Compare Occupations

	Cooks, Short Order	First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers	Chefs and Head Cooks	Food Service Managers	Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria
SUMMARY	67% High Risk	20% Minimal Risk	29% Low Risk	35% Low Risk	50% Moderate Risk
JOB SCORE	2.2/10	5.2/10	7.2/10	6.5/10	3.1/10
POLLING	59% (Moderate Risk, Based on 141 votes)	51% (Moderate Risk, Based on 17 votes)	33% (Low Risk, Based on 689 votes)	38% (Low Risk, Based on 68 votes)	66% (High Risk, Based on 28 votes)
GROWTH by year 2034	-5.6%	6.0%	7.1%	6.4%	2.0%
WAGES	$35,620 or $17.12 per hour	$42,010 or $20.20 per hour	$60,990 or $29.32 per hour	$65,310 or $31.40 per hour	$36,450 or $17.52 per hour
VOLUME as of 2024	150,420	1,187,460	182,320	244,230	448,260
SNOWFLAKE [?] The Snowflake is a visual summary of the five badges: Automation Risk (calculated), Risk (polled), Growth, Wages and Volume. It gives you an instant snapshot of an occupations profile. The colour of the Snowflake relates to its size. The better the occupation scores in relation to others, the larger and greener the Snowflake becomes.
DESCRIPTION	Prepare and cook to order a variety of foods that require only a short preparation time. May take orders from customers and serve patrons at counters or tables.	Directly supervise and coordinate activities of workers engaged in preparing and serving food.	Direct and may participate in the preparation, seasoning, and cooking of salads, soups, fish, meats, vegetables, desserts, or other foods. May plan and price menu items, order supplies, and keep records and accounts.	Plan, direct, or coordinate activities of an organization or department that serves food and beverages.	Prepare and cook large quantities of food for institutions, such as schools, hospitals, or cafeterias.

Compare Occupations Side by Side

Curious how automation and AI could affect your career? Our comparison tool lets you view two or more jobs side by side, helping you quickly spot differences in risk level, pay, growth, and popularity. All of this is based on a mix of academic research, user polling, and official labour data.

Automation Risk

Each occupation shows a probability of automation. A higher score means machines and algorithms are more likely to take over the role in the future.

Job Score

A quick summary of how a job performs overall — factoring in wages, growth, volume, and automation risk. It’s a handy way to see the bigger picture at a glance.

Polling Data

Thousands of visitors cast their votes on how “automatable” each job feels. These community insights are shown alongside the calculated probabilities.

Growth & Wages

See how fast each occupation is projected to grow and what people earn on average. High wages don’t always mean high security — automation risk still matters.

Volume of Workers

Explore how many people currently work in each occupation and in which year the data was recorded. Popularity can affect how disruptive automation will be for the wider economy.

The Snowflake Diagram

Each snowflake visualises the balance between automation risk, wages, growth, and job volume. Bigger and greener areas mean stronger performance in that dimension.

Use this comparison page to research careers, guide students, or simply explore the future of work. All data is regularly updated to keep the results relevant.