18 of the Best Types of Chef Jobs in 2026

Discover some great types of Chef jobs that are hiring now.

High Paying Chef Jobs

• Freelance Chef

  Salary range: $50,500 - $128,500

  Becoming a freelance chef requires expert culinary skills and the ability to meet a client's tastes and dietary needs. Qualifications vary depending on the type of client that you want to attract, but earning restaurant or catering experience is a good way to grow a reputation as an excellent cook. Most freelance chefs study at a culinary arts school for one to two years where they apprentice to learn cooking techniques and baking skills. Trade organizations offer certification as a personal chef, which could prove useful for further demonstrating your credibility. As a freelance chef, you need to continuously network and market yourself to find new clients and opportunities.

• Executive Chef

  Salary range: $71,500 - $98,500

  There are a few career paths to becoming an executive chef. Many executive chefs work for years as sous chefs, line cooks, and even kitchen assistants in order to gain the level of skill required. Many culinary professionals opt for a culinary arts degree program at the start of their career. Some simply gain experience on the job over time. The expertise, cool-headedness, and leadership skills an executive chef must have can only be gained through years of experience.

• Virtual Chef

  Salary range: $50,000 - $75,000

  A virtual job refers to a job that can be performed outside of an employer’s office. Also known as remote, work from home, or telecommuting jobs, these positions have become increasingly common because of technology like telephones, internet, email, and video conference calls, which help to facilitate employer-employee communication.

• Summer Chef

  Salary range: $50,000 - $75,000

  As a summer chef, you work through the summer months, typically June through August, cooking during popular and high-traffic tourism and recreation periods. You work in a restaurant, camp, summer school, or resort and provide cooking services for a range of audience types and sizes. Depending on the role, you may prepare meals for small groups or hundreds of diners, oversee a team of cooks, servers, and other staff, cook special dishes for people with unique dietary needs, and develop menus to meet nutrition standards. Your responsibilities include managing inventory, ordering ingredients and kitchen supplies, and budgeting duties for daily menus.

• Senior Chef

  Salary range: $45,500 - $74,000

  Senior Chef is a more unusual job search query but still may give you interesting job results. Most salaries for Senior Chef jobs pay between $45,500 (25th percentile) and $74,000 (75th percentile) annually. Currently, there are not many open positions nationwide for Senior Chef job searches hiring now on ZipRecruiter. You can take a look at what is available and find similar job searches in this list.

• Chef Manager

  Salary range: $50,000 - $71,000

  The primary qualifications for getting a job as a chef manager include a culinary degree and some experience as a chef or line cook. This is primarily a managerial role, but chef managers occasionally step in to help if kitchen staff are overwhelmed by orders. Professional cooking skills are essential for this role. Aside from leadership skills, you also need budgeting skills and the ability to multitask in an extremely time-sensitive environment to succeed in this job. If you want to continue your career to this level, consider acquiring industry licenses and certifications that can help you stand out from other would-be managers.

• Entry Level Chef

  Salary range: $35,000 - $64,500

  Entry-level jobs are positions that do not require any previous experience in the role. Most entry-level jobs are aimed at high school or college graduates as a starting point for a future career goal. A college student may have majored in their ideal career field, but will still need to start in an entry-level position to train in a real-world environment. Some students move from internships into entry-level jobs, but most entry-level jobs do not expect a candidate to have any prior employment or on-site training.

• Temporary Chef

  Salary range: $35,000 - $64,500

  A Temporary job is an employment arrangement in which both parties, the employee and employer, agree in advance that the position will be filled for a set period. Temporary jobs often are based on employers’ seasonal or specific project needs. Occasionally, Temporary employees will be offered ongoing, full-time positions if their performance is excellent and a position is available. However, you should not assume this will be the case.

• Temp Chef

  Salary range: $35,000 - $64,500

  Temp Chef is a typical job search query. Most salaries for Temp Chef jobs pay between $35,000 (25th percentile) and $64,500 (75th percentile) annually. Currently, there are not many open positions nationwide for Temp Chef job searches hiring now on ZipRecruiter. You can take a look at what is available and find similar job searches in this list.

• Live In Chef

  Salary range: $35,000 - $64,500

  Live In Chef is a typical job search query. Most salaries for Live In Chef jobs pay between $35,000 (25th percentile) and $64,500 (75th percentile) annually. Currently, there are not many open positions nationwide for Live In Chef job searches hiring now on ZipRecruiter. You can take a look at what is available and find similar job searches in this list.

• On Call Chef

  Salary range: $35,000 - $64,500

  When most people think of on-call jobs, medical professionals and first responders typically come to mind. For first responders, like firefighters and EMTs, on-call usually means you are sleeping at the station, ready to wake up and respond to a call quickly. Medical workers, on the other hand, may work a more traditional on-call schedule. While some nurses and doctors may sleep at the hospital, especially during their residency, you may also have an on-call shift where you can leave and go home, potentially never actually coming back. If you want a career as a nurse or doctor but do not like this unpredictability, rest assured that the chance of having on-call shifts decreases as you gain seniority and advanced qualifications. Repair workers like electricians may also work on-call. You may occasionally find on-call jobs in retail or customer service sectors, but this is not as common.

• Union Chef

  Salary range: $35,000 - $64,500

  For those who work for unions, some of the specific jobs include researchers, organizers, administrators, lawyers, communications workers, and clerical staff. Your duties include entering workplaces to speak with workers and provide them encouragement and support if they are interested in joining a specific union, or to negotiate with employers for better working conditions, pay, or benefits for union members. There are numerous types of unions, including health care, public sector, construction, writing, and service workers unions, and they represent a variety of professions, such as nurses, journalists, manufacturers, construction workers, municipal workers, and hotel workers, to name only a few.

• Full Time Chef

  Salary range: $35,000 - $64,500

  Full-time employment hours are generally determined by the employer. There is no single universal definition; however, various laws and policies govern different types of eligibility and statuses. For example, the Fair Labor Standards Act does not define full-time employment but does require overtime pay after 40 hours of work in a workweek for non-exempt employees. The Affordable Care Act, in determining Applicable Large Employers, defines full-time employees as those working an average of at least 30 hours per week, or 130 hours a month. The H-1B Visa Program defines full-time as 40 hours per week, normally, and in no event would less than 35 hours per week be considered to be full-time employment. In practice, full-time employment is typically between 32 and 40 hours per week.

• Independent Contractor Chef

  Salary range: $37,500 - $63,000

  You find Independent Contractors in many different industries, so the path to becoming one varies significantly. In general, you must have several years of experience in the field and have a track record of success in your industry. You also must pursue the kind of work that can be done on a consultant or contract basis. You may possess particular skills or expertise that a company needs temporarily, such as an IT Consultant, or provide a service that is required intermittently, like a Freelance Writer. Many Independent Contractors transition to becoming self-employed to have a more flexible schedule and the ability to choose their clients.

• Junior Chef

  Salary range: $36,000 - $57,500

  Junior Chef is a more unusual job search query but still may give you interesting job results. Most salaries for Junior Chef jobs pay between $36,000 (25th percentile) and $57,500 (75th percentile) annually. Currently, there are not many open positions nationwide for Junior Chef job searches hiring now on ZipRecruiter. You can take a look at what is available and find similar job searches in this list.

• Trainee Chef

  Salary range: $33,000 - $51,000

  The requirements to get a trainee job vary by industry. In some, such as architecture or accounting, you must graduate from an accredited college program before you can begin work. Other industries, such as retail, manufacturing, or telemarketing, may require only a high school diploma or a GED certificate to begin a training program. No matter what profession you are interested in, you should have strong verbal and written communication and an interest in continuing the career.

• Apprentice Chef

  Salary range: $36,000 - $50,000

  Apprentice Chef is a typical job search query. Most salaries for Apprentice Chef jobs pay between $36,000 (25th percentile) and $50,000 (75th percentile) annually. Currently, there are not many open positions nationwide for Apprentice Chef job searches hiring now on ZipRecruiter. You can take a look at what is available and find similar job searches in this list.

• Chef Internship

  Salary range: $30,000 - $40,000

  An Internship is a position within your desired field that pays little or no money but offers you the opportunity to gain real-world experience. This may set you apart for your future job search. Generally, Internships are almost expected by employers on an entry-level candidate’s resume. You are much more of an asset to an employer if you have some work experience.