Cooks, Fast Food
Median $30,890
Occupation · SOC 35-2019
Cooks, All Other: pay and where the jobs are
What cooks, all other earn in the U.S., how pay varies across workers and states, and tools to plan around it.
National pay, May 2025
$37,690 median annual wage
- Mean (average) annual wage
- $39,150
- Median hourly wage
- $18.12
- Mean hourly wage
- $18.82
- Employment
- 19,350
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 35-2019.
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See where your pay falls among cooks, all other nationally and in your state. Nothing you type leaves your browser.
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Use these numbers
How much do cooks, all other make?
The median annual wage for cooks, all other was $37,690 in May 2025, so half of workers earned more and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $27,040 and the highest-paid 10% more than $51,140. As an hourly rate, the median is $18.12. About 19,350 people work in this occupation nationwide. The highest state medians are in Massachusetts ($69,570), Washington ($52,510) and Nevada ($51,220). Massachusetts also comes out on top after taxes and local prices.
Pay ladder
What each step of the pay range for cooks, all other looks like per month. Take-home here includes federal tax, Social Security and Medicare for a single filer; add your state in the paycheck calculator.
| Step | Annual | Hourly | Monthly gross | Monthly after federal tax & FICA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $27,040 | $13.00 | $2,253 | $1,990 |
| 25th percentile | $32,150 | $15.46 | $2,679 | $2,334 |
| Median | $37,690 | $18.12 | $3,141 | $2,705 |
| 75th percentile | $43,680 | $21.00 | $3,640 | $3,106 |
| 90th percentile | $51,140 | $24.59 | $4,262 | $3,606 |
Cooks, All Other: pay by state
33 states and territories have a published median, sorted from highest to lowest. The last two columns are our estimates: the median after 2026 federal and state taxes, and that take-home restated in national-average prices.
1
$51,244 take-home in national prices
2
$43,344 take-home in national prices
3
$42,364 take-home in national prices
Where a median cooks, all other paycheck goes furthest after 2026 taxes and BEA price levels.
| State | Employment | Median | 10th pct. | 90th pct. | Median after tax* | In national prices† |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Massachusetts | Not published | $69,570 | $63,530 | $69,600 | $54,194 | $51,244 |
| Washington | 140 | $52,510 | $43,740 | $61,380 | $43,643 | $40,783 |
| Nevada | 320 | $51,220 | $37,230 | $58,920 | $43,335 | $43,344 |
| New Jersey | 280 | $46,080 | $34,700 | $60,610 | $37,823 | $34,762 |
| Indiana | 30 | $44,290 | $38,750 | $54,810 | $36,490 | $39,098 |
| North Dakota | 60 | $44,190 | $42,750 | $58,240 | $37,687 | $42,364 |
| Missouri | 70 | $43,990 | $33,190 | $59,650 | $36,396 | $40,076 |
| Colorado | 100 | $43,490 | $30,800 | $49,780 | $35,728 | $34,670 |
| New York | 1,090 | $43,000 | $36,430 | $57,760 | $34,789 | $32,235 |
| Georgia | 340 | $42,960 | $27,590 | $42,960 | $35,303 | $36,662 |
| California | 3,990 | $42,860 | $37,040 | $50,940 | $35,364 | $31,940 |
| Montana | 200 | $42,640 | $31,600 | $50,670 | $35,194 | $37,185 |
| Oregon | 450 | $42,020 | $34,850 | $46,510 | $33,101 | $32,025 |
| Arizona | 550 | $41,740 | $32,900 | $56,830 | $35,068 | $34,833 |
| Vermont | 160 | $41,250 | $36,890 | $61,580 | $34,376 | $35,093 |
| Hawaii | 100 | $39,870 | $34,430 | $49,940 | $32,700 | $29,740 |
| Florida | 710 | $39,520 | $28,510 | $51,680 | $33,934 | $32,814 |
| Connecticut | 220 | $37,190 | $34,010 | $53,220 | $30,768 | $29,696 |
| Michigan | 300 | $37,110 | $29,650 | $46,020 | $30,671 | $31,877 |
| Minnesota | 80 | $36,850 | $30,180 | $48,250 | $30,474 | $30,900 |
| Tennessee | 2,060 | $36,440 | $22,030 | $38,950 | $31,460 | $34,244 |
| Pennsylvania | 660 | $36,220 | $27,210 | $50,850 | $30,145 | $30,896 |
| Illinois | Not published | $35,940 | $35,940 | $57,310 | $29,424 | $29,436 |
| Virginia | 480 | $35,810 | $26,630 | $64,300 | $29,708 | $29,384 |
| Ohio | 180 | $35,360 | $31,200 | $45,630 | $30,070 | $32,412 |
| Wisconsin | 50 | $33,760 | $30,540 | $47,900 | $28,530 | $30,320 |
| Mississippi | Not published | $33,410 | $27,700 | $45,410 | $28,421 | $32,685 |
| Maryland | 610 | $32,150 | $31,200 | $46,950 | $26,851 | $25,583 |
| Texas | 4,650 | $32,150 | $25,600 | $41,570 | $28,013 | $28,862 |
| North Carolina | 150 | $31,120 | $21,250 | $43,690 | $26,452 | $28,043 |
| Arkansas | 90 | $30,780 | $27,050 | $55,450 | $26,260 | $30,206 |
| Louisiana | 430 | $28,930 | $23,950 | $39,880 | $24,944 | $28,278 |
| Iowa | 210 | $26,060 | $24,340 | $43,340 | $22,732 | $25,902 |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 35-2019. *Our estimate for a single filer paid biweekly with no pre-tax deductions or local tax, 2026 federal and state rules. †Take-home ÷ BEA Regional Price Parity × 100 (2024 price levels).
Sources
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25nat.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25st.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.