Cooks, Restaurant
United States. Estimated employment 1,409,890, with pages for 142 metro areas below.
Data released May 2025
BLS OEWS · SOC 35-2014
Fig. 1 — The wage rule
Where you sit in the distribution
Drag the marker, or type a figure
$37,390 · 50th
$28,70010th
$34,01025th
$37,39050th
$44,62075th
$47,90090th
That is the median — half of people in this occupation in the US earn more.
Table 1 — By metro area
Where it pays
Every published Cooks, Restaurant page, by median pay. Employment is the BLS estimate for the metro.
| Metro area | Median | Employment |
|---|---|---|
| Seattle, WA | $47,730 | 20,850 |
| Napa, CA | $47,320 | 1,270 |
| San Jose, CA | $47,170 | 8,900 |
| Barnstable Town, MA | $46,930 | 1,760 |
| Bremerton, WA | $46,460 | 1,090 |
| Mount Vernon, WA | $46,450 | 590 |
| San Diego, CA | $46,440 | 15,670 |
| San Francisco, CA | $46,030 | 20,540 |
| Boston, MA | $45,830 | 22,900 |
| Santa Rosa, CA | $45,720 | 2,340 |
| Bellingham, WA | $45,370 | 1,090 |
| Kennewick, WA | $45,280 | 1,150 |
| Portland, OR | $45,200 | 13,020 |
| Longview, WA | $44,980 | 310 |
| Olympia, WA | $44,960 | 1,090 |
| Salinas, CA | $44,930 | 1,910 |
| Amherst Town, MA | $44,680 | 540 |
| Santa Cruz, CA | $44,560 | 1,020 |
| Wenatchee, WA | $44,550 | 780 |
| Bend, OR | $44,540 | 1,530 |
| Los Angeles, CA | $44,460 | 54,320 |
| Denver, CO | $44,370 | 15,410 |
| Worcester, MA | $44,250 | 2,490 |
| Kiryas Joel, NY | $44,000 | 2,200 |
| Pittsfield, MA | $43,970 | 630 |
| New York, NY | $43,740 | 69,250 |
| Kingston, NY | $43,150 | 750 |
| Washington, DC | $42,920 | 29,670 |
| Riverside, CA | $42,450 | 14,280 |
| Boulder, CO | $42,220 | 2,190 |
| Naples, FL | $41,220 | 3,650 |
| Springfield, MA | $39,970 | 1,410 |
| Minneapolis, MN | $39,640 | 17,760 |
| Albany, NY | $39,610 | 3,100 |
| Ithaca, NY | $39,280 | 350 |
| Phoenix, AZ | $39,170 | 21,780 |
| Salem, OR | $39,170 | 1,610 |
| Grants Pass, OR | $39,110 | 280 |
| Chicago, IL | $38,930 | 41,690 |
| Reno, NV | $38,930 | 3,200 |
| Las Vegas, NV | $38,800 | 22,530 |
| Albany, OR | $38,780 | 380 |
| Flagstaff, AZ | $38,760 | 1,230 |
| Syracuse, NY | $38,740 | 1,890 |
| Glens Falls, NY | $38,730 | 480 |
| Carson City, NV | $38,430 | 290 |
| Medford, OR | $38,430 | 960 |
| Rochester, NY | $38,380 | 3,290 |
| Corvallis, OR | $38,380 | 430 |
| Fort Collins, CO | $38,370 | 1,930 |
| Ann Arbor, MI | $38,290 | 1,600 |
| Philadelphia, PA | $38,270 | 24,220 |
| Nashville, TN | $38,170 | 10,420 |
| Rochester, MN | $38,150 | 1,060 |
| Colorado Springs, CO | $38,000 | 3,330 |
| Orlando, FL | $37,970 | 19,960 |
| Eugene, OR | $37,960 | 1,660 |
| St. Louis, MO | $37,690 | 12,970 |
| Tucson, AZ | $37,500 | 3,810 |
| North Port, FL | $37,440 | 4,780 |
| Detroit, MI | $37,410 | 16,490 |
| Prescott Valley, AZ | $37,380 | 1,150 |
| Kansas City, MO | $37,370 | 9,940 |
| Grand Rapids, MI | $37,360 | 4,850 |
| Traverse City, MI | $37,270 | 1,060 |
| Cape Coral, FL | $37,240 | 4,330 |
| Atlanta, GA | $37,230 | 29,040 |
| Mankato, MN | $37,190 | 510 |
| Allentown, PA | $37,120 | 3,200 |
| Lansing, MI | $37,100 | 1,850 |
| Cleveland, OH | $37,060 | 8,190 |
| Charlotte, NC | $37,030 | 14,430 |
| Tampa, FL | $37,010 | 18,640 |
| Battle Creek, MI | $37,000 | 520 |
| Miami, FL | $36,920 | 37,210 |
| Greeley, CO | $36,900 | 1,000 |
| Austin, TX | $36,810 | 13,000 |
| Jacksonville, FL | $36,770 | 7,770 |
| Kalamazoo, MI | $36,760 | 1,140 |
| Palm Bay, FL | $36,750 | 2,890 |
| Lake Havasu City, AZ | $36,720 | 750 |
| Duluth, MN | $36,680 | 1,460 |
| Jackson, MI | $36,680 | 520 |
| Asheville, NC | $36,590 | 2,480 |
| Columbus, OH | $36,590 | 8,600 |
| Springfield, IL | $36,550 | 850 |
| Harrisburg, PA | $36,520 | 2,510 |
| Knoxville, TN | $36,520 | 3,820 |
| Lancaster, PA | $36,500 | 2,230 |
| Dallas, TX | $36,490 | 34,430 |
| Decatur, IL | $36,440 | 320 |
| Grand Junction, CO | $36,420 | 690 |
| Memphis, TN | $36,340 | 4,800 |
| York, PA | $36,310 | 1,470 |
| Raleigh, NC | $36,280 | 7,160 |
| St. Cloud, MN | $36,270 | 780 |
| Lebanon, PA | $36,250 | 470 |
| Rockford, IL | $36,200 | 1,130 |
| Durham, NC | $36,170 | 2,660 |
| Pittsburgh, PA | $36,130 | 13,260 |
| Yuma, AZ | $36,080 | 590 |
| Champaign, IL | $36,040 | 970 |
| Peoria, IL | $36,040 | 1,420 |
| Cincinnati, OH | $36,030 | 10,810 |
| Akron, OH | $36,030 | 2,820 |
| Reading, PA | $36,020 | 1,420 |
| Chattanooga, TN | $36,010 | 2,490 |
| Savannah, GA | $35,940 | 2,570 |
| Pueblo, CO | $35,920 | 580 |
| Dayton, OH | $35,700 | 2,960 |
| Pinehurst, NC | $35,690 | 670 |
| Midland, TX | $35,670 | 900 |
| Morristown, TN | $35,670 | 320 |
| Canton, OH | $35,600 | 1,570 |
| Kankakee, IL | $35,560 | 320 |
| St. Joseph, MO | $35,560 | 320 |
| Toledo, OH | $35,560 | 2,920 |
| Jackson, TN | $35,490 | 490 |
| Sierra Vista, AZ | $35,380 | 300 |
| Bloomington, IL | $35,310 | 850 |
| Gainesville, GA | $35,310 | 700 |
| Sandusky, OH | $35,250 | 910 |
| Columbia, MO | $35,240 | 990 |
| Springfield, MO | $35,100 | 1,910 |
| Houston, TX | $35,050 | 32,710 |
| Cleveland, TN | $35,030 | 340 |
| Wilmington, NC | $34,940 | 3,440 |
| Odessa, TX | $34,900 | 840 |
| Cape Girardeau, MO | $34,870 | 380 |
| San Antonio, TX | $34,860 | 10,860 |
| Clarksville, TN | $34,840 | 880 |
| Jefferson City, MO | $34,670 | 460 |
| Winston, NC | $34,600 | 2,580 |
| Greensboro, NC | $34,550 | 3,250 |
| Brunswick, GA | $34,480 | 760 |
| Augusta, GA | $33,990 | 2,200 |
| Joplin, MO | $33,930 | 700 |
| Rome, GA | $33,620 | 400 |
| Athens, GA | $33,540 | 1,120 |
| College Station, TX | $32,630 | 1,410 |
| Warner Robins, GA | $32,180 | 780 |
| Sherman, TX | $31,760 | 510 |
Sources
How this page was made
- Wage data
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 release. Public domain.
- Employment
- 1,409,890 employed in this occupation nationally (BLS estimate; excludes the self-employed).
- Occupation
- SOC 35-2014, Cooks, Restaurant. Mapped to our taxonomy as cooks-restaurant.
Percentiles are reported exactly as released and are never interpolated between published values. We take no payment from employers, recruiters or anyone else for how any figure is presented.