Professional Chef Salary
$28.5K - $34.5K
4% of jobs
$34.5K - $40.5K
7% of jobs
$40.5K - $46.5K
9% of jobs
$50.1K is the 25th percentile. Wages below this are outliers.
$46.5K - $52.5K
9% of jobs
$52.5K - $58.5K
8% of jobs
The median wage is $64.1K / yr.
$58.5K - $64.5K
14% of jobs
$64.5K - $70.5K
20% of jobs
$72.5K is the 75th percentile. Wages above this are outliers.
$70.5K - $76.5K
12% of jobs
$76.5K - $82.5K
9% of jobs
$82.5K - $88.5K
5% of jobs
$88.5K - $94.5K
3% of jobs
$28.5K
$65K
$95K
$63,994
/year
$30.77
/hour
Professional Chef Salary Comparison by Location
Nationwide
United States
$63,994
Columbus
Ohio
$61,812
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How much does a Professional Chef make?
As of Sep 1, 2026, the average annual pay for a Professional Chef in the United States is $63,994 a year.
Just in case you need a simple salary calculator, that works out to be approximately $30.77 an hour. This is the equivalent of $1,230/week or $5,332/month.
While ZipRecruiter is seeing annual salaries as high as $95,000 and as low as $28,500, the majority of Professional Chef salaries currently range between $50,000 (25th percentile) to $75,000 (75th percentile) with top earners (90th percentile) making $85,500 annually across the United States. The average pay range for a Professional Chef varies greatly (by as much as 25000), which suggests there may be many opportunities for advancement and increased pay based on skill level, location and years of experience.
A Professional Chef in your area makes on average $61,812 per year, or $2,182 (3.410%) less than the national average annual salary of $63,994. Ohio ranks number 30 out of 50 states nationwide for Professional Chef salaries.
To estimate the most accurate annual salary range for Professional Chef jobs, ZipRecruiter continuously scans its database of millions of active jobs published locally throughout America.
Find your next high paying job as a Professional Chef on ZipRecruiter today.
What are Top 10 Highest Paying Cities for Professional Chef Jobs
We've identified 10 cities where the typical salary for a Professional Chef job is above the national average. Topping the list is Soledad, CA, , with Gonzales, CA, and Nome, AK, close behind in the second and third positions. Nome, AK, beats the national average by $15,391 (24.1%), and Soledad, CA, furthers that trend with another $31,735 (49.6%) above the $63,994 average.
With these 10 cities having average salaries higher than the national average, the opportunities for economic advancement by changing locations as a Professional Chef appears to be exceedingly fruitful.
However, another factor to consider is the average salary for these top 10 cities varies modestly at 21% between Soledad, CA, and Mill Valley, CA, , suggesting it may be difficult to see much positive wage advancement. The possibility of a lower cost of living may help determine the balance between location and salary for a Professional Chef role.
City | Annual Salary | Hourly Wage |
|---|---|---|
Soledad, CA | $95,729 | $46.02 |
Gonzales, CA | $92,452 | $44.45 |
Nome, AK | $79,385 | $38.17 |
Hettinger, ND | $79,099 | $38.03 |
Nantucket, MA | $78,744 | $37.86 |
Mercer Island, WA | $78,376 | $37.68 |
Berkeley, CA | $78,357 | $37.67 |
Colusa, CA | $77,421 | $37.22 |
Aspen, CO | $77,351 | $37.19 |
Mill Valley, CA | $77,335 | $37.18 |
What are Top 5 Best Paying Related Professional Chef Jobs in the U.S.
Analyzing some similar jobs related to the Professional Chef job category, we found that Entry Level Fast Food Worker jobs have average salaries similar than Professional Chef jobs.
Job Title | Annual Salary | Hourly Wage |
|---|---|---|
Entry Level Fast Food Worker | $33,746 | $16.22 |
Mcdonalds Cook | $33,340 | $16.03 |
Cook Dishwasher | $32,570 | $15.66 |
Kitchen Assistant | $32,047 | $15.41 |
Line Server | $30,150 | $14.50 |
About Our Data
ZipRecruiter salary estimates, histograms, trends and comparisons are derived from both employer job postings and third party data sources.
