Waiters and Waitresses
Take orders and serve food and beverages to patrons at tables in dining establishment.
What it pays
Waiters and Waitresses earn a median of $16.94/hr — about $35,000 a year. The lowest-paid 10% earn $8.70/hr; the top 10% earn $31.12/hr. (Annual figures are approximate: hourly × 2,080.)
Waiters and Waitresses earn a median of $16.94/hr — about $35,000 a year. The lowest-paid 10% earn $8.70/hr; the top 10% earn $31.12/hr. (Annual figures are approximate: hourly × 2,080.)
What you'd actually do
- Take orders from patrons for food or beverages.
- Check with customers to ensure that they are enjoying their meals, and take action to correct any problems.
- Check patrons' identification to ensure that they meet minimum age requirements for consumption of alcoholic beverages.
- Collect payments from customers.
- Write patrons' food orders on order slips, memorize orders, or enter orders into computers for transmittal to kitchen staff.
- Prepare checks that itemize and total meal costs and sales taxes.
How you get there
Typical entry-level education: Less than high school. Overall preparation: some preparation (Job Zone 2 of 5).
The feel of the work
You're around people constantly. (Compared against the other 818 careers in the guide.)
Working for yourself
About 0.7% of waiters and waitresses are self-employed.
Who it tends to fit
This work tends to fit people who are people-focused, organized and detail-focused and take-charge.
Work a simulated shift in this job — freeMake the real decisions this job involves, then see what your choices say about you.Related careers
- Chefs and Head Cooks
- Food Preparation Workers
- Food Servers, Nonrestaurant
- Dishwashers
- Food Preparation and Serving Related Workers, All Other
- Cooks, Short Order
Quick questions
- How much does a waiters and waitresse make?
- The median pay is $16.94 per hour — roughly $35,000 a year, with the real range running from about $8.70/hr (10th percentile) to $31.12/hr (90th percentile). Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
- Do you need a degree to be a waiters and waitresse?
- The typical entry-level education is: Less than high school. Overall preparation level: some preparation (Job Zone 2 of 5).
- What does a waiters and waitresse actually do all day?
- Take orders from patrons for food or beverages. Check with customers to ensure that they are enjoying their meals, and take action to correct any problems. Check patrons' identification to ensure that they meet minimum age requirements for consumption of alcoholic beverages.
Wages: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS. Tasks & interests: O*NET. Career pathways shown in the app are draft archetypes — verify before relying on them. Trailhead is a free career guide for students — honest numbers, no hype.
Trailhead is operated by FLEXVermont LLC. It is intended for high-school students age 13 and older, and the educators and families who support them, and is not directed to children under 13. Trailhead is provided for general informational and educational purposes only. It does not offer professional, financial, or career advice, and its wage figures and pathways are estimates that may not fit your situation — they should not be relied on as the sole basis for any decision.
Trailhead is operated by FLEXVermont LLC. It is intended for high-school students age 13 and older, and the educators and families who support them, and is not directed to children under 13. Trailhead is provided for general informational and educational purposes only. It does not offer professional, financial, or career advice, and its wage figures and pathways are estimates that may not fit your situation — they should not be relied on as the sole basis for any decision.