Cooks, Restaurant Salary
Cooks, Restaurants in Dover, DE make a median of $35,570 a year, or about $17.1 an hour. The range runs from $31K at the entry level to $45K for experienced workers. Adjusted for local prices (RPP 97.51), that's roughly $36,478 in purchasing power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $1,470/month, about 59.9% of take-home, which is tight.
So what does $36K get you in Dover?
Groceries, utilities, transportation, and healthcare scaled from national averages by Dover’s Regional Price Parity (97.51). 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, restaurants
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What this looks like in Dover
Cooks, restaurant pay in Dover tracks closely to the national median, $36K locally vs. $37K nationwide, a 5% difference. The catch: housing math doesn't keep up. A 2-bedroom at the HUD median rents for $1,470/month, which is 60.4% of the median worker's take-home, past the 30% guideline most planners use. Cost of living (RPP 97.51) is near the national average, so spending patterns here track the typical American budget fairly closely. Use the affordability calculator above to model your specific situation.
Compared to nearby metros
Median pay for cooks, restaurants in metros near Dover, adjusted for local cost of living.
| Metro | Median pay | COL-adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington | $38K | $37K |
| Pittsburgh | $36K | $38K |
| Baltimore-Columbia-Towson | $37K | $36K |
| Atlantic City-Hammonton | $40K | $41K |
COL-adjusted = median salary ÷ (BEA Regional Price Parity ÷ 100). Expresses purchasing power in national-average dollars.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, Dover, DE
Entry-level cooks, restaurants (10th percentile) start around $31K. Mid-career wages sit at $36K. Top earners bring in $45K or more, a $13K spread from bottom to top.
Cooks, Restaurant pay across states
Median income ranked highest to lowest, compared to the national figure
View Cooks, Restaurant salary in all states
| State | Median salary | vs. national | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Washington | $47K | +25% | 35,140 |
| District of Columbia | $46K | +23% | 7,720 |
| Massachusetts | $46K | +22% | 29,570 |
| Hawaii | $45K | +21% | 11,090 |
| Vermont | $45K | +21% | 2,360 |
| Maine | $45K | +21% | 5,130 |
| California | $45K | +20% | 152,250 |
| New York | $44K | +17% | 71,530 |
| Oregon | $43K | +15% | 21,550 |
| Colorado | $42K | +11% | 30,600 |
| New Hampshire | $40K | +8% | 7,190 |
| Alaska | $40K | +7% | 2,350 |
| Connecticut | $39K | +6% | 14,830 |
| Arizona | $39K | +3% | 30,870 |
| Nevada | $39K | +3% | 27,250 |
| Minnesota | $39K | +3% | 26,080 |
| New Jersey | $38K | +3% | 28,800 |
| Montana | $38K | +2% | 7,580 |
| Delaware | $38K | +1% | 5,280 |
| Maryland | $38K | +1% | 17,690 |
| Illinois | $38K | +1% | 53,540 |
| Nebraska | $37K | -1% | 4,750 |
| Florida | $37K | -1% | 124,040 |
| Michigan | $37K | -1% | 39,100 |
| Missouri | $37K | -1% | 25,990 |
| Wyoming | $37K | -1% | 2,710 |
| Virginia | $37K | -2% | 40,310 |
| Pennsylvania | $37K | -2% | 54,100 |
| Wisconsin | $37K | -2% | 25,410 |
| Rhode Island | $37K | -2% | 6,950 |
| Utah | $36K | -2% | 10,520 |
| North Dakota | $36K | -2% | 4,490 |
| Idaho | $36K | -3% | 8,130 |
| Tennessee | $36K | -3% | 28,220 |
| South Dakota | $36K | -3% | 1,890 |
| Georgia | $36K | -4% | 46,350 |
| South Carolina | $36K | -4% | 25,890 |
| Iowa | $36K | -5% | 12,270 |
| Ohio | $36K | -5% | 46,910 |
| North Carolina | $35K | -5% | 50,150 |
| Indiana | $35K | -6% | 26,960 |
| Kansas | $35K | -6% | 11,620 |
| New Mexico | $35K | -6% | 7,810 |
| Texas | $35K | -7% | 126,620 |
| Kentucky | $35K | -7% | 13,510 |
| Alabama | $32K | -14% | 16,260 |
| Oklahoma | $32K | -15% | 17,050 |
| Arkansas | $30K | -19% | 11,270 |
| West Virginia | $30K | -21% | 6,450 |
| Mississippi | $30K | -21% | 10,770 |
| Louisiana | $29K | -22% | 14,910 |
Showing 1–10 of 51 (all 50 states + DC)
Track cooks, restaurant salary changes
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Frequently asked questions
Can a cooks, restaurant afford a 2BR apartment alone in Dover?
It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $36K, rent takes 60.4% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,470/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, restaurants in Dover?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new cooks, restaurants typically earn — is $31K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $1,872/month. At HUD’s $1,470/month FMR, rent would take 79% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.
Is cooks, restaurant a high-paying job in Dover?
Pay here is roughly in line with the national average — $36K locally vs. $37K nationally, a 5% difference.
How does Dover compare to the national average for cooks, restaurants?
Dover pays $36K median vs. the U.S. average of $37K — that’s -5%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 97.51), the purchasing-power equivalent is $36K — below the national median.
How much do cooks, restaurants make in Dover, DE?
The median is $35,570 a year, that works out to about $17 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $31,200, and experienced cooks, restaurants can clear $44,560. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $36K enough to live in Dover?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $2,435/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,470/month, which eats 60.4% 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, restaurant salary go in Dover?
Dover has a Regional Price Parity of 97.51 (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, restaurant salary is worth about $36,478 in national-average purchasing power.
Where do cooks, restaurants 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.