Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
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Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2021
35-1011 Chefs and Head Cooks
Direct and may participate in the preparation, seasoning, and cooking of salads, soups, fish, meats, vegetables, desserts, or other foods. May plan and price menu items, order supplies, and keep records and accounts.
National estimates for Chefs and Head Cooks
Industry profile for Chefs and Head Cooks
Geographic profile for Chefs and Head Cooks
National estimates for Chefs and Head Cooks:
Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Chefs and Head Cooks:
| Employment (1) |
Employment
RSE (3) |
Mean hourly
wage |
Mean annual
wage (2) |
Wage RSE (3) |
| 129,810 |
2.7 % |
$ 27.37 |
$ 56,920 |
1.8 % |
Percentile wage estimates for Chefs and Head Cooks:
| Percentile |
10% |
25% |
50%
(Median) |
75% |
90% |
| Hourly Wage |
$ 14.86 |
$ 18.81 |
$ 24.11 |
$ 31.41 |
$ 40.66 |
| Annual Wage (2) |
$ 30,910 |
$ 39,130 |
$ 50,160 |
$ 65,340 |
$ 84,570 |
Industry profile for Chefs and Head Cooks:
Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Chefs and Head Cooks are provided.
For a list of all industries with employment in Chefs and Head Cooks, see the Create Customized Tables function.
Industries with the highest levels of employment in Chefs and Head Cooks:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Restaurants and Other Eating Places |
71,590 |
0.76 |
$ 25.44 |
$ 52,920 |
| Special Food Services |
15,120 |
3.19 |
$ 29.79 |
$ 61,970 |
| Traveler Accommodation |
10,000 |
0.73 |
$ 32.34 |
$ 67,260 |
| Other Amusement and Recreation Industries |
8,140 |
0.73 |
$ 33.03 |
$ 68,700 |
| Continuing Care Retirement Communities and Assisted Living Facilities for the Elderly |
3,120 |
0.35 |
$ 26.31 |
$ 54,720 |
Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Chefs and Head Cooks:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Special Food Services |
15,120 |
3.19 |
$ 29.79 |
$ 61,970 |
| Restaurants and Other Eating Places |
71,590 |
0.76 |
$ 25.44 |
$ 52,920 |
| Other Amusement and Recreation Industries |
8,140 |
0.73 |
$ 33.03 |
$ 68,700 |
| Traveler Accommodation |
10,000 |
0.73 |
$ 32.34 |
$ 67,260 |
| Scenic and Sightseeing Transportation, Water |
80 |
0.71 |
$ 30.46 |
$ 63,350 |
Top paying industries for Chefs and Head Cooks:
Geographic profile for Chefs and Head Cooks:
States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Chefs and Head Cooks are provided.
For a list of all areas with employment in Chefs and Head Cooks, see the Create Customized Tables function.
States with the highest employment level in Chefs and Head Cooks:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| California |
19,760 |
1.20 |
1.30 |
$ 29.17 |
$ 60,670 |
| Florida |
11,260 |
1.31 |
1.42 |
$ 28.29 |
$ 58,850 |
| Texas |
10,450 |
0.85 |
0.93 |
$ 22.24 |
$ 46,260 |
| New York |
10,320 |
1.19 |
1.29 |
$ 30.86 |
$ 64,190 |
| Illinois |
5,280 |
0.94 |
1.02 |
$ 22.74 |
$ 47,300 |
States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Chefs and Head Cooks:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Vermont |
920 |
3.24 |
3.51 |
$ 23.39 |
$ 48,660 |
| Alaska |
860 |
2.90 |
3.14 |
$ 26.20 |
$ 54,500 |
| District of Columbia |
1,290 |
1.94 |
2.11 |
$ 30.67 |
$ 63,800 |
| Maine |
1,120 |
1.90 |
2.06 |
$ 26.09 |
$ 54,260 |
| Hawaii |
980 |
1.79 |
1.95 |
$ 35.53 |
$ 73,900 |
Top paying states for Chefs and Head Cooks:
Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Chefs and Head Cooks:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA |
9,850 |
1.13 |
1.23 |
$ 34.14 |
$ 71,010 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
5,390 |
0.94 |
1.02 |
$ 29.64 |
$ 61,650 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI |
4,410 |
1.04 |
1.13 |
$ 22.45 |
$ 46,690 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL |
3,650 |
1.49 |
1.62 |
$ 29.05 |
$ 60,430 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV |
3,230 |
1.10 |
1.19 |
$ 31.72 |
$ 65,970 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA |
3,100 |
1.38 |
1.50 |
$ 30.91 |
$ 64,280 |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX |
2,680 |
0.93 |
1.01 |
$ 20.83 |
$ 43,320 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX |
2,670 |
0.74 |
0.81 |
$ 26.07 |
$ 54,220 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH |
2,560 |
0.99 |
1.08 |
$ 34.16 |
$ 71,050 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD |
2,250 |
0.85 |
0.92 |
$ 31.29 |
$ 65,070 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Chefs and Head Cooks:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Naples-Immokalee-Marco Island, FL |
580 |
3.93 |
4.27 |
$ 30.15 |
$ 62,720 |
| Ocean City, NJ |
130 |
3.28 |
3.55 |
$ 34.51 |
$ 71,770 |
| Napa, CA |
220 |
3.15 |
3.42 |
$ 32.54 |
$ 67,680 |
| Kahului-Wailuku-Lahaina, HI |
200 |
3.10 |
3.37 |
$ 38.19 |
$ 79,430 |
| The Villages, FL |
100 |
2.96 |
3.22 |
$ 31.31 |
$ 65,120 |
| Charleston-North Charleston, SC |
990 |
2.93 |
3.18 |
$ 23.61 |
$ 49,100 |
| Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Beaufort, SC |
220 |
2.90 |
3.15 |
$ 24.96 |
$ 51,920 |
| Fairbanks, AK |
100 |
2.82 |
3.06 |
$ 26.62 |
$ 55,370 |
| Anchorage, AK |
430 |
2.69 |
2.92 |
$ 26.86 |
$ 55,860 |
| San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles-Arroyo Grande, CA |
290 |
2.59 |
2.82 |
$ 26.53 |
$ 55,190 |
Top paying metropolitan areas for Chefs and Head Cooks:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Leominster-Gardner, MA |
40 |
0.87 |
0.94 |
$ 38.95 |
$ 81,020 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA |
1,110 |
1.04 |
1.13 |
$ 38.27 |
$ 79,600 |
| Kahului-Wailuku-Lahaina, HI |
200 |
3.10 |
3.37 |
$ 38.19 |
$ 79,430 |
| Barnstable Town, MA |
240 |
2.50 |
2.72 |
$ 36.52 |
$ 75,970 |
| Urban Honolulu, HI |
560 |
1.42 |
1.55 |
$ 35.71 |
$ 74,280 |
| Flagstaff, AZ |
50 |
0.89 |
0.97 |
$ 34.79 |
$ 72,370 |
| Ocean City, NJ |
130 |
3.28 |
3.55 |
$ 34.51 |
$ 71,770 |
| California-Lexington Park, MD |
40 |
0.82 |
0.89 |
$ 34.29 |
$ 71,320 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH |
2,560 |
0.99 |
1.08 |
$ 34.16 |
$ 71,050 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA |
9,850 |
1.13 |
1.23 |
$ 34.14 |
$ 71,010 |
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in Chefs and Head Cooks:
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Chefs and Head Cooks:
Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for Chefs and Head Cooks:
About May 2021 National, State, Metropolitan, and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors, all metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas, and all states and the District of Columbia.
The top employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable XLS files.
The percentile wage estimate is the value of a wage below which a certain percent of workers fall.
The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate—50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median.
More about percentile wages.
(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.
(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours;
for those occupations where there is not an hourly wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.
(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.
(8) Estimate not released.
(9) The location quotient is the ratio of the area concentration of occupational employment to the national average concentration.
A location quotient greater than one indicates the occupation has a higher share of employment than average, and a location quotient less than one indicates the occupation is less prevalent in the area than average.
Other OEWS estimates and related information:
May 2021 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 Occupation Profiles
Technical Notes
Last Modified Date: March 31, 2022
United States Department of Labor
