Dallas vs. Houston
Fast Food and Counter Workers. Median, spread and buying power, side by side.
Data released May 2025
BLS OEWS · SOC 35-3023
Fig. 1 — Side by side
Both distributions, one scale
10th to 90th percentile, median struck in red
Table 1 — Adjusted
Dallas's median is 1.8% higher — but after local prices, the advantage flips: a median salary goes further in Houston.
Dallas's median $28,070 buys $27,200 at national prices (price parity 103.1); Houston's $27,570 buys $28,000 (98.6).
Table 2 — The figures
Point by point
Published percentiles for both metros; the last column is Houston against Dallas.
| Dallas | Houston | Δ | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employment | 128,380 | 105,810 | −17.6% |
| 10th percentile | $23,090 | $21,630 | −6.3% |
| 25th percentile | $26,840 | $22,720 | −15.4% |
| Median | $28,070 | $27,570 | −1.8% |
| 75th percentile | $31,150 | $30,370 | −2.5% |
| 90th percentile | $36,240 | $35,210 | −2.8% |
Sources
How this page was made
- Wage data
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 release. Public domain.
- Price parity
- Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.
- Full pages
- Fast Food and Counter Workers in Dallas · Fast Food and Counter Workers in Houston
Percentiles are reported exactly as released. Derived (price-adjusted) figures round to the nearest hundred. We take no payment for how any figure is presented.