Average Chefs And Head Cooks Salary in the United States
The national median salary for Chefs And Head Cooks is $62,470 per year. The middle 50% earn between $48,440 and $78,750, with 200,040 workers employed nationally.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey, May 2025 estimates . Data covers 51 states and 340 metro areas.
Pay distribution
Here is how Chefs And Head Cooks pay is distributed across workers nationally. The 10th percentile typically reflects entry-level or early-career pay, the median is the midpoint, and the 90th percentile represents the top earners in the field.
- 10th
- $37,900
- 25th
- $48,440
- Median
- $62,470
- 75th
- $78,750
- 90th
- $98,560
All values are percentiles of annual wages.
Chefs And Head Cooks earn close to the national median for all US workers. Solidly middle-income.
The spread between entry-level and top-end pay is typical for US occupations. Experience and specialization matter, but the range is not unusually wide.
Job outlook
BLS projects employment for chefs and head cooks from 2024 to 2034. Growth is above the US average of about 4% across all occupations. This is an expanding field.
- Projected growth
- +7.1%
- 14,000 net jobs over the projection period.
- Annual openings
- 24,400
- Includes growth plus replacements for workers who leave. Annual openings reflect typical replacement demand alongside any growth.
- Typical entry education
- High school diploma or equivalent
- Work experience
- 5 years or more
A high-school diploma is typically sufficient for entry, with much of the training happening on the job.
Where Chefs And Head Cooks earn the most
Location matters a lot. The gap between top-paying and bottom-paying states is large, so where chefs and head cooks work can reshape their total compensation. Right now, the top-paying state is Rhode Island at $79,930, about 27.9% above the national median. At the metro level, Terre Haute, IN leads with a median of $85,920.
Top-paying states
| State | Median salary | Employment |
|---|---|---|
| Rhode Island | $79,930 | 740 |
| Hawaii | $77,360 | 1,240 |
| District of Columbia | $76,420 | 2,020 |
| Washington | $76,010 | 5,320 |
| North Dakota | $74,740 | 100 |
| New Jersey | $74,280 | 9,100 |
| Wyoming | $73,170 | 240 |
| South Carolina | $71,860 | 2,650 |
Top-paying metros
| Metro area | Median salary | Employment |
|---|---|---|
| Terre Haute, IN | $85,920 | 50 |
| Kahului-Wailuku, HI | $84,990 | 250 |
| Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY | $84,430 | 470 |
| Morgantown, WV | $81,330 | 70 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $80,330 | 3,740 |
| Providence-Warwick, RI-MA | $79,340 | 1,070 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | $79,020 | 1,280 |
| Napa, CA | $78,960 | 300 |
Compare two locations side by side
Pick two states or metros to see chefs and head cooks pay in each, along with a cost-of-living adjusted view.
Salary trend and related occupations
Between 2019 and 2025, the national median salary for Chefs And Head Cooks rose from $51,530 to $62,470, a gain of +21.2% in nominal dollars.
Over the same period, US consumer prices rose by +25.9%. Just to keep pace with inflation, the 2019 median of $51,530 would need to be worth $64,891 in 2025 dollars.
The actual 2025 median of $62,470 is −$2,421 below that inflation-adjusted benchmark, a real change of -3.7% in purchasing power.
Adjusted for inflation, pay has lost ground. Nominal growth of 21.2% has not kept up with rising prices.
- Nominal change
- +21.2%
- 2019–2025
- Cumulative inflation
- +25.9%
- US CPI, 2019–2025
- Real change
- -3.7%
- After adjusting for inflation
Median salary over time
Chefs And Head Cooks median pay by year, going back through the available BLS releases.
- 2025
- $62,470
- 2024
- $60,990
- 2023
- $58,920
- 2022
- $56,520
- 2021
- $50,160
- 2020
- $53,380
- 2019
- $51,530
BLS did not publish a median for 2000–2018, so those years are omitted.
Related occupations
Other occupations in the same field, with median pay for comparison.
- Cooks, Private Household
- $47,940
- Cooks, All Other
- $37,690
- Cooks, Institution And Cafeteria
- $37,450
- Cooks, Restaurant
- $37,390
- Cooks, Short Order
- $35,880
- Food Servers, Nonrestaurant
- $35,360
Common salary questions for Chefs And Head Cooks
What does the median salary mean? +
The median is the midpoint of all wages. Half of Chefs And Head Cooks workers earn more and half earn less. It is a better measure of typical pay than the average, which can be skewed by very high or very low earners.
Why does pay vary so much by location? +
Local labor markets, cost of living, industry concentration, and employer competition all affect wages. High-cost metros like San Francisco and New York often pay more in nominal terms, though some of that premium is offset by higher living costs.
How current is this salary data? +
This page uses the May 2025 BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics release. BLS publishes OEWS data once per year, typically in the spring for the previous May reference period.
What do the percentile ranges tell me? +
The 10th and 90th percentiles show the full pay band. The 25th to 75th percentile range, the middle 50%, is where most workers fall. A wide spread usually means experience, specialization, or location matter a lot for this occupation.