Cooks, Fast Food
Median $30,890
Occupation · SOC 35-2012
Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria: pay and where the jobs are
What cooks, institution and cafeteria earn in the U.S., how pay varies across workers and states, and tools to plan around it.
National pay, May 2025
$37,450 median annual wage
- Mean (average) annual wage
- $38,810
- Median hourly wage
- $18.01
- Mean hourly wage
- $18.66
- Employment
- 441,050
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 35-2012.
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See where your pay falls among cooks, institution and cafeteria nationally and in your state. Nothing you type leaves your browser.
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How much do cooks, institution and cafeteria make?
The median annual wage for cooks, institution and cafeteria was $37,450 in May 2025, so half of workers earned more and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $28,480 and the highest-paid 10% more than $49,670. As an hourly rate, the median is $18.01. About 441,050 people work in this occupation nationwide. The highest state medians are in Washington ($49,670), Alaska ($48,580) and Massachusetts ($47,790). After taxes and local prices, though, a median paycheck goes furthest in Alaska.
Pay ladder
What each step of the pay range for cooks, institution and cafeteria 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 | $28,480 | $13.69 | $2,373 | $2,089 |
| 25th percentile | $32,440 | $15.60 | $2,703 | $2,354 |
| Median | $37,450 | $18.01 | $3,121 | $2,689 |
| 75th percentile | $44,800 | $21.54 | $3,733 | $3,181 |
| 90th percentile | $49,670 | $23.88 | $4,139 | $3,507 |
Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria: pay by state
54 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
$40,027 take-home in national prices
2
$39,118 take-home in national prices
3
$38,688 take-home in national prices
Where a median cooks, institution and cafeteria paycheck goes furthest after 2026 taxes and BEA price levels.
| State | Employment | Median | 10th pct. | 90th pct. | Median after tax* | In national prices† |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington | 9,780 | $49,670 | $39,820 | $62,840 | $41,401 | $38,688 |
| Alaska | 1,430 | $48,580 | $37,990 | $58,710 | $40,971 | $40,027 |
| Massachusetts | 7,430 | $47,790 | $39,250 | $58,090 | $38,190 | $36,111 |
| Hawaii | 1,570 | $47,770 | $38,250 | $65,020 | $38,460 | $34,979 |
| Rhode Island | 1,190 | $46,570 | $37,890 | $58,380 | $37,957 | $37,111 |
| California | 31,660 | $46,390 | $37,570 | $59,630 | $38,013 | $34,333 |
| Vermont | 1,330 | $46,370 | $38,120 | $56,560 | $38,319 | $39,118 |
| Connecticut | 4,500 | $46,120 | $38,380 | $56,570 | $37,364 | $36,062 |
| New York | 17,670 | $45,880 | $36,280 | $59,620 | $36,935 | $34,224 |
| District of Columbia | 1,500 | $45,450 | $38,740 | $55,680 | $37,138 | $33,792 |
| New Hampshire | 1,720 | $45,370 | $35,790 | $56,470 | $38,635 | $37,090 |
| New Jersey | 7,490 | $44,520 | $35,500 | $53,060 | $36,664 | $33,697 |
| Oregon | 7,150 | $44,520 | $36,690 | $57,790 | $34,858 | $33,725 |
| Delaware | 2,680 | $44,080 | $35,870 | $47,560 | $35,652 | $35,721 |
| Maine | 1,790 | $43,490 | $36,060 | $50,700 | $35,602 | $36,685 |
| Minnesota | 7,890 | $43,460 | $35,520 | $52,140 | $35,402 | $35,897 |
| Colorado | 9,440 | $42,500 | $36,290 | $50,990 | $34,980 | $33,944 |
| Maryland | 3,370 | $41,380 | $35,520 | $49,750 | $33,829 | $32,231 |
| Arizona | 7,170 | $39,660 | $34,490 | $48,370 | $33,449 | $33,224 |
| North Dakota | 1,820 | $39,490 | $31,300 | $48,670 | $33,910 | $38,119 |
| Nevada | 1,650 | $39,430 | $32,020 | $53,520 | $33,862 | $33,869 |
| Wisconsin | 9,890 | $38,650 | $32,110 | $47,380 | $32,218 | $34,240 |
| Utah | 5,610 | $38,200 | $28,870 | $48,600 | $31,880 | $32,246 |
| Virginia | 11,170 | $37,890 | $30,000 | $47,940 | $31,260 | $30,919 |
| Illinois | 22,840 | $37,440 | $31,200 | $48,130 | $30,555 | $30,567 |
| Montana | 2,290 | $37,150 | $30,500 | $50,600 | $31,041 | $32,797 |
| Wyoming | 1,570 | $36,940 | $29,130 | $47,830 | $31,861 | $34,374 |
| Michigan | 13,500 | $36,870 | $29,800 | $45,540 | $30,489 | $31,688 |
| South Dakota | 2,120 | $36,730 | $30,140 | $45,650 | $31,693 | $35,776 |
| Ohio | 23,440 | $36,720 | $29,530 | $46,010 | $31,125 | $33,549 |
| Pennsylvania | 24,490 | $36,540 | $28,390 | $46,380 | $30,393 | $31,149 |
| New Mexico | 3,160 | $36,470 | $28,920 | $45,330 | $30,883 | $33,491 |
| Nebraska | 4,410 | $36,390 | $29,890 | $45,380 | $30,643 | $34,009 |
| Florida | 25,100 | $36,250 | $31,650 | $46,520 | $31,307 | $30,273 |
| North Carolina | 11,170 | $36,140 | $28,050 | $45,130 | $30,285 | $32,107 |
| Indiana | 11,130 | $35,980 | $29,280 | $44,760 | $30,058 | $32,207 |
| Iowa | 8,860 | $35,810 | $28,030 | $44,150 | $30,244 | $34,462 |
| Idaho | 3,650 | $35,600 | $28,330 | $45,550 | $30,006 | $31,422 |
| Tennessee | 10,680 | $35,570 | $27,830 | $45,430 | $30,760 | $33,483 |
| Guam | 100 | $35,540 | $22,210 | $39,100 | — | — |
| Texas | 24,740 | $35,360 | $24,770 | $44,840 | $30,592 | $31,519 |
| Georgia | 8,220 | $35,090 | $28,220 | $44,540 | $29,372 | $30,503 |
| South Carolina | 7,850 | $34,960 | $21,890 | $42,680 | $29,873 | $31,865 |
| Missouri | 13,130 | $34,900 | $28,600 | $43,700 | $29,519 | $32,504 |
| Kansas | 7,570 | $31,950 | $25,440 | $42,000 | $26,854 | $29,815 |
| Kentucky | 11,540 | $31,550 | $25,580 | $45,720 | $26,544 | $29,441 |
| Virgin Islands | 110 | $30,440 | $22,270 | $31,880 | — | — |
| Arkansas | 6,530 | $30,240 | $25,810 | $39,720 | $25,847 | $29,730 |
| West Virginia | 4,420 | $29,740 | $23,820 | $38,470 | $25,357 | $28,333 |
| Oklahoma | 10,790 | $29,270 | $21,620 | $38,670 | $24,927 | $28,377 |
| Mississippi | 6,420 | $27,390 | $20,760 | $36,620 | $23,802 | $27,373 |
| Alabama | 8,780 | $27,120 | $20,040 | $37,960 | $22,904 | $25,786 |
| Puerto Rico | 7,000 | $26,260 | $21,840 | $39,650 | — | — |
| Louisiana | 5,740 | $25,490 | $19,250 | $36,200 | $22,223 | $25,194 |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 35-2012. *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.