Cook, Restaurant Salary (2026), outlook and how to become one

Cooks, Restaurant earn a median of $37,390 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025), 27% below the $50,980 median for all US occupations. That works out at $17.98/hr. The middle half earn between $34,010 and $44,620. The top 10% earn $47,900 or more.

The median hourly wage for cooks, restaurant is $17.98 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). On a full-year basis the $37,390 annual median works out to about $3,120 a month before tax.

BLS does not publish a starting salary. The nearest measure is the low end of the pay range: the lowest-paid 10% of cooks, restaurant earn less than $28,700 a year and the bottom quarter less than $34,010 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). New workers often start near that end, but where a particular job starts depends on the employer, the state and the credentials you bring, so read these as the bottom of the range rather than a guaranteed entry wage.

The highest state medians for Cooks, Restaurant are Washington ($46,800), District of Columbia ($46,130), Massachusetts ($45,600) (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Adjusted for local prices using BEA Regional Price Parities, Maine moves to the top at $46,667.

BLS does not split cooks, restaurant' pay by specialty or employer, but its range shows how far the top end runs: the highest-paid 10% earn more than $47,900, against a median of $37,390 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Location moves pay the most in the published data: the best-paying states are Washington ($46,800), District of Columbia ($46,130), Massachusetts ($45,600).

No. BLS lists no formal educational credential as the typical entry requirement for Cooks, Restaurant, and O*NET rates the preparation needed as some preparation. BLS also lists moderate-term on-the-job training as typical on-the-job training. Employers typically expect less than 5 years of related work experience first. In O*NET's survey of people already doing the job, 47.3% hold high school diploma or the equivalent (such as a ged).

BLS does not publish a fixed length; it depends on the route. What it does publish: the typical way in for cooks is no formal educational credential, plus less than 5 years of work experience in a related occupation. Once hired, BLS lists moderate-term on-the-job training as typical. O*NET classes the work as needing some preparation.

Yes, strongly. Employment is projected to grow 12.1% over 2025–2035, more than double the 3.5% projected for all occupations (BLS EP, 2025–2035). BLS still projects about 218,600 openings a year, mostly from workers retiring or moving to other work.

Cooks season and prepare foods, including soups, salads, entrees, and desserts. A core O*NET task: turn or stir foods to ensure even cooking. Employers most often ask for Electronic mail software, Office suite software, Spreadsheet software.

A 40-hour week is the most common pattern, though not a majority. In O*NET's survey of people in the job, 15% of cooks, restaurant usually work more than 40 hours a week, 47% work exactly 40 and 38% work fewer. 77% say their schedule is regular and 18% irregular. Source: O*NET 31.0 Database, Work Context.

O*NET scores Cooks, Restaurant highest on the Realistic, Conventional and Enterprising interest areas, so the work mixes hands-on, practical work with tools, machines or the outdoors with organising, following procedures and working precisely with data. On NueCareer's MBTI-to-interest mapping the closest types are ESTJ, ISTJ. Personality is a fit signal, not a gate. The free NueCareer quiz scores your own profile against all 1,731 careers in the bank.

Women make up 43.7% of cooks, restaurant, close to their 47.1% share of all employed people. Only 16.9% are 55 or older (23.2% across all jobs): a young workforce, with 29.8% under 25. The median worker is 34.7 years old (all workers: 42.1). Source: BLS Current Population Survey, 2025 annual averages, for the Census group "Cooks".