision Dashboard

United States

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Median annual wage

$31,200

United States, 2025

Employment

432,690

United States, 2025

Typical education

Less than a High School Diploma

Job Zone 2

Skills identified

35

10 related careers

Career overview

Welcome patrons, seat them at tables or in lounge, and help ensure quality of facilities and service.

O*NET code
35-9031.00
Job zone
2
Experience required
None

Typical tasks

  • Provide guests with menus.
  • Greet guests and seat them at tables or in waiting areas.
  • Maintain contact with kitchen staff, management, serving staff, and customers to ensure that dining details are handled properly and customers' concerns are addressed.
  • Assign patrons to tables suitable for their needs and according to rotation so that servers receive an appropriate number of seatings.
  • Speak with patrons to ensure satisfaction with food and service, to respond to complaints, or to make conversation.
  • Inspect dining and serving areas to ensure cleanliness and proper setup.
  • Supervise and coordinate activities of dining room staff to ensure that patrons receive prompt and courteous service.
  • Answer telephone calls and respond to inquiries or transfer calls.

Choose a location

Salary analysis — United States

$22,340
10th
$27,570
25th
$31,200
Median
$36,250
75th
$43,990
90th

10th percentile

$22,340

25th percentile

$27,570

75th percentile

$36,250

90th percentile

$43,990

Most important skills

  • Active Listening3.5
  • Service Orientation3.1
  • Speaking3.1
  • Social Perceptiveness3.0
  • Monitoring2.9
  • Reading Comprehension2.9
  • Coordination2.9
  • Critical Thinking2.8
  • Active Learning2.6
  • Time Management2.6
  • Persuasion2.6
  • Negotiation2.6

What skills do you need?

Select the skills you already have

Skills listed are those O*NET rates at importance 3.0 or above for this occupation. Set your own level on the same 0–7 O*NET scale.

Skill coverage

0%

0 of 4 identified skills

Matched

0

Missing

4

Your selected skills cover approximately 0% of the skills identified for this occupation in O*NET. This is a coverage measure of listed skills only — it is not a qualification, hiring or interview outcome.

Skills to develop

SkillImportanceRequired levelYour levelGap
Active Listening3.52.9Not selected2.9
Service Orientation3.13.0Not selected3.0
Speaking3.12.9Not selected2.9
Social Perceptiveness3.02.9Not selected2.9

Ordered by required level gap multiplied by O*NET importance. No prediction or recommendation is implied.

Related careers

How salary varies by location

LocationMedianEmploymentYear
Urban Honolulu, HI$47,1101,7402025
HI$47,0702,6502025
Kahului, HI$45,2404902025
Portland, OR$43,4103,3902025
San Jose, CA$42,4001,8602025
Grants Pass, OR$40,8901002025
OR$40,7205,7402025
Bend, OR$40,0904802025
San Francisco, CA$39,8104,0902025
Seattle, WA$38,4306,0102025
Boulder, CO$38,2205802025
Napa, CA$38,2004902025
Eugene, OR$38,1204602025
Bremerton, WA$37,8903002025
Santa Rosa, CA$37,7206502025
DC$37,5702,4502025
Vallejo, CA$37,5202802025
WA$37,2709,5302025
Portland, ME$37,1008302025
Los Angeles, CA$36,92015,3402025
All locations with published data

Career transition paths

Compare the skills of a career you hold today with Hosts and Hostesses, Restaurant, Lounge, and Coffee Shop to see shared skills, target-only skills and skill overlap.

Build a transition comparison

Career and skills data: O*NET 31.0.

Salary and employment data: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS, 2025 (May 2025 release).

Figures are periodic published survey snapshots, not real-time market rates.