Average Cooks, Fast Food Salary in North Carolina
Cooks, Fast Food in North Carolina earn a median annual salary of $27,190, which is -12.0% compared to the national median. There are 81,980 workers employed locally in this occupation.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey, May 2025 estimates for North Carolina (state).
Local wage range
- 10th
- $21,890
- 25th
- $22,740
- Median
- $27,190
- 75th
- $29,190
- 90th
- $34,860
All values are percentiles of annual wages.
This local range is the useful part of the page. The median tells you the center of the market in North Carolina, while the percentile band shows how compressed or wide the local pay distribution actually is.
Cost-of-living context
Services: 88.6%
Rents: 81.4%
Comparable states for this occupation
| State | Median annual wage | Compare | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hawaii | $48,120 | Compare | N/A |
| District of Columbia | $44,670 | Compare | 2,760 |
| California | $42,050 | Compare | 124,440 |
| Washington | $39,120 | Compare | 9,020 |
| New Hampshire | $38,590 | Compare | 1,330 |
| Vermont | $38,230 | Compare | 640 |
The point of this table is not random nearby places. It is to show the other labor markets where this same occupation looks stronger or weaker on the same OEWS release.
Top occupations in North Carolina
| Occupation | Median annual wage | LQ |
|---|---|---|
| Surgeons, All Other | $398,410 | 0.60 |
| Dermatologists | $367,350 | 2.21 |
| Emergency Medicine Physicians | $339,350 | 0.68 |
| Neurologists | $325,550 | 0.52 |
| Orthopedic Surgeons, Except Pediatric | $323,630 | 1.24 |
| Chief Executives | $314,290 | 0.30 |
| General Internal Medicine Physicians | $289,780 | 0.79 |
| Physicians, All Other | $260,330 | 1.29 |
North Carolina has salary data for 762 occupations. The highest-paid occupation in this area is Surgeons, All Other.
Trend for Cooks, Fast Food in North Carolina
Historical trend data is not yet available for this occupation in this area.
Outlook and page notes
Nationally, Cooks, Fast Food are projected to change by -13.5% from 2024 to 2034, with 82,100 annual openings.
Use this page to answer three separate questions: what the occupation pays here, how large the local market is, and whether this market is unusually concentrated for the occupation.
For metro pages in particular, read long-term trend rows as directional until the area comparability layer is fully wired. OEWS area definitions can change over time, and that matters more at the metro level than at the state level.