Executive Chef Salary By State: Highest-Paid Executive Chefs by State [2026]
Research Summary. Comprehensive analysis by the Zippia data science team reveals essential insights into executive chef salaries across the United States for 2026:
-
Hawaii boasts the highest executive chef salary at $79,287.
-
Wyoming offers the lowest executive chef salary at $33,638.
-
The national average salary for executive chefs stands at $59,416.
-
The national hourly wage for executive chefs is $28.57.
For a detailed explanation of our methodology, please read further.
Background
Salary remains a key consideration for job seekers, ranking as the most crucial factor for many individuals across demographics. Specifically, many are curious about what executive chefs earn in their local area.
While individual circumstances will vary, reliable data on average salaries for executive chefs by state—detailed by seniority level—offers valuable insights. These averages provide a baseline for what you can expect to earn.
As of 2026, Hawaii continues to lead as the state with the highest average salary for executive chefs.
Here’s a quick overview of the top ten states for executive chef salaries:
Let’s explore the detailed rankings of all states.
Highest-Paid Executive Chefs By State
| Rank | State | Average Executive Chef Salary | 10th Percentile | 90th Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hawaii | $79,287 | $58,000 | $107,000 |
| 2 | California | $72,275 | $46,000 | $111,000 |
| 3 | New Jersey | $71,960 | $47,000 | $109,000 |
| 4 | Massachusetts | $69,572 | $46,000 | $104,000 |
| 5 | Delaware | $68,673 | $45,000 | $104,000 |
| 6 | Rhode Island | $68,299 | $45,000 | $102,000 |
| 7 | Nevada | $68,037 | $44,000 | $104,000 |
| 8 | Washington | $66,492 | $43,000 | $100,000 |
| 9 | Vermont | $66,440 | $44,000 | $98,000 |
| 10 | Maryland | $64,324 | $42,000 | $97,000 |
| 11 | Pennsylvania | $63,137 | $41,000 | $95,000 |
| 12 | Illinois | $61,401 | $41,000 | $90,000 |
| 13 | New York | $60,858 | $40,000 | $92,000 |
| 14 | New Hampshire | $60,679 | $40,000 | $90,000 |
| 15 | Maine | $60,280 | $40,000 | $89,000 |
| 16 | Virginia | $60,188 | $39,000 | $91,000 |
| 17 | Oregon | $59,619 | $39,000 | $91,000 |
| 18 | West Virginia | $59,316 | $39,000 | $89,000 |
| 19 | Texas | $58,441 | $39,000 | $86,000 |
| 20 | North Carolina | $58,356 | $38,000 | $87,000 |
| 21 | North Dakota | $58,094 | $40,000 | $83,000 |
| 22 | Michigan | $57,838 | $38,000 | $86,000 |
| 23 | Missouri | $56,537 | $38,000 | $82,000 |
| 24 | Florida | $56,026 | $37,000 | $84,000 |
| 25 | New Mexico | $55,685 | $37,000 | $82,000 |
| 26 | Mississippi | $55,308 | $37,000 | $81,000 |
| 27 | Kansas | $55,139 | $38,000 | $79,000 |
| 28 | Georgia | $54,989 | $37,000 | $81,000 |
| 29 | Colorado | $53,198 | $36,000 | $77,000 |
| 30 | Ohio | $53,074 | $35,000 | $79,000 |
| 31 | Indiana | $52,937 | $35,000 | $78,000 |
| 32 | Arizona | $52,572 | $35,000 | $78,000 |
| 33 | Tennessee | $52,267 | $35,000 | $76,000 |
| 34 | Minnesota | $52,267 | $35,000 | $76,000 |
| 35 | Alabama | $50,713 | $34,000 | $74,000 |
| 36 | Oklahoma | $50,526 | $34,000 | $73,000 |
| 37 | South Carolina | $50,401 | $33,000 | $74,000 |
| 38 | Nebraska | $49,532 | $34,000 | $71,000 |
| 39 | Connecticut | $49,290 | $32,000 | $74,000 |
| 40 | Louisiana | $48,321 | $32,000 | $72,000 |
| 41 | Wisconsin | $48,017 | $32,000 | $71,000 |
| 42 | Kentucky | $47,035 | $31,000 | $69,000 |
| 43 | Arkansas | $46,609 | $31,000 | $67,000 |
| 44 | Iowa | $45,389 | $31,000 | $66,000 |
| 45 | Idaho | $45,142 | $29,000 | $67,000 |
| 46 | Montana | $44,783 | $30,000 | $65,000 |
| 47 | Alaska | $44,759 | $33,000 | $60,000 |
| 48 | Utah | $44,533 | $29,000 | $66,000 |
| 49 | South Dakota | $42,881 | $29,000 | $62,000 |
| 50 | Wyoming | $33,638 | $23,000 | $48,000 |
Methodology: Executive Chef Salary By State
To gain insights into executive chef salaries by state, Zippia has compiled data from various reliable sources, including the BLS, FLC, and OPM. We enhance this data with actual salaries from job postings. Finally, our data science team calculates a weighted average of these figures to determine the average pay for executive chefs in each state.
We ranked each state based on the average annual salary data for executive chefs, highlighting the state with the highest average salary.
Executive Chef Salary By State FAQs
-
What is the highest-paid state for executive chefs?
The highest-paid state for executive chefs is Hawaii, with an average salary of $79,287 per year.
-
What city pays executive chefs the most?
San Francisco, CA offers the highest average salary for executive chefs at $75,757 per year.
-
What is the lowest-paying state for executive chefs?
The state with the lowest average salary for executive chefs is Wyoming, at $33,638 per year.
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.
