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Restaurant Host

$31,200
median / year
$22,340 – $43,990
what most earn per year (10th–90th percentile)

What the job actually is

Greet guests, manage the waitlist and reservations, seat tables, and set the tone as customers arrive.

You may also see this posted as: Greeter, Hospitality Coordinator, Host, Hostess, Buffet Hostess, Dining Coordinator.

Where you work

Restaurant front-of-house entrances

The hours

Evenings, weekends, and holidays

The day to day

What you'd actually spend time doing

  • 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.

Good fit if you like…

Social

helping, teaching, caring for, or supporting other people

Enterprising

leading, persuading, selling, or turning an idea into action

Conventional

organizing information, following systems, and getting details right

O*NET job zone 2 of 5

Some preparation—often a high school credential and on-the-job learning—is usually needed.

Work styles that matter most

CooperationSocial OrientationOptimismDependability

Software that shows up in the work

Examples employers report—not a checklist you must already know.

FacebookMicrosoft ExcelMicrosoft Office softwareMicrosoft WindowsAvenista Table ReservationsGuestBridge Reserve

By the numbers

May 2025 BLS wage & employment data · 2024–34 BLS employment projections.

Median pay
$31,200
per year
Hourly median
$15.00
per hour
What most earn
$22,340–$43,990
yearly, 10th to 90th percentile
Openings a year
~107,700
projected, 2024–34
Outlook to 2034
-1.5%
Declining
Working in the U.S.
432,690
people, nationwide

Openings a year counts new jobs plus the ones that open when people retire or move on — a truer picture of your odds than growth alone.

“Median” means half earn more and half earn less. Your city, employer, and years on the job move it a lot — that is what the 10th-to-90th range shows.

BLS estimates 0.1% of workers in this occupation are self-employed.

What it pays in your state

Statewide medians are a better starting point than the national number. Your city and experience still matter.

BLS state wage tables

How you get in

Typical starting education

No formal credential

Training path: On-the-job training, paid.

Related work experience: None.

On-the-job training: Short-term on-the-job training.

License or certification

No license required to start in most places.

You can earn while you train. This field has a genuinely paid pathway in — an apprenticeship, a paid academy, or employer-funded training — so you draw a paycheck instead of taking on debt to learn it.

Check the path where you live

Licensing rules and available programs change by state. These federal tools take you to the current official listings.

What it takes

FriendlinessOrganizationCalm under pressureCommunication

The honest take

A friendly first job that puts you at the front of the house, often the first step toward serving.

Standard Occupational Classification 35-9031. Pay and employment from the BLS May 2025 OEWS survey; outlook and openings from the 2024–34 employment projections; job context from the Occupational Outlook Handbook; tasks, interests, work styles, software examples, and job zone from O*NET 30.3. See something off? Tell us.