Find a Job You Really Want In
Servers are one of the most common jobs in America. Additionally, a significant number of people work as servers in every state in the union — it’s not like they are all just concentrated in California or the South.
Since servers are such a prominent occupation, we at Zippia wanted to look at where servers have it the best: where there are plenty of jobs to go around and people get paid what they deserve during every phase of their career.
To that end, we dove into the numbers from the BLS to figure out which states have the best opportunities for servers.
After all the numbers had been crunched, we were left with this list of the best of best for America’s servers:
So there you have it — Waiters And Waitresses is the best of the best when it comes to being a server.
How did Waiters And Waitresses end up here and does it really deserve this ranking? Read on to see how we completed our research on the best states for servers and for more on the top ten states.
If youĂÂre interested, you can read more about the job scene here:
- Best Companies to Work For in Jacksonville
- These Are The 9 Best Companies To Work For In Miami Beach
- 10 Best Startups to Work For in Tampa
How we determined the best states to be a server
Here at Zippia, we talk to a lot of people of all different backgrounds looking for jobs. Our research has concluded that there are two common things people want in a job:
- Availability of jobs
- Higher Pay
So in order to find out the best states for servers in America we needed to figure out where the jobs are and how well servers get paid. This led to the following criteria taken from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’s Occupational Employment Statistics for 2018:
- Location quotient. A measure of how common a job is a given state.
- Average annual salary.
- Average annual salary for entry level work.
- Average annual salary for experienced professionals.
To make all the salary numbers more apples to apples across states, we compared the salary data relative to the state’s cost of living.
Applying this standardization allows us to account for that fact that it costs more to live in certain in states. For example, the average salary for servers in California is $30,250 and the average salary in Illinois is $22,900, but the Illinois salary actually goes further in paying for life’s essentials.
In order to develop and overall ranking, we ranked each state for each criteria from 1 to 50 where 1 was the best.
We then averaged all the rankings for a state into a Job Score with the state having the lowest overall Job Score earning the distinction of being the best state for servers in America.
So without further ado, let’s get into just what made each state so great for servers.
1. Florida
Total Jobs: 211,860
Average Annual Salary: $26,120
Average Entry Level Salary: $17,870
Average Experienced Salary: $45,670
Location Quotient: 1.38
2. Michigan
Total Jobs: 80,880
Average Annual Salary: $23,920
Average Entry Level Salary: $19,280
Average Experienced Salary: $36,020
Location Quotient: 1.05
3. Arizona
Total Jobs: 48,830
Average Annual Salary: $30,220
Average Entry Level Salary: $21,850
Average Experienced Salary: $48,620
Location Quotient: 0.98
4. Washington
Total Jobs: 54,770
Average Annual Salary: $35,930
Average Entry Level Salary: $24,260
Average Experienced Salary: $61,830
Location Quotient: 0.94
5. Vermont
Total Jobs: 5,590
Average Annual Salary: $34,560
Average Entry Level Salary: $21,850
Average Experienced Salary: $52,260
Location Quotient: 1.03
6. Maine
Total Jobs: 12,890
Average Annual Salary: $27,550
Average Entry Level Salary: $20,810
Average Experienced Salary: $41,140
Location Quotient: 1.19
7. Colorado
Total Jobs: 50,390
Average Annual Salary: $25,510
Average Entry Level Salary: $21,220
Average Experienced Salary: $38,410
Location Quotient: 1.08
8. Nebraska
Total Jobs: 15,480
Average Annual Salary: $25,610
Average Entry Level Salary: $19,080
Average Experienced Salary: $40,370
Location Quotient: 0.89
9. Hawaii
Total Jobs: 19,130
Average Annual Salary: $52,110
Average Entry Level Salary: $22,150
Average Experienced Salary: $84,600
Location Quotient: 1.67
10. Texas
Total Jobs: 216,670
Average Annual Salary: $23,520
Average Entry Level Salary: $16,410
Average Experienced Salary: $39,750
Location Quotient: 1.0
There You Have It – The Best States To Be A Server
If you’re looking to start out your career as a server these are the states that should be at the top of your list. You’ll find high pay, available jobs, and chances for career advancement.
If you’re curious, here are the worst states to be a server in America:
For more reading, check out:
- These Are The 100 Highest Paying Jobs In Fort Lauderdale
- These Are The 100 Highest Paying Jobs In Miami
- These Are The 100 Highest Paying Jobs In Orlando
- These Are The 100 Highest Paying Jobs In Tampa
- These Are The 100 Highest Paying Jobs In Florida
- These Are The 100 Largest Companies In Florida
Detailed List Of The Best States For servers
| Rank | State | Average Salary |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Florida | $26,120 |
| 2 | Michigan | $23,920 |
| 3 | Arizona | $30,220 |
| 4 | Washington | $35,930 |
| 5 | Vermont | $34,560 |
| 6 | Maine | $27,550 |
| 7 | Colorado | $25,510 |
| 8 | Nebraska | $25,610 |
| 9 | Hawaii | $52,110 |
| 10 | Texas | $23,520 |
| 11 | Wyoming | $23,670 |
| 12 | Minnesota | $25,540 |
| 13 | Oregon | $28,640 |
| 14 | Ohio | $22,650 |
| 15 | New York | $34,460 |
| 16 | West Virginia | $23,140 |
| 17 | Indiana | $22,300 |
| 18 | Illinois | $22,900 |
| 19 | North Carolina | $22,400 |
| 20 | Massachusetts | $31,920 |
| 21 | Mississippi | $20,560 |
| 22 | Virginia | $24,070 |
| 23 | Utah | $24,000 |
| 24 | Missouri | $21,420 |
| 25 | Nevada | $24,980 |
| 26 | Iowa | $21,850 |
| 27 | Rhode Island | $27,380 |
| 28 | Delaware | $23,690 |
| 29 | Oklahoma | $20,060 |
| 30 | Pennsylvania | $24,850 |
| 31 | Wisconsin | $23,330 |
| 32 | Tennessee | $19,870 |
| 33 | New Mexico | $20,770 |
| 34 | Georgia | $20,280 |
| 35 | Idaho | $20,780 |
| 36 | Arkansas | $20,040 |
| 37 | New Hampshire | $24,850 |
| 38 | Montana | $20,990 |
| 39 | South Dakota | $21,930 |
| 40 | Kansas | $20,140 |
| 41 | Alabama | $19,750 |
| 42 | California | $30,250 |
| 43 | Louisiana | $18,630 |
| 44 | Kentucky | $19,450 |
| 45 | South Carolina | $20,290 |
| 46 | Connecticut | $26,350 |
| 47 | New Jersey | $27,530 |
| 48 | North Dakota | $21,140 |
| 49 | Maryland | $24,160 |
| 50 | Alaska | $25,610 |
Author
Chris Kolmar is a co-founder of Zippia and the editor-in-chief of the Zippia career advice blog. He has hired over 50 people in his career, been hired five times, and wants to help you land your next job. His research has been featured on the New York Times, Thrillist, VOX, The Atlantic, and a host of local news. More recently, he's been quoted on USA Today, BusinessInsider, and CNBC.
