Pay for line cooks is unusually consistent across the country: $22,640 at the bottom of the range, $49,560 at the top, a spread of only 2.19×. 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 $28,700 at the 10th percentile to $47,900 at the 90th is only 1.67×, which is narrow. Pay for line cooks 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 Puerto Rico 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 | $49,560 | $23.83 | 2.65 | 1,770 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue WA | $47,730 | $22.95 | 1.1 | 20,850 |
| Massachusetts nonmetropolitan area | $47,480 | $22.83 | 1.44 | 540 |
| Napa CA | $47,320 | $22.75 | 1.8 | 1,270 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara CA | $47,170 | $22.68 | 0.86 | 8,900 |
| Hawaii / Kauai nonmetropolitan area | $47,060 | $22.63 | 2.47 | 2,360 |
| Barnstable Town MA | $46,930 | $22.56 | 2.07 | 1,760 |
| Portland-South Portland ME | $46,560 | $22.39 | 1.04 | 2,730 |
| Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard WA | $46,460 | $22.34 | 1.28 | 1,090 |
| Mount Vernon-Anacortes WA | $46,450 | $22.33 | 1.23 | 590 |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad CA | $46,440 | $22.33 | 1.12 | 15,670 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont CA | $46,030 | $22.13 | 0.95 | 20,540 |
| Northern Vermont nonmetropolitan area | $45,990 | $22.11 | 0.84 | 680 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton MA-NH | $45,830 | $22.03 | 0.93 | 22,900 |
| Santa Rosa-Petaluma CA | $45,720 | $21.98 | 1.26 | 2,340 |
| Burlington-South Burlington VT | $45,390 | $21.82 | 0.87 | 950 |
| Bellingham WA | $45,370 | $21.81 | 1.32 | 1,090 |
| Kennewick-Richland WA | $45,280 | $21.77 | 0.98 | 1,150 |
| Eastern Washington nonmetropolitan area | $45,250 | $21.76 | 1.09 | 1,080 |
| Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro OR-WA | $45,200 | $21.73 | 1.19 | 13,020 |
| Western Washington nonmetropolitan area | $45,120 | $21.69 | 1.44 | 1,690 |
| Longview-Kelso WA | $44,980 | $21.63 | 0.82 | 310 |
| Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater WA | $44,960 | $21.61 | 0.93 | 1,090 |
| Salinas CA | $44,930 | $21.60 | 1.13 | 1,910 |
| Northeast Maine nonmetropolitan area | $44,870 | $21.57 | 0.95 | 540 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Puerto Rico nonmetropolitan area | $22,640 | $10.88 | 1.29 | 340 |
| Mayaguez PR | $23,090 | $11.10 | 1.21 | 570 |
| Aguadilla PR | $23,130 | $11.12 | 1.35 | 600 |
| Ponce PR | $23,350 | $11.23 | 1.04 | 600 |
| Guayama PR | $23,380 | $11.24 | 0.94 | 110 |
| Arecibo PR | $23,970 | $11.53 | 1.2 | 380 |
| San Juan-Bayamon-Caguas PR | $25,500 | $12.26 | 1.15 | 7,210 |
| Southwest Louisiana nonmetropolitan area | $25,850 | $12.43 | 0.45 | 330 |
| Central Louisiana nonmetropolitan area | $26,270 | $12.63 | 0.73 | 510 |
| Northeast Louisiana nonmetropolitan area | $26,620 | $12.80 | 0.62 | 350 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kahului-Wailuku HI | $49,560 | $23.83 | 2.65 | 1,770 |
| Northwest Colorado nonmetropolitan area | $43,030 | $20.69 | 2.62 | 3,150 |
| Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach SC | $35,190 | $16.92 | 2.58 | 3,420 |
| Sussex Delaware nonmetropolitan area | $37,700 | $18.12 | 2.48 | 2,190 |
| Hawaii / Kauai nonmetropolitan area | $47,060 | $22.63 | 2.47 | 2,360 |
| Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal SC | $36,820 | $17.70 | 2.33 | 1,730 |
| Naples-Marco Island FL | $41,220 | $19.82 | 2.32 | 3,650 |
| South Florida nonmetropolitan area | $37,820 | $18.18 | 2.28 | 1,810 |
| Atlantic City-Hammonton NJ | $40,250 | $19.35 | 2.21 | 3,370 |
| Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas NV | $38,800 | $18.65 | 2.19 | 22,530 |
| Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin FL | $36,600 | $17.60 | 2.11 | 2,400 |
| Southwest Montana nonmetropolitan area | $37,460 | $18.01 | 2.1 | 740 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York-Newark-Jersey City NY-NJ | $43,740 | $21.03 | 0.8 | 69,250 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim CA | $44,460 | $21.38 | 0.96 | 54,320 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin IL-IN | $38,930 | $18.72 | 1.02 | 41,690 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach FL | $36,920 | $17.75 | 1.46 | 37,210 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington TX | $36,490 | $17.54 | 0.94 | 34,430 |
| Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands TX | $35,050 | $16.85 | 1.1 | 32,710 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria DC-VA-MD-WV | $42,920 | $20.64 | 1.04 | 29,670 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell GA | $37,230 | $17.90 | 1.11 | 29,040 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington PA-NJ-DE-MD | $38,270 | $18.40 | 0.92 | 24,220 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton MA-NH | $45,830 | $22.03 | 0.93 | 22,900 |
| Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas NV | $38,800 | $18.65 | 2.19 | 22,530 |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler AZ | $39,170 | $18.83 | 1.01 | 21,780 |
Figures come from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics programme, May 2025 release, SOC code 35-2014. OEWS surveys employers, so it reports what is actually paid rather than what job advertisements claim, and it excludes the self-employed. Estimates cover 526 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.