Cooks

Detailed Occupation

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2023 Workforce

2.12M

Average Age

Average Salary

$23,229

Average Male Salary

$24,279

Average Female Salary

$21,765

About

Cooks are most often employed by the Restaurants & Food Services industry. The average yearly wage for Cooks was $23,229 in 2023.

The locations that employ the most Cooks are Clark County (Central)--Paradise (Northwest) & Winchester PUMA, NV, Las Vegas City (South Central) PUMA, NV, and Orange County (Central)--Santa Ana City (East) PUMA, CA. The locations with a relatively high concentration of Cooks are Las Vegas City (South Central) PUMA, NV, Capital Region Planning Commission 3--Baton Rouge City (North) PUMA, LA, and Houston City (West)--Westpark Tollway, Between Loop I-610 & Beltway TX-8 PUMA, TX.

Service Occupations Food Preparation & Serving Related Occupations

Employment and salary information for the Cooks workforce. Cooks workforce in 2023 was 2,123,399 people, of which 41.7% were women and 58.3% were men. Cooks are paid most in Hennepin County--Minneapolis City (East) PUMA, MN but are relatively concentrated in Las Vegas City (South Central) PUMA, NV.

Employment Over Time

Metric

Grouping

1,236,909

Male Workforce

± 27.2k

886,490

Female Workforce

± 23k

The Cooks workforce in 2023 was 2,123,399 people (41.7% women and 58.3% men). This implies an average annual growth of −4.96% between 2014 (2,234,219) and 2023 (2,123,399).

Employment by Location

Level

Metric

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

During 2023, the states that concentrated the best average annual wage were Hawaii ($34,897), District of Columbia ($32,804), and Nevada ($30,071).

Yearly Wage Ranking

$23,229

AVERAGE WAGE

#510 in the ranking (2023)

$67,727

NATIONAL AVERAGE WAGE

For all occupations across the US

In 2023, Cooks earned an average of $23,229, $44,498 less than the average national salary of $67,727

The graph shows the ranking of Cooks in relation to all Detailed Occupation in 2023.

Wage Distribution

Gender

0.387

WAGE GINI

In 2023, Cooks had a wage GINI coefficient of 0.387, which is lower than the national average of 0.476. 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 ($123,455).

Occupations by Industries

Metric

Value

2.12M

2023 Workforce

± 35,527

−2.58%

1 YEAR GROWTH

± 2.41%

This graphic shows the share of Cooks employed by various industries. Restaurants & Food Services employs the largest share of Cooks at 86.7%, followed by Elementary & secondary schools with 7.52% and uninformed with 3.28%.

Diversity

Demographic information on Cooks in the US. The workforce of Cooks in 2023 was 2,123,399 people, with 41.7% woman, and 58.3% men. The average age of male Cooks in the workforce is 32.8 and of female Cooks is 40.6, and the most common race/ethnicity for Cooks is White.

Gender and Age

Metric

The workforce of Cooks in 2023 was 2,123,399 people, with 41.7% woman, and 58.3% men.

The age ranges that concentrated the largest workforce were 16 to 19 years (332,498 people), 20 to 24 years (327,234 people), and 25 to 29 years (233,409 people). Among them they concentrated 42.1% of the total workforce.

Ethnicity

Gender

In 2023, 33.8% of Cooks workers were Hispanic and 66.2% non-Hispanic.

The treemap shows the distribution of Hispanic workers according to their origin, highlighting Mexican (65.7%), Puerto Rican (7.49)%, and Salvadoran (6.29)%

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

Races

In 2023, 49% 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 Black (15.9%) and Two or More Races (14.2%).

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 2023 were Personal & Culinary Services.

Among the necessary skills for Cooks, Service Orientation stands, but the revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Cooks need more than the average amount of Management of Material Resources.

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 2023 (counting all academic degrees) were Business (24,502 people), Education (9,956 people), and Visual & Performing Arts (7,195 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 (870,349 people), Secondary Education (440,819 people), and Some college (417,924 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 Service Orientation, Critical Thinking, Reading Comprehension.