Prepare or serve specialty coffee or other beverages. Serve food such as baked goods or sandwiches to patrons.
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Licensing, certifications and working conditions
About these figures. BLS publishes wages, growth, openings and typical education for the broader occupation "Fast Food and Counter Workers" (SOC 35-3023), so this career shares them with one related career. Skills, interests and other O*NET details are specific to this career.
State licensing. CareerOneStop records no license coded specifically to Baristas. The broader occupation "Fast Food and Counter Workers" (O*NET-SOC 35-3023.00) is licensed or registered in 1 of 57 states and territories, as reported by each state, and this specialty may fall under it. A license often applies only to certain roles within a career, and records were last updated between 2010 and 2024, so confirm requirements with the state licensing board.
Certifications. CareerOneStop directly links 3 professional certifications to Baristas. 2 of them are in CareerOneStop's "Core" group, for example: Certified Home Brewers, Certified Restaurant Server. Certifications are voluntary credentials offered by the organizations named; listing one is not an endorsement.
Working conditions. On average, workers stand or walk about 5.7 hours and sit about 0.1 hours per day. The typical heaviest weight lifted or carried is about 25.0 pounds. For 60.2% of workers the job requires light strength. Shares of workers who interact with the general public (over 99.5%), have a consistently fast work pace (30.2%), cannot pause their work (87.4%), and are exposed to the outdoors (48.9%). From the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Requirements Survey (2023 estimates); figures describe the occupation on average.
Sources: CareerOneStop (licenses and certifications), part of the CareerOneStop suite of web products, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (working conditions, wages). MajorPays has reorganized this information; these agencies have not approved or endorsed it. See it interactively, with state-by-state detail →
More data on this career
Pay by education level. Among full-time, year-round workers ages 25 to 64 in the occupation group that includes baristas (2 related careers are counted together), median yearly pay is $30,500 with a high school diploma or GED, $31,500 with some college or an associate's degree and $35,500 with a bachelor's degree (Census Bureau American Community Survey, 2024 dollars). Pay differs for many reasons besides education, such as experience, employer and location.
Industries that employ this career. The largest shares of workers in the occupation group that includes baristas (2 related careers are counted together) work in Accommodation and Food Services (90%), Retail Trade (4%), Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation (2%) and Information (1%) (Census Bureau American Community Survey, 2024).
Where the jobs are, and what they pay by industry. Nationwide, the industries that employ the most workers in the occupation group that includes baristas (2 related careers are counted together) are Restaurants and Other Eating Places (83% of the jobs counted, median pay $30,510), Special Food Services (4% of the jobs counted, median pay $34,480), Food and Beverage Retailers (3% of the jobs counted, median pay $34,720), Elementary and Secondary Schools (3% of the jobs counted, median pay $35,330) (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025). Among large industries, the highest median pay is in Elementary and Secondary Schools ($35,330), Food and Beverage Retailers ($34,720), Special Food Services ($34,480). Pay differs by industry for many reasons, including the mix of jobs and where employers are located.
What workers studied. Among workers in the occupation group that includes baristas (2 related careers are counted together) with a bachelor's degree or higher, the most common fields of the bachelor's degree are Psychology (9%), Communications (6%), English Language and Literature (6%) and Business Management and Administration (4%) (Census Bureau American Community Survey, 2024).
Injury and illness rates. For the broader group "Fast food and counter workers", which includes this career (BLS did not publish enough cases for this exact occupation), employers reported 72.2 nonfatal injury and illness cases with days away from work per 10,000 full-time workers, compared with 94.6 for all U.S. workers; the median case kept the worker away 5 days (all workers: 8) (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2023-2024). Rates reflect the work setting as well as the occupation.
Union membership. In the broad group "Food preparation and serving related", which includes this career, 3.7% of wage and salary workers belong to a union (all U.S. workers: 10.0%); median weekly pay is $757 for union members and $699 for workers not in a union (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey, 2025). This is a group figure, not specific to baristas.
Employer benefits. In the broad group "Service", which includes this career, 52% of civilian workers had access to an employer retirement plan, 51% had access to employer medical care benefits, and 70% had paid sick leave, 60% paid vacation and 59% paid holidays (all civilian workers: 75%, 74%, 83%, 77% and 79%) (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Compensation Survey, March 2026). This is a group figure, not specific to baristas, and having access to a benefit does not mean every worker uses it. The Bureau of Labor Statistics has not endorsed this presentation. Employers spent about $27.17 per hour worked on total compensation for the occupational group "Service" in June 2026 ($19.59 in wages and salaries and $7.58 in benefits, 27.9% of the total; all civilian workers: $49.46, with 31.6% in benefits) (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employer Costs for Employee Compensation).
Work environment. In O*NET's survey of workers in this occupation, the conditions most often placed at the two highest levels for baristas are: contact with others (100%), physical proximity (100%), deal with external customers or the public in general (98%), spend time standing (94%), indoors, environmentally controlled (92%), work with or contribute to a work group or team (86%). Each percentage is the share of respondents choosing the top two levels for that condition (for example 'most of the time' or 'continually'), so it describes how common the condition is in the job, not how a particular workplace is (O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Dept. of Labor, ETA, CC BY 4.0).
Typical preparation. In O*NET's survey of workers in this occupation, for related work experience, the most common answer (58% of 19 respondents) was "none"; for on-site or in-plant training, the most common answer (45% of 19 respondents) was "up to and including 1 month"; for on-the-job training, the most common answer (60% of 19 respondents) was "anything beyond short demonstration, up to and including 1 month". These are what workers report is needed to do the job; employers' requirements and individual paths vary (O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Dept. of Labor, ETA, CC BY 4.0).
Related careers. O*NET lists these occupations as similar to baristas in the work done and the skills used: Fast Food and Counter Workers, Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers, Food Preparation Workers, Food Servers, Nonrestaurant, Waiters and Waitresses, Cooks, Short Order, Bartenders, Cooks, Restaurant (O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Dept. of Labor, ETA, CC BY 4.0).
Compare baristas with other careers (pay, growth, openings and education side by side).
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2024 PUMS (MajorPays' own estimates from the survey; Census is credited as the source of the original data and has not endorsed them); BLS Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses; BLS Current Population Survey; BLS National Compensation Survey (employee benefits); HRSA National Center for Health Workforce Analysis; U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Foreign Labor Certification (LCA disclosure data, FY2025). MajorPays has selected and reorganized these figures; these agencies have not approved or endorsed them. See it interactively →