SOC 35-2012 · May 2025 · BLS OEWS
Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria — Illinois
Illinois · 8 metro areas compared
At $37,440, median pay for Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria in Illinois tracks the national median of $37,450 closely.
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 Illinois.
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
At $37,440, median pay for Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria in Illinois tracks the national median of $37,450 closely. The middle half of workers in this occupation earn between $34,560 and $43,280. The lowest tenth earn under $31,200, while the highest tenth earn more than $48,130.
Employment stands at 22,840, or 3.7 jobs per thousand held locally. Among the 51 states with published data for this occupation, Illinois ranks 25th by median wage. Champaign leads the state's metro areas for this occupation, at $38,330. Set against every other occupation measured in the same area, it ranks 686th of 747 by median pay.
Percentile breakdown
| Percentile | Annual | vs US median |
|---|---|---|
| 10th | $31,200 | −16.7% |
| 25th | $34,560 | −7.7% |
| Median (50th) | $37,440 | −0.0% |
| 75th | $43,280 | +15.6% |
| 90th | $48,130 | +28.5% |
| Mean | $39,210 | +4.7% |
Highest-paying metro areas in Illinois
| # | Metro area | Median | Jobs | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Champaign | $38,330 | 550 | |
| 2 | Chicago | $38,290 | 14,010 | |
| 3 | Bloomington | $37,950 | 520 | |
| 4 | Decatur | $36,750 | 170 | |
| 5 | Peoria | $35,980 | 790 | |
| 6 | Springfield | $35,600 | 460 | |
| 7 | Kankakee | $35,200 | 230 | |
| 8 | Rockford | $34,580 | 690 |
What the pay is worth locally
Prices in Illinois sit close to the national average, so $37,440 is worth roughly its face value against pay elsewhere.
Published median
$37,440as reported by BLSLocal price level
100.0US average = 100 · BEA 2024Adjusted for local prices
$37,440US average = 100 · BEA 2024Why the state that pays most is usually not where pay goes furthest
Key takeaways
- Median pay is $37,440 a year, 0.0% below the national median.
- Published pay spans $31,200 to $48,130 between the tenth and ninetieth percentiles.
- The area has 22,840 jobs in this occupation.
- It ranks 25th of 51 states for this occupation.
- The highest-paying metro area covered is Champaign, at $38,330.
Frequently asked questions
What is the median wage for Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria in Illinois?
The median annual wage is $37,440, or $18.00 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 Illinois is 0.0% lower. 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 Illinois earns more than $48,130 per year. The ninetieth percentile is the highest figure the survey publishes.
What is the starting range?
The tenth percentile wage is $31,200 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.
Which area nearby pays the most?
The highest median for this occupation among the metro areas covered is in Champaign, at $38,330 per year.
How many jobs are there in this occupation here?
The survey estimates 22,840 jobs in this occupation in Illinois. 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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