Host/Hostess Demographics and Statistics in the US – 2024
We’ve created this article to help you learn about common Host/Hostess statistics and demographics in the United States.
Explore our findings based on jobs people found through OysterLink.
- There are currently 425,020 Hosts/Hostesses working in the United States.
- Of all the Host and Hostesses working in the United States, 85% are women while 15% are men.
- The average salary for a Host/Hostess role is $30,750 base plus tips per year.
- The median age for hosts and hostesses is around 22 years old.
- 57.5% of all Hosts/Hostesses are white.
- 35% of Hosts/Hostesses work in companies that employ 1,000 to 10,000 people.
- Spanish is the most popular second language for most Hosts and Hostesses (65.3%).
- 36% of Hosts/Hostesses have a bachelor’s degree.
Host/Hostess Employment Statistics
The above graph shows you how the demand for this position shifted in the last few years (2019–2023) and how many Hosts/Hostesses were working each year.
Host/Hostess Gender Statistics
Of all Hosts/Hostesses that work in the United States, 85% are women while 15% are men. The hospitality sector has numerous women dominated professions aside from that of a Hostess as you can see on our Bartender demographics page.
Host/Hostess Age Statistics
Most of the Hosts and Hostesses are younger than 20 years old (48%), followed by individuals who are between 20 and 30 (40%).
Only a small percentage of all Hosts and Hostesses are over 30 and 40 years old, as you can see in the graph below.
Host/Hostess Employment Type Statistics
A vast majority of Hosts/Hostesses (85%) work in this role as a part-time job.
Only 15% of all individuals make a Host/Hostess career their full-time occupation.
Host/Hostess Ethnicity and Race Statistics
The majority of Hosts and Hostesses are white (57.5%), followed by Hispanic or Latino (19.7%) and Black or African American (9.7%).
This breakdown by race and ethnicity is similar to other hospitality roles, as you can see on our Concierge demographics page.
Host/Hostess Education Statistics
Most Hosts and Hostesses have a high school diploma (37%). However, a significant number of individuals working in this role also have a bachelor’s degree (36%), followed by those with associate’s degrees and other educational achievements.
It is possible to start your career in the hospitality industry in a role that doesn’t require extensive education and work your way up. One of such roles is that of a Busser, as you can see on our Busser demographics page.
Host/Hostess Tenure Statistics
In the hospitality industry, it is common for most employees to regularly change their employers or transition to other positions.
In fact, the hospitality industry has an annual turnover rate of 70% to 80%.
This data supports the tenure for most Hosts and Hostesses; 48% of individuals working in this role stay with the same job for less than one year.
Additionally, more than 30% of all Hosts and Hostesses leave their job after being there between one and two years.
Explore Host/Hostess tenure statistics in the below graph.
Host/Hostess Jobs by Industry
Host and Hostesses can work in restaurants, hotels, bars and other hospitality establishments.
Given a wide range of potential employers, this role works in several industries across the United States.
Industries that employ the most Hosts and Hostesses are:
| Industry | Employment |
|---|---|
| Restaurants and Other Eating Places | 371,630 |
| Special Food Services | 4,880 |
| Traveler Accommodation | 19,120 |
| Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) | 7,990 |
| Other Amusement and Recreation Industries | 7,160 |
Host/Hostesses Jobs by Company Size
Most Hosts and Hostesses (35%) work in companies that employ 1,000 to 10,000 individuals, followed by 20% of individuals working in this role who work for employes of more than 10,000 employees.
See the breakdown of Hosts/Hostesses by company size below.
Host/Hostesses Languages Spoken
While Hosts and Hostesses working in the U.S. are expected to speak English, most of them speak a second language.
In fact, the most popular second language for this role is Spanish (65.3%), followed by French (9.7%) and German (3.1%).
See what other languages Hosts and Hostesses speak in the below graph.
Additional Host/Hostess Statistics
- Top earners in the Hostess role (90th percentile) can earn as much as $38,830 + tips.
- Bottom earners (10th percentile) make as little as $21,530 per year + tips.
- The highest-paying states for Hosts and Hostesses are Washington, Hawaii and the District of Columbia.
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA is the metropolitan area with the highest concentration of Hosts and Hostesses.
Host/Hostess Demographics and Statistics FAQÂ
The top-paying state for the Host/Hostess role is Washington.
The city with the most Host/Hostesses job openings is NYC.
Hosts/Hostesses are in high demand in urban cities and popular tourist destinations.
The most popular ones are NYC, Las Vegas and Los Angeles.
There are 425,020 Hosts/Hostesses working in the United States.
Women make up 85% of all individuals working in this role.
Most Hosts/Hostesses are white (57.5%).
Host/Hostess Statistics and Demographics Data
We use multiple sources to create statistics and demographics pages. Our data includes information from government websites and agencies.
Explore how we do it on our statistics and demographics methodology page.
Written by Vukasin Petrovic
Vukasin is an experienced content creator with more than five years of writing and editing experience. With a background in English and an MFA in Creative Writing, he excels in digital marketing and copywriting, crafting narratives that engage the audience.
Reviewed by Stefan Petrov
With over 10 years of experience as a writer and editor, Stefan has worked in the automotive, IT, health and hospitality industries. Familiar with Google Search Console and other SEO tools like Ahrefs and Semrush, Stefan uses his experience to create content that’s visually appealing to the user but also ranks in the SERPs.