SOC 35-2012 · May 2025 · BLS OEWS
Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria — Burlington
Burlington-South Burlington, VT
The median wage for Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria in Burlington, VT is $47,390 per year, well above the national median of $37,450.
Wage distribution · annual
Shaded band holds the middle 50% of earners
How pay has moved
The next ten years
Projected to grow about as fast as average
- Change in jobs, 2024 to 2034
- +2.0%
- Openings per year
- 69,700
- Typical entry-level education
- No formal educational credential
- On-the-job training
- Short-term on-the-job training
Includes jobs opened by workers leaving the occupation, not only new positions.
Projections are published nationally only. This is the outlook for the occupation across the United States, not a measurement for Burlington-South Burlington, VT.
Projections are based on 2024 employment and run to 2034. The wages above are from the May 2025 survey, a separate BLS programme on a different release cycle, so the two are not two views of one dataset.
Salary overview
The median wage for Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria in Burlington, VT is $47,390 per year, well above the national median of $37,450. The gap of 26.5% is among the widest recorded for this occupation. Half of workers earn between $43,890 and $49,950. Beyond that band, the tenth percentile sits at $38,890 and the ninetieth at $59,830.
The area has 490 jobs in this occupation, which works out to 4.1 of every thousand jobs. Of the 396 occupations with published wages in this area, it sits 327th.
Percentile breakdown
| Percentile | Annual | vs US median |
|---|---|---|
| 10th | $38,890 | +3.8% |
| 25th | $43,890 | +17.2% |
| Median (50th) | $47,390 | +26.5% |
| 75th | $49,950 | +33.4% |
| 90th | $59,830 | +59.8% |
| Mean | $48,130 | +28.5% |
What the pay is worth locally
Prices in Burlington sit close to the national average, so $47,390 is worth roughly its face value against pay elsewhere.
Published median
$47,390as reported by BLSLocal price level
100.9US average = 100 · BEA 2024Adjusted for local prices
$46,967US average = 100 · BEA 2024Why the state that pays most is usually not where pay goes furthest
Key takeaways
- Median pay is $47,390 a year, 26.5% above the national median.
- Published pay spans $38,890 to $59,830 between the tenth and ninetieth percentiles.
- The area has 490 jobs in this occupation.
Frequently asked questions
What is the median wage for Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria in Burlington, VT?
The median annual wage is $47,390, or $22.78 per hour, as of May 2025. Half of the workers in this occupation earn more than that and half earn less.
Is that higher than the national average?
The national median for this occupation is $37,450, so pay in Burlington, VT is 26.5% higher. These figures are medians, not averages: half of workers fall on each side.
What do the top earners make?
The top tenth of this occupation in Burlington, VT earns more than $59,830 per year. The ninetieth percentile is the highest figure the survey publishes.
What is the starting range?
The tenth percentile wage is $38,890 per year. The survey measures wages actually paid rather than experience level, so this reflects the lowest-paid tenth rather than entry-level pay specifically.
How many jobs are there in this occupation here?
The survey estimates 490 jobs in this occupation in Burlington, VT. Self-employed workers are not included.
Source and methodology
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 Wages are for wage-and-salary workers; self-employed workers are not included. Salary Explorer is an independent project. It is not affiliated with, or endorsed by, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics or any government agency. Full methodology.
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