Cooks, Fast Food Salary
Cooks, Fast Foods in Sioux Falls, SD-MN make a median of $32,970 a year, or about $15.85 an hour. The range runs from $26K at the entry level to $34K for experienced workers. Cost of living is below average (RPP 90.63), which stretches that salary to about $36,379 in buying power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $1,156/month, about 48.7% of take-home, which is tight.
Where the paycheck goes
What $33K actually covers in Sioux Falls, month by month
Groceries, utilities, transportation, and healthcare scaled from national averages by Sioux Falls’s Regional Price Parity (90.63). 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 Sioux Falls
Cooks, fast food pay in Sioux Falls tracks closely to the national median, $33K locally vs. $31K nationwide, a 7% difference. The catch: housing math doesn't keep up. A 2-bedroom at the HUD median rents for $1,156/month, which is 48.6% of the median worker's take-home, past the 30% guideline most planners use. Regional Price Parity sits at 90.63 (national = 100), meaning everyday costs run about 9% 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 Sioux Falls, adjusted for local cost of living.
| Metro | Median pay | COL-adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Rapid City | $31K | $35K |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington | $36K | $35K |
| Des Moines-West Des Moines | $30K | $33K |
| Omaha | $31K | $34K |
COL-adjusted = median salary ÷ (BEA Regional Price Parity ÷ 100). Expresses purchasing power in national-average dollars.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, Sioux Falls, SD-MN
Entry-level cooks, fast foods (10th percentile) start around $26K. Mid-career wages sit at $33K. Top earners bring in $34K or more, a $8K 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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Quick answers
The stuff people actually ask about this job
Can a cooks, fast food afford a 2BR apartment alone in Sioux Falls?
It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $33K, rent takes 48.6% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,156/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $700/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 Sioux Falls?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new cooks, fast foods typically earn — is $26K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $1,904/month. At HUD’s $1,156/month FMR, rent would take 61% 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 Sioux Falls?
Pay here is roughly in line with the national average — $33K locally vs. $31K nationally, a 7% difference.
How does Sioux Falls compare to the national average for cooks, fast foods?
Sioux Falls pays $33K median vs. the U.S. average of $31K — that’s +7%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 90.63), the purchasing-power equivalent is $36K — still ahead of the national median.
How much do cooks, fast foods make in Sioux Falls, SD-MN?
The median is $32,970 a year, that works out to about $16 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $25,930, and experienced cooks, fast foods can clear $34,260. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $33K enough to live in Sioux Falls?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $2,378/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,156/month, which eats 48.6% 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 Sioux Falls?
Sioux Falls has a Regional Price Parity of 90.63 (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 $36,379 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.