How much does a cook make?

The average cook salary in the United States is $31,803. Cook salaries typically range between $25,000 and $40,000 yearly. The average hourly rate for cooks is $15.29 per hour. Cook salary is impacted by location, education, and experience. Cooks earn the highest average salary in Hawaii.

Cook salary

Q: What state pays Cooks the most?

Hawaii pays Cooks the most in the United States, with an average salary of $44,295 per year, or $21.30 per hour.

Q: How do I know if I'm being paid fairly as a cook?

You know if you are being paid fairly as a cook if your pay is close to the average pay for the state you live in. For example, if you live in New Jersey you should be paid close to $37,026 per year.

Q: What is a good starting salary for a Cook?

A good starting salary for a cook is $24,000 in the United States. That puts you in the 10th percentile of annual income for a cook in the U.S., which is about what you would expect if you were new to the field. The average salary for cooks is $30,564, but that normally requires some level of experience to achieve. Furthermore, a good starting salary for a cook can vary by state.

Q: Do line cooks make good money?

No, most line cooks do not make good money. The average pay for a line cook is around $12 an hour. If you have earned a degree or have a background in culinary school, you can earn up to $18 an hour as a line cook.

Q: How much does a professional cook make a year?

A professional cook makes around $32,000 a year. Your salary as a cook will vary due to many factors, some within your control while others are not. Differences in Salary Include: Location Type of establishment Experience Education Specific responsibilities

Q: What is the highest-paying cooking job?

Working as a private chef is the highest-paying cooking job. Private chefs make over $65,000 a year on average and are responsible for cooking in-house for their client(s). Private chefs usually live on-site so that it's easy to provide multiple meals a day. Your daily job will more likely be less hectic than working in a commercial kitchen. You'll be familiar with your client(s) likes and dislikes, as well as food allergies and complications.

Q: Where do cooks get paid the most?

Cooks get paid the most in the North and Northwest states. The Top Highest-Paying States For Cooks: Wyoming at $33,000 Minnesota at $32,000 Washington at $32,000 Delaware at $32,000 Michigan at $31,000

Average cook salary

$15.29

$31,803 yearly

Entry-level cook salary

$25,000 yearly salary

Updated January 8, 2025

Understanding Cook Salaries

The average cook salary in the United States is $31,803 annually, translating to approximately $15 per hour. However, salaries can vary widely based on several factors, including geographic location, experience, and type of establishment. For instance, cooks in metropolitan areas often earn more due to the higher cost of living.

Salary by Experience

Entry-level cooks can expect to earn around $25,000 per year, while those with several years of experience may see their salaries rise to $40,000 or more. Specialized roles, such as sous chefs or pastry chefs, tend to command higher salaries.

Regional Differences

Cook salaries also differ by state. For example, states like California and New York offer some of the highest salaries for cooks, often exceeding $35,000 annually. Understanding these dynamics can help job seekers target their applications effectively and negotiate better pay.

Job Opportunities

With a growing demand for culinary professionals, many opportunities exist in various sectors, including fine dining, catering, and institutional cooking. Aspiring cooks can explore job listings to find positions that align with their skills and career goals.

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Cook salary by:

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Where can a Cook earn more?

Compare salary by location

58k

38k

18k

-2k

Columbus, OH$37,003

Greenville, NC$27,773

Compare salary by company

68k

48k

28k

University of California-Berkeley$40,923

Resorts World Catskills$37,761

Cook salaries by experience level

Experience level	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
Entry-level cook	$23,800	$11.46
Mid-level cook	$28,800	$13.85
Senior-level cook	$34,200	$16.45

Cook salary estimates from across the web

Based on the latest salary information compiled by Zippia, Salary.com, Indeed, Ziprecruiter, SalaryExpert and Comparably, the average salary for a cook typically falls between $22,650 and $36,272.

zippia

$31,803yearly

indeed[1]

$36,272yearly

comparably[2]

$22,650yearly

Salary.com[3]

$35,130yearly

ZipRecruiter[4]

$33,454yearly

SalaryExpert[5]

$33,836yearly

Average cook salary by state

The average cook salary in Hawaii, New Jersey, and Washington are the highest in the U.S. The lowest average cook salary states are Arkansas, Kansas, and Louisiana.

State view
County view

Average salary:

Highest paying states for cooks

Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
1	Hawaii	$44,295	$21.30
2	Connecticut	$35,991	$17.30
3	Nevada	$33,011	$15.87
4	Washington	$36,804	$17.69
5	New Jersey	$37,026	$17.80
6	Massachusetts	$36,549	$17.57
7	New Hampshire	$35,492	$17.06
8	Minnesota	$33,535	$16.12
9	Arizona	$30,480	$14.65
10	New York	$36,236	$17.42
11	Vermont	$35,225	$16.94
12	California	$35,925	$17.27
13	Michigan	$30,431	$14.63
14	Maine	$33,797	$16.25
15	Colorado	$31,042	$14.92
16	Oregon	$33,951	$16.32
17	Pennsylvania	$30,693	$14.76
18	Illinois	$31,121	$14.96
19	Rhode Island	$33,277	$16.00
20	Delaware	$32,066	$15.42
21	Florida	$28,804	$13.85
22	Alaska	$29,681	$14.27
23	Ohio	$28,477	$13.69
24	Wisconsin	$29,602	$14.23
25	North Dakota	$29,754	$14.30
26	District of Columbia	$35,312	$16.98
27	Utah	$28,848	$13.87
28	Tennessee	$25,967	$12.48
29	North Carolina	$27,257	$13.10
30	Indiana	$26,872	$12.92
31	Maryland	$31,887	$15.33
32	Wyoming	$27,476	$13.21
33	Virginia	$29,793	$14.32
34	South Dakota	$28,688	$13.79
35	Iowa	$27,561	$13.25
36	Idaho	$28,114	$13.52
37	Nebraska	$27,461	$13.20
38	Texas	$25,763	$12.39
39	New Mexico	$27,029	$12.99
40	South Carolina	$26,048	$12.52
41	Missouri	$25,785	$12.40
42	Kentucky	$25,289	$12.16
43	Georgia	$26,650	$12.81
44	Arkansas	$23,591	$11.34
45	Montana	$26,577	$12.78
46	Kansas	$23,414	$11.26
47	Alabama	$24,383	$11.72
48	Oklahoma	$23,081	$11.10
49	Louisiana	$23,280	$11.19
50	Mississippi	$21,950	$10.55
51	West Virginia	$23,234	$11.17

Top cook jobs near you

Highest paying cities for cooks

The highest-paying cities for cooks are Seattle, WA, San Francisco, CA, and Boston, MA.

Rank	City	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
1	Seattle, WA	$37,003	$17.79
2	San Francisco, CA	$36,696	$17.64
3	Boston, MA	$36,587	$17.59
4	New York, NY	$36,239	$17.42
5	Washington, DC	$35,335	$16.99
6	Portland, ME	$33,922	$16.31
7	Portland, OR	$33,804	$16.25
8	Saint Paul, MN	$33,515	$16.11
9	Las Vegas, NV	$32,833	$15.79
10	Baltimore, MD	$32,072	$15.42
11	Chicago, IL	$31,331	$15.06
12	Denver, CO	$31,009	$14.91
13	Philadelphia, PA	$30,892	$14.85
14	Phoenix, AZ	$30,519	$14.67
15	Washington, UT	$29,800	$14.33
16	Richmond, VA	$29,669	$14.26
17	Milwaukee, WI	$29,616	$14.24
18	Jacksonville, FL	$28,995	$13.94
19	Columbus, OH	$28,042	$13.48
20	Greenville, NC	$27,773	$13.35

Cooks are the most in-demand in these five cities:

Cook salary details

A cook's salary ranges from $25,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $40,000 at the 90th percentile.

Average cook salary graph, trends, and summary

What is a cook's salary?

Percentile	Annual salary	Monthly salary	Hourly rate
90th Percentile	$40,000	$3,333	$19
75th Percentile	$35,000	$2,917	$17
Average	$31,803	$2,650	$15
25th Percentile	$28,000	$2,333	$13
10th Percentile	$25,000	$2,083	$12

Highest paying cook jobs

The highest paying types of cooks are head cook, banquet cook, and line cook/dishwasher.

Job title	Annual salary	Monthly salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
Line Cook, Prep Cook	$32,982	$2,748	$15.86	164,756
Line Cook/Dishwasher	$34,435	$2,870	$16.56	133,370
Prep Cook/Dishwasher	$31,687	$2,641	$15.23	126,351
Mexican Food Cook	$31,039	$2,587	$14.92	275,588
Short Order Cook	$30,734	$2,561	$14.78	176,187
Cook/Dishwasher	$31,703	$2,642	$15.24	133,000

Top companies hiring cooks now:

Which companies pay cooks the most?

Cook salaries at University of California, Berkeley and Kemps are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average cook salary at companies like University of Massachusetts Boston and ZS are highly competitive.

Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate
1	University of California-Berkeley	$40,923	$19.67
2	Kemps	$40,839	$19.63
3	University of Massachusetts Boston	$40,784	$19.61
4	ZS	$40,223	$19.34
5	Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics	$39,711	$19.09
6	Columbia University in the City of New York	$39,679	$19.08
7	Uline	$39,241	$18.87
8	Aspen Snowmass	$39,101	$18.80
9	Bertucci's	$39,083	$18.79
10	National Pancake House	$38,501	$18.51
11	Palmetto	$38,470	$18.50
12	University of California	$38,437	$18.48
13	State Bar of Michigan	$38,413	$18.47
14	On The Border	$38,386	$18.45
15	Kohler Co.	$38,240	$18.38
16	J.F. Shea Co	$38,040	$18.29
17	Zoës Kitchen	$38,016	$18.28
18	Marquis Companies	$37,941	$18.24
19	UC Santa Barbara	$37,783	$18.16
20	Resorts World Catskills	$37,761	$18.15

Wage gap by gender, race and education

$33,000$32,600$32,200$31,800$31,400$31,000

MaleFemale

Cook salary by industry

The average cook salary varies across industries:

The average cook salary in the government industry is $34,114, the highest of any industry.
The average cook salary in the finance industry is $32,562.
Cooks in the hospitality industry earn an average salary of $27,814, the lowest of any industry.

Highest paying industries for cooks

Rank	Industry	Average salary	Hourly rate
1	Government	$34,114	$16.40
2	Health Care	$32,562	$15.65
3	Retail	$30,606	$14.71
4	Hospitality	$27,814	$13.37

High paying cook jobs

Cook salary trends

The average cook salary has risen by $7,420 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average cook earned $24,383 annually, but today, they earn $31,803 a year. That works out to a 19% change in pay for cooks over the last decade.

Compare cook salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.

Average cook salary over time

Compare cook salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.

Cook salary by year

Year	Avg. salary	Hourly rate	% Change
2025	$31,800	$15.29	+3.5%
2024	$30,700	$14.75	+4.5%
2023	$29,300	$14.08	+5.1%
2022	$27,800	$13.37	+4.1%
2021	$26,700	$12.82	+4.3%

Recently added cook salaries

Company	Job	Location	Date added	Salary
Cpk Holdings Inc.	Pasta Cook	San Diego, CA	06/30/2025	$36,001
Sonesta Hotels	Cook	Chicago, IL	06/30/2025	$55,639
Sonesta Hotels	Cook I	Seattle, WA	06/30/2025	$50,088
Sonesta Hotels	Cook 1	Marina, CA	06/30/2025	$52,300
Sanford Health	Morning Cook	Sioux Falls, SD	06/30/2025	$32,349
Shelter Insurance	Cook	Columbia, MO	06/30/2025	$34,769
Sutterhealth	Cook III	San Francisco, CA	06/30/2025	$73,755
Trinity Health	Cook	Livonia, MI	06/30/2025	$32,349
Peopleready	Cook	Indianapolis, IN	06/30/2025	$32,140
University of Rhode Island	Cook Calendar Year)	Kingston, RI	06/30/2025	$42,837

Cook salary FAQs

What state pays Cooks the most?

How do I know if I'm being paid fairly as a cook?

What is a good starting salary for a Cook?

Do line cooks make good money?

How much does a professional cook make a year?

What is the highest-paying cooking job?

Where do cooks get paid the most?

Have more questions? See all answers to common food preparation and restaurant questions.

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Updated January 8, 2025

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