Cooks, Private Household vs Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers: $48K vs $34K Median Pay

Cooks, Private Household vs Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers: what changes?

Consider Cooks, Private Household if you want to prepare meals in private homes. Consider Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers if you would rather facilitate food service. Entry credentials differ: Cooks, Private Household, postsecondary nondegree award; Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers, no formal educational credential. Prior experience in a related occupation is typically needed for Cooks, Private Household (less than 5 years).

Try this next: Compare three local entry-level postings for Cooks, Private Household and Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers. List the duties, credentials, prior experience, and paid training each employer actually asks for. Try a supervised class or sample project from each field before choosing a program.

BLS 2025 wages and 2025–2035 projections. National medians are not starting offers. Occupation size is not a count of vacancies. View the BLS data.

Compare the practical differences

Cooks, Private Household

National median pay (2025): $47,940
Route into the job: Postsecondary nondegree award; Prior related experience: less than 5 years
Prior related experience: Prior related experience: less than 5 years.
Training and licensing: BLS does not list a separate on-the-job training requirement. Employers may still provide orientation and role-specific training.
Work to investigate: Peel, wash, trim, and cook vegetables and meats, and bake breads and pastries.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 5,000

Know before you choose

BLS lists less than 5 years of related experience. This is normally reached through feeder roles, not directly from school.

See the full Cooks, Private Household brief

Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers

National median pay (2025): $33,980
Route into the job: No formal educational credential; One month or less of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing
Prior related experience: No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
Training and licensing: One month or less of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.
Work to investigate: Run cash registers.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 95,300

Know before you choose

Long periods of standing are part of the normal workday.

See the full Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers brief

How the national numbers differ

Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers has the edge on annual openings

Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers is at 95,300 annual openings, compared with 5,000 annual openings for Cooks, Private Household.

Cooks, Private Household has the edge on median pay

Cooks, Private Household is at $47,940, compared with $33,980 for Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers.

Typical preparation differs.

Cooks, Private Household: Postsecondary nondegree award; Prior related experience: less than 5 years Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers: No formal educational credential; One month or less of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing Preparation categories do not establish admission difficulty, calendar time, tuition, time without earnings, or licensing difficulty.

Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers has the edge on projected growth

Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers is at 5.3% projected growth, compared with 5.1% projected growth for Cooks, Private Household.

48.6/ 100

Cooks, Private Household

58.8/ 100

Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers

Each available metric is ranked from 0 to 100 against the careers on ChooseField. The weighted average uses this profile: pay 30%, growth 25%, openings 30%, preparation level 15%. Missing values are not scored as zero; their weights are redistributed across available metrics. Occupation size has zero weight: employment is not accessible vacancies. Preparation categories do not measure admission difficulty or years without earnings. The score summarizes national measures; local opportunities and personal fit still need separate consideration.

Detailed evidence

Cooks, Private Household vs Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers

Dimension	Cooks, Private Household	Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers
Median pay (2025)	$47,940	$33,980
Pay percentile	26.4 percentile	1.1 percentile
Projected growth (2025–2035)	5.1%	5.3%
Annual openings (2025–2035)	5,000	95,300
2025 employment	35,400	546,600
How you qualify	Postsecondary nondegree award; Prior related experience: less than 5 years	No formal educational credential; One month or less of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing
O*NET preparation group	Job Zone 3	Job Zone 2
Related work experience	Prior related experience: less than 5 years.	No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
On-the-job training	BLS does not list a separate on-the-job training requirement. Employers may still provide orientation and role-specific training.	One month or less of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.

The table reports national benchmarks and reviewed work descriptions. It does not rate personal suitability, job security, or physical safety.

Read Cooks, Private Household brief Read Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers brief

Cooks, Private Household vs Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers: what changes?

The facts most likely to affect your decision

Cooks, Private Household

Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers

How the national numbers differ

Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers has the edge on annual openings

Cooks, Private Household has the edge on median pay

Typical preparation differs.

Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers has the edge on projected growth

Cooks, Private Household vs Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers

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