SOC 35-2012 · May 2025 · BLS OEWS
Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria — Ohio
Ohio · 10 metro areas compared
The median wage for Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria in Ohio is $36,720 per year, close to the national median of $37,450 for the same occupation.
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 Ohio.
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 Ohio is $36,720 per year, close to the national median of $37,450 for the same occupation. Pay ranges from under $29,530 at the tenth percentile to more than $46,010 at the ninetieth, with the interquartile range running from $33,090 to $39,310.
The area has 23,440 jobs in this occupation, which works out to 4.2 of every thousand jobs. Among the 51 states with published data for this occupation, Ohio ranks 30th by median wage. Columbus leads the state's metro areas for this occupation, at $38,100. Set against every other occupation measured in the same area, it ranks 701st of 774 by median pay.
Percentile breakdown
| Percentile | Annual | vs US median |
|---|---|---|
| 10th | $29,530 | −21.1% |
| 25th | $33,090 | −11.6% |
| Median (50th) | $36,720 | −1.9% |
| 75th | $39,310 | +5.0% |
| 90th | $46,010 | +22.9% |
| Mean | $37,160 | −0.8% |
Highest-paying metro areas in Ohio
| # | Metro area | Median | Jobs | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Columbus | $38,100 | 4,020 | |
| 2 | Cincinnati | $37,180 | 4,310 | |
| 3 | Akron | $37,080 | 1,310 | |
| 4 | Cleveland | $36,930 | 4,080 | |
| 5 | Toledo | $36,760 | 1,280 | |
| 6 | Dayton | $36,680 | 1,510 | |
| 7 | Mansfield | $35,890 | 270 | |
| 8 | Sandusky | $35,880 | 270 | |
| 9 | Lima | $35,820 | 260 | |
| 10 | Springfield | $35,590 | 280 |
What the pay is worth locally
Prices in Ohio run 7.2% below the national average, so the median of $36,720 goes as far as $39,569 would elsewhere in the country. Measured that way it compares to the national median at 5.7% above the national median in real terms.
Published median
$36,720as reported by BLSLocal price level
92.8US average = 100 · BEA 2024Adjusted for local prices
$39,569US average = 100 · BEA 2024Why the state that pays most is usually not where pay goes furthest
Key takeaways
- Median pay is $36,720 a year, 1.9% below the national median.
- Published pay spans $29,530 to $46,010 between the tenth and ninetieth percentiles.
- The area has 23,440 jobs in this occupation.
- It ranks 30th of 51 states for this occupation.
- The highest-paying metro area covered is Columbus, at $38,100.
Frequently asked questions
What is the median wage for Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria in Ohio?
The median annual wage is $36,720, or $17.65 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 Ohio is 1.9% 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 Ohio earns more than $46,010 per year. The ninetieth percentile is the highest figure the survey publishes.
What is the starting range?
The tenth percentile wage is $29,530 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 Columbus, at $38,100 per year.
How many jobs are there in this occupation here?
The survey estimates 23,440 jobs in this occupation in Ohio. 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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