Cooks

Detailed Occupation

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2024 Workforce

2.1M

Average Age

36.2

Average Salary

$23,994

Average Male Salary

$25,072

Average Female Salary

$22,495

About

Cooks are most often employed by the Restaurants & Food Services industry. The average yearly wage for Cooks was $23,994 in 2024.

The locations that employ the most Cooks are Orange County (Central)--Santa Ana City (East) PUMA, CA, Los Angeles County (Central)--LA City (Central/Koreatown) PUMA, CA, and Las Vegas City (South Central) PUMA, NV. The locations with a relatively high concentration of Cooks are Los Angeles County (Central)--LA City (Central/Koreatown) PUMA, CA, Doña Ana County Central--Las Cruces, Mesilla Cities & University Park PUMA, NM, and Houston City (West)--Westpark Tollway, Between Loop I-610 & Beltway TX-8 PUMA, TX.

Service Occupations Food Preparation & Serving Related Occupations

Employment

Employment and salary information for the Cooks workforce. Cooks workforce in 2024 was 2,097,798 people, of which 41.8% were women and 58.2% were men. Cooks are paid most in Los Angeles County (Central)--West Hollywood & Beverly Hills Cities PUMA, CA but are relatively concentrated in Los Angeles County (Central)--LA City (Central/Koreatown) PUMA, CA.

Employment Over Time

Metric

Grouping

1,220,188

Male Workforce

± 27k

877,610

Female Workforce

± 22.9k

The Cooks workforce in 2024 was 2,097,798 people (41.8% women and 58.2% men). This implies an average annual growth of −6.11% between 2014 (2,234,219) and 2024 (2,097,798).

Employment by Location

Level

Metric

This map shows the states in the United States shaded by average wage for Cooks.

During 2024, the states that concentrated the best average annual wage were Hawaii ($34,635), North Dakota ($33,903), and Rhode Island ($32,461).

Yearly Wage Ranking

$23,994

AVERAGE WAGE

#464 in the ranking (2014)

$69,878

NATIONAL AVERAGE WAGE

For all occupations across the US

In 2024, Cooks earned an average of $23,994, $45,884 less than the average national salary of $69,878

The graph shows the ranking of Cooks in relation to all Detailed Occupation in 2014.

In 2024, Cooks had a wage GINI coefficient of 0.389, which is lower than the national average of 0.474. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly for Cooks (shown in red) than for the overall labor force (shown in gray).

The graphic shows the distribution of average salaries by buckets for Cooks compared to the entire workforce in the country.

Industry

Information on the industries that employ Cooks and on wages for those in the field. Restaurants & Food Services is the industry that employs the most Cooks, both by share and by number, though the highest paid industry for Cooks, by average wage, is Truck transportation ($107,394).

Occupations by Industries

Metric

Value

2.1M

2024 Workforce

± 35,318

−1.21%

1 YEAR GROWTH

± 2.4%

This graphic shows the share of Cooks employed by various industries. Restaurants & Food Services employs the largest share of Cooks at 87.5%, followed by Elementary & secondary schools with 7.65% and Nursing Care Facilities with 2.48%.

Diversity

Demographic information on Cooks in the US. The workforce of Cooks in 2024 was 2,097,798 people, with 41.8% woman, and 58.2% men. The average age of male Cooks in the workforce is 32.9 and of female Cooks is 40.7, and the most common race/ethnicity for Cooks is White.

Gender and Age

Metric

The workforce of Cooks in 2024 was 2,097,798 people, with 41.8% woman, and 58.2% men.

The age ranges that concentrated the largest workforce were 16 to 19 years (330,857 people), 20 to 24 years (329,262 people), and 25 to 29 years (222,587 people). Among them they concentrated 42.1% of the total workforce.

Ethnicity

Gender

In 2024, 34.3% of Cooks workers were Hispanic and 65.7% non-Hispanic.

The treemap shows the distribution of Hispanic workers according to their origin, highlighting Mexican (64.3%), Puerto Rican (7.54)%, and Salvadoran (6.2)%

You can review this information by gender using the selectors above.

Races

In 2024, 45.2% of the Cooks workforce were White, of which 42.9% were women and 57.1% men. Other races that concentrated a significant number of workers were Two or More Races (17.4%) and Black (15.3%).

Education & Skills

Data on higher education choices for Cooks from The Department of Education and Census Bureau. The most common major for Cooks is Business but the most specialized major according to RCA in 2024 were Personal & Culinary Services.

Among the necessary skills for Cooks, Time Management stands, but the revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Cooks need more than the average amount of Operation and Control.

Majors

ACS PUMS data only shows the major for bachelor's degrees. However, we can filter the data based on highest degree obtained.

Type of Majors

Degree

The most common majors achieved by Cooks in 2024 (counting all academic degrees) were Business (25,352 people), Education (10,451 people), and Visual & Performing Arts (8,136 people).

You can review this information for different academic grades by modifying the option selected in the selector above.

Education Levels

Metric

The main educational levels achieved by the Cooks workers were High School or Equivalent (865,989 people), Secondary Education (428,185 people), and Some college (404,857 people).

The graphic shows the Cooks workforce by gender and educational level.

Skills

Chart

Value

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for Cooks from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Cooks need many skills, but most especially Time Management, Critical Thinking, Monitoring.