Baristas are below average when it comes to happiness.
At CareerExplorer, we conduct an ongoing survey with millions of people and ask them how satisfied they are with their careers. As it turns out, baristas rate their career happiness 2.9 out of 5 stars which puts them in the bottom 25% of careers.
To put this into perspective, we compared how happy baristas are to similar careers in the industry. Take a look at the results below:
Salaries and satisfaction ratings in similar careers
| Career | Satisfaction | Avg Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Travel agent | 3.0 | $40k |
| Landscaper | 3.0 | $35k |
| Culinary chef | 2.9 | $38k |
| Ambulance dispatcher | 2.9 | $40k |
| Registered dietitian nutritionist | 2.9 | $61k |
| Barista | 2.9 | $25k |
| Maintenance worker | 2.9 | $39k |
| Probation officer | 2.9 | $55k |
| Social worker | 2.9 | $49k |
So what does it mean to be happy in your career? Let’s break it down into different dimensions:
- Salary: Are baristas happy with their salary?
- Meaning: Do baristas find their jobs meaningful?
- Personality fit: How well suited are people’s personalities to their everyday tasks as baristas?
- Work environment: How enjoyable are barista’s work environments?
- Skills utilization: Are baristas making the best use of their abilities?