Cooks, Private Household Salary: $44,530 Median Pay (2026 stats)
Executive Summary
About 900 cooks, private household work nationally, and $44,530 is the BLS national median annual wage. Projections imply about 13.9% annual decline.
Cooks, Private Household: what the data shows
Common questions about cooks, private household careers, answered from BLS OEWS and O*NET in this repository.
What is a cooks, private household?
Cooks, Private Household is tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics under SOC 35-2013.
U.S. employment in our OEWS extract is about 900 workers.
What does a cooks, private household do?
O*NET work activities rated highest for this occupation include Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work, Getting Information, Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships, Thinking Creatively, Making Decisions and Solving Problems, Performing General Physical Activities, and related tasks. See Work Activities for the full list.
How much does a cooks, private household make?
BLS national median annual wage: $44,530 (May 2024 in our extract).
What skills do you need?
O*NET ratings for this occupation emphasize skills such as Critical Thinking, Service Orientation, Complex Problem Solving, Time Management, Speaking, Social Perceptiveness, and knowledge areas including Customer and Personal Service, Food Production, Sales and Marketing, Administration and Management. See Education & Skills for detail.
Is cooks, private household in demand?
Historical employment trend in our series implies about 13.9% annual decline (compound rate in the extract).
Five-year projected employment change: -52.7%.
Ten-year projected employment change: -77.7%.
Current U.S. headcount: 900.
We report federal series only—compare wages, growth, and openings against your target market.
Where do cooks, private households work?
Top industries by employment share in our OEWS industry extract:
| Industry | Employment | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Cross-industry | 900 | 50.0% |
| Cross-industry, Private Ownership only | 900 | 50.0% |
See Industry for charts.
What degrees lead to this career?
Common majors for Cooks, Private Household in O*NET:
See Related degrees.
Employment
Employment and salary information for the Cooks, Private Household workforce.
Employment Over Time
900 U.S. workforce (OEWS)
California employment for Cooks, Private Household shrank from 440 in 2009 to 40 in 2025 (90.9%).
Historical employment for Cooks, Private Household from the California OEWS series, 2009–2025. The U.S. workforce figure is national and is not the endpoint of this line.
Yearly Wage Ranking
$44,530 Median pay (BLS national)
Cooks, Private Household earn $44,530 as the BLS national median annual wage.
Wage ranking compared to other occupations.
Wage Distribution
This chart shows the distribution of average salaries by income buckets for Cooks, Private Household.
Salary distribution for Cooks, Private Household.
Employment Growth Projections
-13.9% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR)
18 Projected Employment (5 years)
Projected growth: -52.7%
8 Projected Employment (10 years)
Projected growth: -77.7%
This occupation is experiencing a decline. Consider related fields with better growth prospects.
Historical employment trends and future projections for Cooks, Private Household.
Industry
Information on the industries that employ Cooks, Private Household and on wages for those in the field.
Occupations by Industries
This graphic shows the share of Cooks, Private Household employed by various industries.
Industry distribution for Cooks, Private Household.
Wage Trends by Industry
51.8% Average Annual Wage Growth Rate
Total, All Industry: 51.8% growth (Current: $102,598)
Historical wage growth trends by industry for Cooks, Private Household.
Geographic Distribution
Employment and wage information by geographic location for Cooks, Private Household.
Metropolitan employment on this page is from the California OEWS extract. Area names omit state codes; all listed metros are in California, so the state chart shows California totals (not a multi-state ranking).
Top States by Employment
Top States by Employment:
- CA: 20 employees, $102,598 avg wage
Top 10 states by employment for Cooks, Private Household.
Top Metropolitan Areas
Top Metropolitan Areas:
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale MD: 20 employees, $102,598 avg wage
Top 10 metropolitan statistical areas by employment for Cooks, Private Household.
Diversity
Demographic information on Cooks, Private Household in the US.
Gender and Age
The U.S. workforce for Cooks, Private Household is about 900 people in our OEWS extract.
Gender and age distribution for Cooks, Private Household.
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, Private Household.
Education & Skills
Data on higher education choices and required skills for Cooks, Private Household.
Majors
The most common majors achieved by Cooks, Private Household in 2023 were Business Administration, Business, Social Sciences.
Common majors for Cooks, Private Household.
Education Levels
The main educational levels achieved by Cooks, Private Household workers.
Education level distribution for Cooks, Private Household.
Skills
Cooks, Private Household need many skills, but most especially Critical Thinking, Service Orientation, Complex Problem Solving, Time Management, Speaking.
Required skills for Cooks, Private Household.
Knowledge & Abilities
Knowledge areas and abilities required for Cooks, Private Household.
Knowledge Areas
The most important knowledge areas for Cooks, Private Household include Customer and Personal Service, Food Production, Sales and Marketing, Administration and Management, Production and Processing.
Knowledge areas required for Cooks, Private Household.
Abilities
Key abilities needed for Cooks, Private Household include Near Vision, Fluency of Ideas, Problem Sensitivity, Manual Dexterity, Finger Dexterity.
Required abilities for Cooks, Private Household.
Work Activities
Common work activities performed by Cooks, Private Household.
Daily Activities
Cooks, Private Household spend their time on activities such as Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work, Getting Information, Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships, Thinking Creatively, Making Decisions and Solving Problems.
Most important work activities for Cooks, Private Household.
About
Cooks, Private Household
Cooks, Private Household earn $44,530 as the BLS national median annual wage.
SOC Code
35-2013 - Cooks, Private Household
Insights and Analysis
Labor market presence: The current workforce is approximately 900 workers, indicating sustained demand.
Forward outlook: Projected annual decline is -13.9%, 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.