How much should I pay a fast food and counter workers in 2026?

A competitive 2026 offer for Fast Food and Counter Workers is $31,200 to $36,067 (market median to the 75th percentile). BLS ECI shows retail trade wages growing about 3.4% a year, so budget a similar annual increase to stay at market.

Is a salary competitive for a fast food and counter workers?

Compare it to the BLS OEWS range: below $27,706 is below market, $31,200 to $36,067 is competitive, and above $36,067 is above market for Fast Food and Counter Workers.

How is fast food and counter workers pay changing in 2026?

Median pay for this role rose 2.4% between the May 2024 and May 2025 BLS surveys, trailing the 3.4% wage growth of Retail Trade (BLS ECI). Retail Trade is running a 4.8% job-openings rate with quits at 3.0% (BLS JOLTS). Demand has tightened for 2 straight months (4.2% up to 4.8%).

Fast Food and Counter Workers Salary - BLS OEWS Wage Benchmarks

SOC 35-3023 · National · May 2025 OEWS Data

Median Annual Salary

$31,200

$15.00/hr

Verified BLS OEWS data · Updated May 18, 2026

Is this a competitive Fast Food and Counter Workers salary in 2026?

Based on BLS OEWS wage percentiles, JOLTS June 2026 demand signals, and ECI Q2 2026 wage growth.

Check a salary or offer:$Competitive · ~P50

P10$23K

P25$28K

P50$31K

P75$36K

P90$43K

Drag the dot or type an amount above.

⚡

Demand: ACTIVE. Demand is active -- retail openings are at 4.8% (JOLTS, June 2026). A balanced market where the median is a solid, competitive anchor.

📈

Merit budget: Wages in retail trade are rising about 3.4% a year (BLS ECI, Q2 2026). Budget a 3.0-3.5% merit increase to hold this role at market.

Our read

For a competitive 2026 offer, target $31,200 to $36,067 (market median to the 75th percentile). The median-to-P75 range keeps offers competitive.

Figures are market benchmarks from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics; apply professional judgment before making pay decisions.

How Fast Food and Counter Workers pay is moving in 2026

Trend, demand, and spread context from BLS OEWS, JOLTS, and ECI

Pay trend

Median pay for this role rose 2.4% between the May 2024 and May 2025 BLS surveys, trailing the 3.4% wage growth of Retail Trade (BLS ECI).

Hiring demand · MODERATE

Retail Trade is running a 4.8% job-openings rate with quits at 3.0% (BLS JOLTS). Demand has tightened for 2 straight months (4.2% up to 4.8%).

Pay spread

Top earners (P90) make about 1.9 times what entry-level (P10) workers make in this role. That spread is narrower than typical, so pay is fairly standardized; small differences move a candidate across the market.

What changed recently

Aug 4, 2026JOLTS June 2026: sector openings climbed to 4.8% and quits returned to 3.0%. Frontline churn pressure is building again.
Jul 31, 2026ECI Q2 2026: sector wages growing 3.4% per year, up from 3.1%, one of the few sectors accelerating.

Commentary is generated from published BLS figures (OEWS May 2025 vs May 2024, JOLTS June 2026, ECI Q2 2026) and refreshed each release. It is interpretation, not a BLS product.

Source: BLS OEWS · Published May 15, 2026

Next refresh: May 2027

Get notified when this number updates

Personal or work email, both work. No account needed. Unsubscribe anytime.

The national median salary for Fast Food and Counter Workers is $31,200 per year ($15.00/hr) according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2025. The middle 50% of earners make between $27,706 and $36,067 annually. Top earners at the 90th percentile reach $42,661 per year. There are approximately 3,854,050 fast food and counter workers employed in the United States.

About This Role

BLS Standard Occupational Classification 2018

Perform duties such as taking orders and serving food and beverages. Serve customers at counter or from a steam table. May take payment. May prepare food and beverages. Counter attendants who also wait tables are included in “Waiters and Waitresses” (35-3031),

Career Outlook

BLS Employment Projections · 2024-2034

10-year growth

+6.1%

Faster than average

Annual openings

904K

per year, on avg

Workforce today

3.8M

as of 2024

Why those openings exist

3% from new growth97% from people leaving the role

Most openings come from replacement, not growth. Retention matters more than recruiting here.

Typical entry requirements

Education

No formal educational credential

Experience

None

On-the-job training

Short-term on-the-job training

Industry Wage Breakdown

Top 5 industries by employment · median annual wage, sector-specific

Industry	Workforce	Median Pay
Restaurants and Other Eating Places NAICS 722500	3.2M	$30,510
Special Food Services NAICS 722300	152K	$34,480
Food and Beverage Retailers (4451 and 4452 only) NAICS 4450A1	134K	$34,720
Elementary and Secondary Schools NAICS 611100	109K	$35,330
Gasoline Stations NAICS 457100	43K	$32,240

Wage range across top 5 industries: $30,510 to $35,330 (16% spread)

Wage Percentiles

Hourly & annualized (2,080 hours)

Percentile	Hourly Rate	Annual Salary
P10	$10.98	$22,838
P25	$13.32	$27,706
P50MEDIAN	$15.00	$31,200
P75	$17.34	$36,067
P90	$20.51	$42,661

Market Context Signal

JOLTS · retail sector

Active

Openings Rate

4.8%

Quits Rate

3.0%

Retail openings rose to 774K (+49K) in June, rate up to 4.8%. Frontline turnover picked back up with the quit rate at 3.0% -- expect continued churn-driven wage pressure in hourly roles.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the average fast food and counter workers salary?

The national median salary for Fast Food and Counter Workers is $31,200 per year ($15.00/hr) according to BLS OEWS May 2025 data. The middle 50% earn between $27,706 and $36,067 annually.

How much do top-earning fast food and counter workers make?

The 90th percentile salary for Fast Food and Counter Workers is $42,661 per year ($20.51/hr). The 75th percentile is $36,067 per year.

What is the entry-level salary for fast food and counter workers?

Entry-level Fast Food and Counter Workers (10th percentile) earn approximately $22,838 per year ($10.98/hr). The 25th percentile is $27,706 per year.

Related Salary Data

Compare with other occupations

Waiters and Waitresses35-3031$35K/yr Cooks, Restaurant35-2014$37K/yr First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers35-1012$44K/yr Food Preparation Workers35-2021$35K/yr Bartenders35-3011$34K/yr Browse all 770+ occupations →

Fast Food and Counter Workers Salary by State

Top 5 states by employment

Texas460,530 workers California449,840 workers Florida235,400 workers New York168,620 workers Ohio163,560 workers

About This Data

Wage figures on this page come from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2025 release. OEWS surveys roughly 1.1 million establishments annually. It is the most comprehensive employer-reported wage dataset in the United States.

P10 through P90 percentiles represent the wage distribution across all surveyed employers (not self-reported by workers). Geographic adjustments use BLS-derived cost multipliers calibrated from regional wage variation.

Wages are estimates. Individual compensation depends on experience, education, employer size, industry, and negotiation. Use this as benchmark context, not absolute ground truth.

Next OEWS release: May 2027Verify on BLS.gov →

About CompSignal

CompSignal is a free labor market intelligence tool built for HR, compensation, and talent acquisition teams. We make BLS data, the same primary source Mercer and Radford cross-reference in their paid surveys, searchable and actionable without an enterprise subscription.

Built and maintained by Falcon Incentives, a compensation strategy and incentive design consultancy.

Open the full app →About Falcon Incentives →Privacy Policy

Explore more occupations on CompSignal →

Free BLS wage benchmarks, JOLTS talent signals, and AI analyst briefs

CompSignal by Falcon Incentives · BLS data, made usable · Verify on BLS.gov