Pay for food preparation workers is unusually consistent across the country: $21,750 at the bottom of the range, $46,680 at the top, a spread of only 2.15×. 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 $25,810 at the 10th percentile to $45,340 at the 90th is only 1.76×, which is narrow. Pay for food preparation 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.
Kahului-Wailuku (HI) leads and Southwest Louisiana nonmetropolitan area () trails, but the gap is modest. For a role like this the more useful comparison is not between cities but between the 10th and 90th percentile within one — see the band above.
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kahului-Wailuku HI | $46,680 | $22.44 | 1.7 | 720 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara CA | $45,580 | $21.91 | 0.91 | 5,930 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue WA | $43,830 | $21.07 | 0.92 | 11,060 |
| Hawaii / Kauai nonmetropolitan area | $42,950 | $20.65 | 1.66 | 1,000 |
| Napa CA | $42,810 | $20.58 | 1.39 | 620 |
| Santa Rosa-Petaluma CA | $42,640 | $20.50 | 1.19 | 1,410 |
| Yakima WA | $41,750 | $20.07 | 1.07 | 600 |
| Northwest Colorado nonmetropolitan area | $41,540 | $19.97 | 1.01 | 770 |
| Massachusetts nonmetropolitan area | $41,040 | $19.73 | 1.1 | 260 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont CA | $41,000 | $19.71 | 1.06 | 14,470 |
| Amherst Town-Northampton MA | $40,140 | $19.30 | 1.35 | 510 |
| Walla Walla WA | $40,030 | $19.25 | 1.42 | 210 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim CA | $39,770 | $19.12 | 1.25 | 44,930 |
| Boulder CO | $39,690 | $19.08 | 0.59 | 650 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton MA-NH | $39,660 | $19.07 | 0.62 | 9,630 |
| Denver-Aurora-Centennial CO | $39,470 | $18.98 | 0.72 | 6,640 |
| Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard WA | $39,400 | $18.94 | 1.08 | 580 |
| Southwest Colorado nonmetropolitan area | $39,200 | $18.84 | 0.94 | 590 |
| Greeley CO | $39,150 | $18.82 | 0.77 | 530 |
| Santa Cruz-Watsonville CA | $39,110 | $18.80 | 1.46 | 830 |
| Merced CA | $38,980 | $18.74 | 1.02 | 460 |
| Vallejo CA | $38,840 | $18.68 | 1.12 | 930 |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad CA | $38,780 | $18.64 | 1.06 | 9,360 |
| Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro OR-WA | $38,730 | $18.62 | 0.99 | 6,870 |
| Barnstable Town MA | $38,660 | $18.59 | 1.24 | 670 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southwest Louisiana nonmetropolitan area | $21,750 | $10.46 | 2.33 | 1,070 |
| Puerto Rico nonmetropolitan area | $21,840 | $10.50 | 0.91 | 150 |
| Central Louisiana nonmetropolitan area | $21,910 | $10.54 | 2.32 | 1,040 |
| Ponce PR | $21,960 | $10.56 | 0.89 | 330 |
| Lower West Mississippi nonmetropolitan area | $21,970 | $10.56 | 1.21 | 560 |
| Mayaguez PR | $22,050 | $10.60 | 1 | 300 |
| Alexandria LA | $22,080 | $10.62 | 2.83 | 980 |
| Southeast Oklahoma nonmetropolitan area | $22,110 | $10.63 | 0.84 | 900 |
| Southwest Oklahoma nonmetropolitan area | $22,110 | $10.63 | 0.65 | 230 |
| Northwest Oklahoma nonmetropolitan area | $22,270 | $10.71 | 0.75 | 420 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Slidell-Mandeville-Covington LA | $24,380 | $11.72 | 3.68 | 2,070 |
| Lake Charles LA | $23,380 | $11.24 | 3.32 | 1,940 |
| Monroe LA | $22,430 | $10.78 | 3.25 | 1,630 |
| Lafayette LA | $22,920 | $11.02 | 3.16 | 3,260 |
| Hammond LA | $22,740 | $10.93 | 3.15 | 870 |
| Shreveport-Bossier City LA | $22,980 | $11.05 | 3.06 | 2,860 |
| Alexandria LA | $22,080 | $10.62 | 2.83 | 980 |
| New Orleans-Metairie LA | $26,200 | $12.60 | 2.83 | 7,250 |
| Northeast Louisiana nonmetropolitan area | $22,300 | $10.72 | 2.59 | 930 |
| Baton Rouge LA | $24,450 | $11.76 | 2.46 | 5,800 |
| Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux LA | $22,810 | $10.97 | 2.39 | 1,150 |
| Daphne-Fairhope-Foley AL | $28,490 | $13.70 | 2.37 | 1,190 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York-Newark-Jersey City NY-NJ | $35,670 | $17.15 | 1.16 | 63,530 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim CA | $39,770 | $19.12 | 1.25 | 44,930 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin IL-IN | $35,410 | $17.02 | 1.04 | 27,100 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington TX | $30,740 | $14.78 | 0.93 | 21,700 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach FL | $36,090 | $17.35 | 1.21 | 19,630 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell GA | $36,090 | $17.35 | 1.03 | 17,060 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington MN-WI | $35,100 | $16.87 | 1.5 | 16,810 |
| Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands TX | $35,020 | $16.84 | 0.86 | 16,240 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria DC-VA-MD-WV | $37,630 | $18.09 | 0.82 | 14,810 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont CA | $41,000 | $19.71 | 1.06 | 14,470 |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler AZ | $37,580 | $18.07 | 0.87 | 11,910 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario CA | $38,420 | $18.47 | 1.13 | 11,190 |
Figures come from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics programme, May 2025 release, SOC code 35-2021. OEWS surveys employers, so it reports what is actually paid rather than what job advertisements claim, and it excludes the self-employed. Estimates cover 527 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.