Cooks, All Other Salary: $42,958 Median Pay (2026 stats)
TL;DR
About 23,590 cooks, all other nationally earn a mean of $42,958. Employment in the series shown rose about 34% from the first to the last year; projections imply about 4.0% annual growth.
Key Statistics
Cooks, All Other: what the data shows
Common questions about cooks, all other careers, answered from BLS OEWS and O*NET in this repository.
What is a cooks, all other?
Cooks, All Other is tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics under SOC 35-2019.
U.S. employment in our OEWS extract is about 23,590 workers.
What does a cooks, all other do?
O*NET work activities rated highest for this occupation include Getting Information, Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates, Handling and Moving Objects, Performing General Physical Activities, Processing Information, Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events, and related tasks. See Work Activities for the full list.
How much does a cooks, all other make?
BLS national median annual wage: $36,210 (May 2024 in our extract).
Mean annual wage in our occupational extract: $42,958 — higher than the median, which often reflects top earners in the distribution.
Wage percentiles below are from the California OEWS extract (not national unless noted).
| Wage percentile | Annual wage |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $35,049 |
| 25th percentile | $37,239 |
| Median (50th) | $40,551 |
| 75th percentile | $45,662 |
| 90th percentile | $51,915 |
What education do you need?
For Cooks, All Other, O*NET incumbent surveys in our extract most often report: Some college (29%), High School or Equivalent (27%), Bachelors Degree (22%).
These are education levels of current workers, not minimum legal requirements.
What skills do you need?
O*NET ratings for this occupation emphasize skills such as Active Listening, Service Orientation, Coordination, Speaking, Social Perceptiveness, Critical Thinking, and knowledge areas including Administration and Management, Transportation, Communications and Media, Public Safety and Security. See Education & Skills for detail.
Is cooks, all other in demand?
Historical employment trend in our series implies about 4.0% annual growth (compound rate in the extract).
Five-year projected employment change: 21.9%.
Ten-year projected employment change: 48.6%.
Current U.S. headcount: 23,590.
We report federal series only—compare wages, growth, and openings against your target market.
Where do cooks, all others work?
Top industries by employment share in our OEWS industry extract:
| Industry | Employment | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Cross-industry | 23,590 | 19.7% |
| Cross-industry, Private Ownership only | 23,350 | 19.5% |
| Accommodation and Food Services | 12,210 | 10.2% |
| Food Services and Drinking Places | 10,230 | 8.5% |
| Restaurants and Other Eating Places | 5,510 | 4.6% |
| Special Food Services | 4,520 | 3.8% |
See Industry for charts.
What degrees lead to this career?
Common majors for Cooks, All Other in O*NET:
See Related degrees.
Employment
Employment and salary information for the Cooks, All Other workforce.
Employment Over Time
23,590 Workforce in 2023
The Cooks, All Other workforce has been growing over time.
Historical employment trends for Cooks, All Other.
Yearly Wage Ranking
$42,958 Average Wage
In 2023, Cooks, All Other earned an average of $42,958.
Wage ranking compared to other occupations.
Wage Distribution
This chart shows the distribution of average salaries by income buckets for Cooks, All Other.
Salary distribution for Cooks, All Other.
Employment Growth Projections
4.0% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR)
18,433 Projected Employment (5 years)
Projected growth: 21.9%
22,473 Projected Employment (10 years)
Projected growth: 48.6%
This occupation is projected to grow at 4.0% annually, indicating strong future demand.
Historical employment trends and future projections for Cooks, All Other.
Industry
Information on the industries that employ Cooks, All Other and on wages for those in the field.
Occupations by Industries
This graphic shows the share of Cooks, All Other employed by various industries.
Industry distribution for Cooks, All Other.
Wage Trends by Industry
8.4% Average Annual Wage Growth Rate
Historical wage growth trends by industry for Cooks, All Other.
Geographic Distribution
Employment and wage information by geographic location for Cooks, All Other.
State employment and wages are from the U.S. BLS OEWS May 2024 state extract. Metropolitan areas use the national MSA file when available.
Top States by Employment
Top States by Employment:
- TX: 5,130 employees, $32,980 avg wage
- CA: 4,420 employees, $41,770 avg wage
- TN: 2,710 employees, $32,870 avg wage
- NY: 1,260 employees, $42,540 avg wage
- FL: 1,120 employees, $45,050 avg wage
- PA: 870 employees, $35,430 avg wage
- MD: 750 employees, $36,460 avg wage
- VA: 710 employees, $37,910 avg wage
- LA: 620 employees, $31,990 avg wage
- NJ: 590 employees, $43,590 avg wage
Top 10 states by employment for Cooks, All Other.
Top Metropolitan Areas
Top Metropolitan Areas:
- Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX: 1,710 employees, $32,960 avg wage
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA: 1,640 employees, $40,990 avg wage
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ: 1,320 employees, $42,780 avg wage
- San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA: 940 employees, $46,300 avg wage
- Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX: 820 employees, $39,420 avg wage
- Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN: 800 employees, $30,990 avg wage
- Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX: 740 employees, $34,180 avg wage
- Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV: 510 employees, $38,980 avg wage
- Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL: 440 employees, $52,530 avg wage
- Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA: 360 employees, $36,440 avg wage
Top 10 metropolitan statistical areas by employment for Cooks, All Other.
Diversity
Demographic information on Cooks, All Other in the US.
Gender and Age
The workforce of Cooks, All Other in 2023 was 23,590 people, with 62.0% women and 38.0% men.
Gender and age distribution for Cooks, All Other.
Races
Racial and ethnic shares when present in the career dataset. If the chart area shows a notice instead, occupational race/ethnicity fields are not yet populated for this extract.
Race and ethnicity distribution for Cooks, All Other.
Education & Skills
Data on higher education choices and required skills for Cooks, All Other.
Majors
The most common majors achieved by Cooks, All Other in 2023 were Business, Social Sciences, General Studies.
Common majors for Cooks, All Other.
Education Levels
The main educational levels achieved by Cooks, All Other workers.
Education level distribution for Cooks, All Other.
Skills
Cooks, All Other need many skills, but most especially Active Listening, Service Orientation, Coordination, Speaking, Social Perceptiveness.
Required skills for Cooks, All Other.
Knowledge & Abilities
Knowledge areas and abilities required for Cooks, All Other.
Knowledge Areas
The most important knowledge areas for Cooks, All Other include Administration and Management, Transportation, Communications and Media, Public Safety and Security, Customer and Personal Service.
Knowledge areas required for Cooks, All Other.
Abilities
Key abilities needed for Cooks, All Other include Oral Comprehension, Near Vision, Information Ordering, Speech Recognition, Written Comprehension.
Required abilities for Cooks, All Other.
Work Activities
Common work activities performed by Cooks, All Other.
Daily Activities
Cooks, All Other spend their time on activities such as Getting Information, Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates, Handling and Moving Objects, Performing General Physical Activities, Processing Information.
Most important work activities for Cooks, All Other.
About
Cooks, All Other
The average yearly wage for Cooks, All Other was $42,958 in 2023.
SOC Code
35-2019 - Cooks, All Other
Insights and Analysis
Compensation snapshot: Cooks, All Other reports an average salary of $42,958.
Labor market presence: The current workforce is approximately 23,590 workers, indicating sustained demand.
Forward outlook: Projected annual growth is 4.0%, which should inform long-term career planning.
Data Sources
This page uses data from the following sources:
- College Scorecard - U.S. Department of Education
- Institutional characteristics, costs, completion rates, and earnings data
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: collegescorecard.ed.gov
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)
- Employment and wage data by occupation
- Latest data: May 2024
- Source: bls.gov/oes
- O*NET Online - U.S. Department of Labor
- Occupational skills, knowledge, abilities, and work activities
- Database version: 28.0 (August 2023)
- Source: onetcenter.org
- IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) - National Center for Education Statistics
- Institutional data, completions, enrollment, and financial aid
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: nces.ed.gov/ipeds
- Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS)
- Demographic and workforce data
- Latest data: 2023 ACS 5-Year Estimates
- Source: census.gov/acs
Data Processing: All data has been processed, cleaned, and aggregated for presentation. Where specific data points are unavailable, estimates are based on available data and clearly marked.
Last Updated: Data reflects the most recent available information as of January 2025.
Methodology
Data for this profile is sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS), and O*NET Online.
All wage figures represent annual averages and may vary by location, industry, and experience level.