BLS SOC 35 · 17 occupations · OEWS May 2025

Food Preparation and Serving Related Occupations

Cooks, chefs, bartenders, servers, and food preparation workers across restaurants, institutions, and food service.

Total Workforce

14M

workers in this field

Median Annual Pay

$35K

median across 17 roles

Avg Growth, 2024-34

+2.6%

BLS Projections 2024-34

Top Roles in Food Preparation and Serving

Top 25 by US employment

#	Occupation	Workforce	Median Pay	Growth
1	Fast Food and Counter Workers SOC 35-3023	3.9M	$31K	+6.1%
2	Waiters and Waitresses SOC 35-3031	2.3M	$35K	-0.7%
3	Cooks, Restaurant SOC 35-2014	1.4M	$37K	+14.9%
4	First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers SOC 35-1012	1.2M	$44K	+6.0%
5	Food Preparation Workers SOC 35-2021	894K	$35K	-3.4%
6	Bartenders SOC 35-3011	756K	$34K	+5.9%
7	Cooks, Fast Food SOC 35-2011	641K	$31K	-13.5%
8	Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers SOC 35-9011	543K	$34K	+6.3%
9	Dishwashers SOC 35-9021	477K	$35K	+0.2%
10	Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria SOC 35-2012	441K	$37K	+2.0%
11	Hosts and Hostesses, Restaurant, Lounge, and Coffee Shop SOC 35-9031	433K	$31K	-1.5%
12	Food Servers, Nonrestaurant SOC 35-3041	294K	$35K	+3.0%
13	Chefs and Head Cooks SOC 35-1011	200K	$62K	+7.1%
14	Cooks, Short Order SOC 35-2015	139K	$36K	-5.6%
15	Food Preparation and Serving Related Workers, All Other SOC 35-9099	85K	$36K	+6.4%
16	Cooks, All Other SOC 35-2019	19K	$38K	+5.5%
17	Cooks, Private Household SOC 35-2013	1K	$48K	+5.1%