Cooks, Fast Food Salary
Cooks, Fast Foods in Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN make a median of $29,540 a year, or about $14.2 an hour. The range runs from $24K at the entry level to $36K for experienced workers. Cost of living is below average (RPP 93.43), which stretches that salary to about $31,617 in buying power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $1,242/month, about 58.4% of take-home, which is tight.
So what does $30K get you in Lafayette-West Lafayette?
Groceries, utilities, transportation, and healthcare scaled from national averages by Lafayette-West Lafayette’s Regional Price Parity (93.43). Rent from HUD Fair Market Rents. Taxes estimated for single filer, standard deduction. * Healthcare is the employee-paid share only (premiums + out-of-pocket). Actual costs vary by coverage type: employer-sponsored, ACA marketplace, or uninsured.
About cooks, fast foods
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What this looks like in Lafayette-West Lafayette
Cooks, fast food pay in Lafayette-West Lafayette tracks closely to the national median, $30K locally vs. $31K nationwide, a 4% difference. The catch: housing math doesn't keep up. A 2-bedroom at the HUD median rents for $1,242/month, which is 59.9% of the median worker's take-home, past the 30% guideline most planners use. Regional Price Parity sits at 93.43 (national = 100), meaning everyday costs run about 7% cheaper here. Your dollar stretches further than the headline salary suggests. Use the affordability calculator above to model your specific situation.
Compared to nearby metros
Median pay for cooks, fast foods in metros near Lafayette-West Lafayette, adjusted for local cost of living.
| Metro | Median pay | COL-adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Indianapolis-Carmel-Greenwood | $31K | $32K |
| South Bend-Mishawaka | $30K | $32K |
| Bloomington | $29K | $31K |
| Terre Haute | $28K | $32K |
COL-adjusted = median salary ÷ (BEA Regional Price Parity ÷ 100). Expresses purchasing power in national-average dollars.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN
Entry-level cooks, fast foods (10th percentile) start around $24K. Mid-career wages sit at $30K. Top earners bring in $36K or more, a $13K spread from bottom to top.
Cooks, Fast Food pay across states
Median income ranked highest to lowest, compared to the national figure
View Cooks, Fast Food salary in all states
| State | Median salary | vs. national | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hawaii | $48K | +56% | N/A |
| District of Columbia | $45K | +45% | 2,760 |
| California | $42K | +36% | 124,440 |
| Washington | $39K | +27% | 9,020 |
| New Hampshire | $39K | +25% | 1,330 |
| Vermont | $38K | +24% | 640 |
| Oregon | $38K | +23% | 4,300 |
| Massachusetts | $38K | +23% | N/A |
| Colorado | $37K | +19% | 9,220 |
| Maine | $36K | +18% | 1,470 |
| New York | $36K | +16% | 11,710 |
| Rhode Island | $35K | +14% | 1,210 |
| Connecticut | $35K | +13% | 3,630 |
| Illinois | $35K | +13% | 13,430 |
| Minnesota | $34K | +10% | 5,190 |
| Alaska | $34K | +10% | 2,250 |
| Nevada | $34K | +10% | 5,890 |
| Maryland | $33K | +8% | 10,960 |
| Arizona | $33K | +6% | 11,210 |
| New Jersey | $32K | +4% | 3,440 |
| Delaware | $32K | +3% | 850 |
| Utah | $32K | +3% | 4,400 |
| Idaho | $31K | +1% | 1,610 |
| South Dakota | $31K | +0% | 1,720 |
| Nebraska | $30K | -1% | 2,900 |
| North Dakota | $30K | -2% | 580 |
| New Mexico | $30K | -2% | 1,800 |
| Virginia | $30K | -3% | 12,520 |
| Florida | $30K | -3% | 22,600 |
| Missouri | $30K | -3% | 55,780 |
| Indiana | $30K | -3% | 6,830 |
| Michigan | $29K | -5% | 14,340 |
| Wyoming | $29K | -6% | 890 |
| Wisconsin | $29K | -6% | 6,900 |
| Pennsylvania | $29K | -7% | 9,240 |
| Kansas | $29K | -7% | 1,610 |
| Iowa | $29K | -8% | 8,290 |
| Tennessee | $28K | -8% | 14,020 |
| Texas | $28K | -8% | 36,240 |
| Alabama | $28K | -10% | 26,740 |
| Oklahoma | $28K | -10% | 8,860 |
| Arkansas | $28K | -10% | 7,860 |
| South Carolina | $27K | -11% | 9,110 |
| North Carolina | $27K | -12% | 81,980 |
| Georgia | $27K | -13% | 12,940 |
| Ohio | $27K | -13% | 12,310 |
| Montana | $27K | -13% | 820 |
| Louisiana | $25K | -19% | 3,000 |
| Kentucky | $24K | -24% | 21,750 |
| West Virginia | $23K | -25% | 16,490 |
| Mississippi | $23K | -27% | 11,170 |
Showing 1–10 of 51 (all 50 states + DC)
Track cooks, fast food salary changes
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Related careers in Food Service
Frequently asked questions
Can a cooks, fast food afford a 2BR apartment alone in Lafayette-West Lafayette?
It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $30K, rent takes 59.9% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,242/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $600/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.
What’s the entry-level salary for cooks, fast foods in Lafayette-West Lafayette?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new cooks, fast foods typically earn — is $24K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $1,410/month. At HUD’s $1,242/month FMR, rent would take 88% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.
Is cooks, fast food a high-paying job in Lafayette-West Lafayette?
Pay here is roughly in line with the national average — $30K locally vs. $31K nationally, a 4% difference.
How does Lafayette-West Lafayette compare to the national average for cooks, fast foods?
Lafayette-West Lafayette pays $30K median vs. the U.S. average of $31K — that’s -4%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 93.43), the purchasing-power equivalent is $32K — still ahead of the national median.
How much do cooks, fast foods make in Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN?
The median is $29,540 a year, that works out to about $14 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $23,500, and experienced cooks, fast foods can clear $36,400. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $30K enough to live in Lafayette-West Lafayette?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $2,073/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,242/month, which eats 59.9% of your paycheck. That's above the 30% rule of thumb, housing will be a stretch at the median salary, though you can manage with roommates or a smaller place.
How far does a cooks, fast food salary go in Lafayette-West Lafayette?
Lafayette-West Lafayette has a Regional Price Parity of 93.43 (100 is the national average). That's below average, your money stretches further here than the raw salary number suggests. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median cooks, fast food salary is worth about $31,617 in national-average purchasing power.
Where do cooks, fast foods get paid the most?
The table above ranks every state by median pay for this role. Keep in mind that the highest-paying states tend to have the highest costs of living, so the top salary doesn't always mean the most money in your pocket.