Cooks, Restaurant Salary
Cooks, Restaurants in Kentucky make a median of $34,640 a year, or about $16.65 an hour. The range runs from $25K at the entry level to $44K for experienced workers. Cost of living is below average (RPP 90.23), which stretches that salary to about $38,391 in buying power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $1,110/month, about 47% of take-home, which is tight.
Statewide average. Salary and cost of living vary significantly across Kentucky. Jump to a metro for precise data:
So what does $35K get you in Kentucky?
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What this looks like in Kentucky
Cooks, restaurant pay in Kentucky tracks closely to the national median, $35K locally vs. $37K nationwide, a 7% difference. The catch: housing math doesn't keep up. A 2-bedroom at the HUD median rents for $1,110/month, which is 46.8% of the median worker's take-home, past the 30% guideline most planners use. Regional Price Parity sits at 90.23 (national = 100), meaning everyday costs run about 10% cheaper here. Your dollar stretches further than the headline salary suggests. Use the affordability calculator above to model your specific situation.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, Kentucky
Entry-level cooks, restaurants (10th percentile) start around $25K. Mid-career wages sit at $35K. Top earners bring in $44K or more, a $19K spread from bottom to top.
Cooks, Restaurant salary by metro in Kentucky
6 metro areas with BLS data, ranked by median pay
| Metro area | Median salary | vs. state | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lexington-Fayette | $36K | +4% | 2,300 |
| Louisville/Jefferson County | $36K | +4% | 5,390 |
| Paducah | $31K | -10% | 490 |
| Bowling Green | $31K | -10% | 570 |
| Elizabethtown | $30K | -13% | 370 |
| Owensboro | $30K | -13% | 440 |
Compare to other states
Track cooks, restaurant salary changes
BLS updates this data quarterly. We'll email you when Kentucky numbers change.
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Frequently asked questions
Can a cooks, restaurant afford a 2BR apartment alone in Kentucky?
It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $35K, rent takes 46.8% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,110/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 Kentucky?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new cooks, restaurants typically earn — is $25K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $1,485/month. At HUD’s $1,110/month FMR, rent would take 75% 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 Kentucky?
Pay here is roughly in line with the national average — $35K locally vs. $37K nationally, a 7% difference.
How does Kentucky compare to the national average for cooks, restaurants?
Kentucky pays $35K median vs. the U.S. average of $37K — that’s -7%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 90.23), the purchasing-power equivalent is $38K — still ahead of the national median.
How much do cooks, restaurants make in Kentucky?
The median is $34,640 a year, that works out to about $17 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $24,750, and experienced cooks, restaurants can clear $43,750. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $35K enough to live in Kentucky?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $2,374/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,110/month, which eats 46.8% 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 Kentucky?
Kentucky has a Regional Price Parity of 90.23 (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 $38,391 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.