Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
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Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2023
35-2021 Food Preparation Workers
Perform a variety of food preparation duties other than cooking, such as preparing cold foods and shellfish, slicing meat, and brewing coffee or tea.
National estimates for Food Preparation Workers
Industry profile for Food Preparation Workers
Geographic profile for Food Preparation Workers
National estimates for Food Preparation Workers:
Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Food Preparation Workers:
| Employment (1) |
Employment
RSE (3) |
Mean hourly
wage |
Mean annual
wage (2) |
Wage RSE (3) |
| 879,610 |
1.2 % |
$ 15.85 |
$ 32,960 |
0.4 % |
Percentile wage estimates for Food Preparation Workers:
| Percentile |
10% |
25% |
50%
(Median) |
75% |
90% |
| Hourly Wage |
$ 11.04 |
$ 13.42 |
$ 15.59 |
$ 17.68 |
$ 20.67 |
| Annual Wage (2) |
$ 22,970 |
$ 27,920 |
$ 32,420 |
$ 36,780 |
$ 42,990 |
Industry profile for Food Preparation Workers:
Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Food Preparation Workers are provided.
For a list of all industries with employment in Food Preparation Workers, see the Create Customized Tables function.
Industries with the highest levels of employment in Food Preparation Workers:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Restaurants and Other Eating Places |
436,500 |
4.02 |
$ 15.26 |
$ 31,730 |
| Food and Beverage Retailers (4451 and 4452 only) |
185,270 |
6.10 |
$ 16.13 |
$ 33,540 |
| Special Food Services |
51,220 |
7.11 |
$ 16.27 |
$ 33,850 |
| General Merchandise Retailers |
30,930 |
0.96 |
$ 19.18 |
$ 39,900 |
| Elementary and Secondary Schools |
26,510 |
0.31 |
$ 16.80 |
$ 34,940 |
Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Food Preparation Workers:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Special Food Services |
51,220 |
7.11 |
$ 16.27 |
$ 33,850 |
| Food and Beverage Retailers (4451 and 4452 only) |
185,270 |
6.10 |
$ 16.13 |
$ 33,540 |
| Restaurants and Other Eating Places |
436,500 |
4.02 |
$ 15.26 |
$ 31,730 |
| Rooming and Boarding Houses, Dormitories, and Workers' Camps |
190 |
1.88 |
$ 16.20 |
$ 33,700 |
| Gasoline Stations |
17,860 |
1.85 |
$ 14.07 |
$ 29,260 |
Top paying industries for Food Preparation Workers:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Motion Picture and Video Industries |
260 |
0.06 |
$ 22.66 |
$ 47,130 |
| Office Administrative Services |
60 |
0.01 |
$ 22.42 |
$ 46,640 |
| Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services |
40 |
(7) |
$ 22.38 |
$ 46,560 |
| Business, Professional, Labor, Political, and Similar Organizations |
230 |
0.05 |
$ 21.32 |
$ 44,350 |
| Animal Slaughtering and Processing |
370 |
0.07 |
$ 20.41 |
$ 42,460 |
Geographic profile for Food Preparation Workers:
States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Food Preparation Workers are provided.
For a list of all areas with employment in Food Preparation Workers, see the Create Customized Tables function.
States with the highest employment level in Food Preparation Workers:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| California |
107,870 |
6.01 |
1.04 |
$ 18.83 |
$ 39,170 |
| Texas |
92,020 |
6.79 |
1.17 |
$ 14.34 |
$ 29,820 |
| Florida |
70,830 |
7.40 |
1.28 |
$ 15.75 |
$ 32,760 |
| New York |
51,920 |
5.53 |
0.95 |
$ 18.41 |
$ 38,300 |
| Illinois |
39,660 |
6.60 |
1.14 |
$ 16.35 |
$ 34,010 |
States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Food Preparation Workers:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Louisiana |
29,250 |
15.80 |
2.73 |
$ 11.36 |
$ 23,620 |
| Maine |
6,690 |
10.76 |
1.86 |
$ 16.66 |
$ 34,640 |
| Alaska |
2,840 |
9.12 |
1.57 |
$ 17.56 |
$ 36,530 |
| Alabama |
16,310 |
7.94 |
1.37 |
$ 12.41 |
$ 25,810 |
| South Carolina |
16,930 |
7.61 |
1.31 |
$ 13.83 |
$ 28,760 |
Top paying states for Food Preparation Workers:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Washington |
17,450 |
4.99 |
0.86 |
$ 20.19 |
$ 41,990 |
| District of Columbia |
3,960 |
5.65 |
0.98 |
$ 19.01 |
$ 39,540 |
| California |
107,870 |
6.01 |
1.04 |
$ 18.83 |
$ 39,170 |
| Massachusetts |
15,230 |
4.18 |
0.72 |
$ 18.76 |
$ 39,010 |
| Colorado |
13,050 |
4.61 |
0.80 |
$ 18.62 |
$ 38,730 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Food Preparation Workers:
| 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 |
58,560 |
6.17 |
1.06 |
$ 18.61 |
$ 38,700 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
39,530 |
6.39 |
1.10 |
$ 18.71 |
$ 38,920 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI |
32,000 |
7.10 |
1.23 |
$ 16.77 |
$ 34,890 |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX |
26,220 |
8.25 |
1.42 |
$ 13.94 |
$ 28,980 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX |
25,970 |
6.55 |
1.13 |
$ 15.13 |
$ 31,470 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL |
19,810 |
7.28 |
1.26 |
$ 16.01 |
$ 33,300 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA |
18,440 |
6.54 |
1.13 |
$ 15.09 |
$ 31,390 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV |
15,530 |
5.02 |
0.87 |
$ 17.09 |
$ 35,550 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA |
14,960 |
6.18 |
1.07 |
$ 19.70 |
$ 40,970 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI |
12,200 |
6.39 |
1.10 |
$ 16.97 |
$ 35,310 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Food Preparation Workers:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Hammond, LA |
900 |
19.23 |
3.32 |
$ 10.93 |
$ 22,730 |
| Lafayette, LA |
3,410 |
17.75 |
3.06 |
$ 11.32 |
$ 23,550 |
| Monroe, LA |
1,280 |
17.06 |
2.95 |
$ 10.77 |
$ 22,400 |
| Lake Charles, LA |
1,520 |
16.73 |
2.89 |
$ 11.71 |
$ 24,360 |
| Shreveport-Bossier City, LA |
2,790 |
16.37 |
2.83 |
$ 11.14 |
$ 23,180 |
| New Orleans-Metairie, LA |
8,270 |
16.07 |
2.77 |
$ 11.87 |
$ 24,680 |
| Alexandria, LA |
860 |
14.54 |
2.51 |
$ 10.75 |
$ 22,360 |
| Houma-Thibodaux, LA |
1,150 |
14.28 |
2.47 |
$ 11.24 |
$ 23,380 |
| Baton Rouge, LA |
5,520 |
14.23 |
2.46 |
$ 11.40 |
$ 23,700 |
| Lewiston-Auburn, ME |
630 |
13.24 |
2.29 |
$ 16.32 |
$ 33,940 |
Top paying metropolitan areas for Food Preparation Workers:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA |
9,830 |
4.73 |
0.82 |
$ 21.32 |
$ 44,350 |
| Napa, CA |
660 |
8.53 |
1.47 |
$ 20.81 |
$ 43,280 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA |
6,620 |
5.79 |
1.00 |
$ 20.60 |
$ 42,860 |
| Boulder, CO |
710 |
3.65 |
0.63 |
$ 20.13 |
$ 41,870 |
| Kahului-Wailuku-Lahaina, HI |
510 |
6.76 |
1.17 |
$ 19.96 |
$ 41,510 |
| Santa Rosa, CA |
1,520 |
7.37 |
1.27 |
$ 19.71 |
$ 40,990 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA |
14,960 |
6.18 |
1.07 |
$ 19.70 |
$ 40,970 |
| Mount Vernon-Anacortes, WA |
300 |
5.94 |
1.03 |
$ 19.69 |
$ 40,960 |
| Bremerton-Silverdale, WA |
580 |
6.29 |
1.09 |
$ 19.52 |
$ 40,600 |
| Olympia-Tumwater, WA |
570 |
4.61 |
0.80 |
$ 19.46 |
$ 40,470 |
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in Food Preparation Workers:
| Nonmetropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Kansas nonmetropolitan area |
2,540 |
6.55 |
1.13 |
$ 13.21 |
$ 27,470 |
| Southwest Maine nonmetropolitan area |
2,360 |
12.46 |
2.15 |
$ 16.40 |
$ 34,110 |
| North Texas Region of Texas nonmetropolitan area |
1,850 |
6.64 |
1.15 |
$ 12.83 |
$ 26,690 |
| Northwest Minnesota nonmetropolitan area |
1,770 |
9.36 |
1.62 |
$ 15.86 |
$ 32,990 |
| Northeastern Wisconsin nonmetropolitan area |
1,690 |
8.64 |
1.49 |
$ 14.26 |
$ 29,660 |
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Food Preparation Workers:
| Nonmetropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Northeast Louisiana nonmetropolitan area |
1,070 |
17.04 |
2.94 |
$ 10.50 |
$ 21,840 |
| Central Louisiana nonmetropolitan area |
1,300 |
16.82 |
2.90 |
$ 10.79 |
$ 22,450 |
| Southwest Louisiana nonmetropolitan area |
1,070 |
16.07 |
2.77 |
$ 10.72 |
$ 22,290 |
| Northeast Maine nonmetropolitan area |
1,060 |
15.41 |
2.66 |
$ 16.19 |
$ 33,670 |
| Southwest Maine nonmetropolitan area |
2,360 |
12.46 |
2.15 |
$ 16.40 |
$ 34,110 |
Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for Food Preparation Workers:
About May 2023 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.
(7) The value is less than .005 percent of industry employment.
(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 2023 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2023 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2023 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2023 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2023 Occupation Profiles
Technical Notes
Last Modified Date: April 3, 2024
United States Department of Labor
