Pay for fast food & counter workers is unusually consistent across the country: $21,520 at the bottom of the range, $45,410 at the top, a spread of only 2.11×. Where you work matters less for this role than it does for most — which usually points to pay being set by structure (scales, licensure, collective agreements) rather than local bidding.
From $22,840 at the 10th percentile to $42,650 at the 90th is only 1.87×, which is narrow. Pay for fast food & counter workers is set more by structure than by individual outcome — scales, steps, licensure. That makes income predictable and makes the ceiling real: the way to earn materially more is usually to change role or location, not to out-perform within this one.
10 of the ten best-paying metros for fast food & counter workers are in CA. When one state dominates the top of the table like this, cost of living is doing part of the work but rarely all of it — state licensing rules, public-sector pay scales and the presence of a few large employers usually explain the rest. If you are comparing an offer in CA against one elsewhere, adjust for housing before concluding anything.
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Napa CA | $45,410 | $21.83 | 0.75 | 1,440 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara CA | $44,570 | $21.43 | 0.82 | 23,060 |
| Vallejo CA | $44,110 | $21.21 | 1.24 | 4,430 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont CA | $43,870 | $21.09 | 0.85 | 49,970 |
| Santa Rosa-Petaluma CA | $43,610 | $20.97 | 0.93 | 4,720 |
| Santa Cruz-Watsonville CA | $43,400 | $20.87 | 1.32 | 3,220 |
| Salinas CA | $43,260 | $20.80 | 0.9 | 4,180 |
| Santa Maria-Santa Barbara CA | $42,940 | $20.64 | 1.19 | 5,930 |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom CA | $42,860 | $20.61 | 0.93 | 24,910 |
| Modesto CA | $42,630 | $20.50 | 1.38 | 6,700 |
| Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura CA | $42,370 | $20.37 | 1.19 | 9,520 |
| San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles CA | $42,350 | $20.36 | 1.09 | 3,310 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario CA | $42,280 | $20.33 | 1.21 | 51,310 |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad CA | $42,190 | $20.28 | 1.12 | 42,550 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim CA | $42,110 | $20.24 | 1.03 | 160,270 |
| Hanford-Corcoran CA | $42,060 | $20.22 | 1.33 | 1,610 |
| Yuba City CA | $42,040 | $20.21 | 1.29 | 1,630 |
| North Valley-Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetropolitan area | $41,910 | $20.15 | 0.95 | 2,470 |
| Stockton-Lodi CA | $41,740 | $20.07 | 1.05 | 7,560 |
| North Coast Region of California nonmetropolitan area | $39,710 | $19.09 | 1.01 | 2,750 |
| Fresno CA | $39,480 | $18.98 | 1.04 | 12,330 |
| Bakersfield-Delano CA | $39,470 | $18.98 | 1.09 | 9,180 |
| Redding CA | $39,160 | $18.83 | 1.09 | 1,930 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue WA | $39,150 | $18.82 | 0.95 | 49,190 |
| El Centro CA | $38,840 | $18.68 | 1.01 | 1,630 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southwest Louisiana nonmetropolitan area | $21,520 | $10.35 | 1.08 | 2,140 |
| Monroe LA | $21,550 | $10.36 | 0.95 | 2,060 |
| Alexandria LA | $21,760 | $10.46 | 1 | 1,490 |
| Northeast Louisiana nonmetropolitan area | $21,810 | $10.48 | 1.25 | 1,930 |
| Central Louisiana nonmetropolitan area | $21,820 | $10.49 | 0.99 | 1,910 |
| Puerto Rico nonmetropolitan area | $21,840 | $10.50 | 1.46 | 1,070 |
| Ponce PR | $21,840 | $10.50 | 1.34 | 2,100 |
| Mayaguez PR | $21,840 | $10.50 | 1.34 | 1,730 |
| Arecibo PR | $21,840 | $10.50 | 1.67 | 1,440 |
| Lower East Mississippi nonmetropolitan area | $21,890 | $10.53 | 1.12 | 3,430 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lawrence KS | $28,320 | $13.62 | 2.25 | 2,880 |
| Eagle Pass TX | $24,570 | $11.81 | 2.18 | 1,020 |
| Hinesville GA | $25,210 | $12.12 | 2.04 | 1,030 |
| Warner Robins GA | $26,610 | $12.79 | 1.93 | 3,650 |
| Lubbock TX | $25,250 | $12.14 | 1.92 | 7,930 |
| Muncie IN | $27,560 | $13.25 | 1.91 | 2,120 |
| Killeen-Temple TX | $26,530 | $12.76 | 1.91 | 7,120 |
| North Region of Texas nonmetropolitan area | $23,560 | $11.33 | 1.79 | 12,240 |
| Eastern Region of Texas nonmetropolitan area | $23,760 | $11.42 | 1.79 | 5,090 |
| Valdosta GA | $23,100 | $11.11 | 1.78 | 2,380 |
| Victoria TX | $24,510 | $11.78 | 1.78 | 1,680 |
| Guayama PR | $21,920 | $10.54 | 1.78 | 550 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York-Newark-Jersey City NY-NJ | $35,420 | $17.03 | 0.71 | 166,040 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim CA | $42,110 | $20.24 | 1.03 | 160,270 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington TX | $28,070 | $13.50 | 1.28 | 128,380 |
| Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands TX | $27,570 | $13.25 | 1.3 | 105,810 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin IL-IN | $34,630 | $16.65 | 0.87 | 97,280 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell GA | $27,780 | $13.36 | 1.13 | 80,730 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington PA-NJ-DE-MD | $32,220 | $15.49 | 0.96 | 69,080 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria DC-VA-MD-WV | $34,600 | $16.64 | 0.78 | 60,560 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton MA-NH | $36,290 | $17.45 | 0.9 | 60,130 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach FL | $29,600 | $14.23 | 0.81 | 56,900 |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler AZ | $34,540 | $16.61 | 0.93 | 54,900 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario CA | $42,280 | $20.33 | 1.21 | 51,310 |
Figures come from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics programme, May 2025 release, SOC code 35-3023. OEWS surveys employers, so it reports what is actually paid rather than what job advertisements claim, and it excludes the self-employed. Estimates cover 528 of 528 metropolitan areas — near-complete coverage, which means the ranges above are reliable rather than drawn from a handful of markets. Read the methodology.