Los Angeles vs. New York
Food Preparation Workers. Median, spread and buying power, side by side.
Data released May 2025
BLS OEWS · SOC 35-2021
Fig. 1 — Side by side
Both distributions, one scale
10th to 90th percentile, median struck in red
Table 1 — Adjusted
Los Angeles's median is 10.3% higher — but after local prices, Los Angeles still leads by 9.5%.
Los Angeles's median $39,770 buys $35,000 at national prices (price parity 113.6); New York's $35,670 buys $31,700 (112.6).
Table 2 — The figures
Point by point
Published percentiles for both metros; the last column is New York against Los Angeles.
| Los Angeles | New York | Δ | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employment | 44,930 | 63,530 | +41.4% |
| 10th percentile | $36,000 | $34,080 | −5.3% |
| 25th percentile | $37,500 | $34,330 | −8.5% |
| Median | $39,770 | $35,670 | −10.3% |
| 75th percentile | $44,170 | $41,600 | −5.8% |
| 90th percentile | $46,810 | $47,650 | +1.8% |
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
- Food Preparation Workers in Los Angeles · Food Preparation Workers in New York
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.