Cooks, Restaurant Salary
Cooks, Restaurants in Texas make a median of $34,760 a year, or about $16.71 an hour. The range runs from $23K at the entry level to $43K for experienced workers. Cost of living is below average (RPP 91.49), which stretches that salary to about $37,993 in buying power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $1,415/month, about 56.6% of take-home, which is tight.
Statewide average. Salary and cost of living vary significantly across Texas. Jump to a metro for precise data:
So what does $35K get you in Texas?
About cooks, restaurants
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What this looks like in Texas
Cooks, restaurant pay in Texas 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 $1,415/month, which is 56.7% of the median worker's take-home, past the 30% guideline most planners use. Regional Price Parity sits at 91.49 (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.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, Texas
Entry-level cooks, restaurants (10th percentile) start around $23K. Mid-career wages sit at $35K. Top earners bring in $43K or more, a $19K spread from bottom to top.
Cooks, Restaurant salary by metro in Texas
25 metro areas with BLS data, ranked by median pay
| Metro area | Median salary | vs. state | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos | $37K | +6% | 13,000 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington | $36K | +5% | 34,430 |
| Midland | $36K | +3% | 900 |
| Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands | $35K | +1% | 32,710 |
| Odessa | $35K | +0% | 840 |
| San Antonio-New Braunfels | $35K | +0% | 10,860 |
| College Station-Bryan | $33K | -6% | 1,410 |
| Sherman-Denison | $32K | -9% | 510 |
| Waco | $32K | -9% | 1,140 |
| Corpus Christi | $31K | -12% | 2,130 |
| Amarillo | $31K | -12% | 1,300 |
| Beaumont-Port Arthur | $31K | -12% | 1,480 |
| Killeen-Temple | $31K | -12% | 1,340 |
| Tyler | $30K | -13% | 1,050 |
| Lubbock | $30K | -13% | 1,700 |
| Abilene | $30K | -13% | 730 |
| Longview | $30K | -14% | 920 |
| San Angelo | $30K | -14% | 510 |
| Wichita Falls | $30K | -14% | 520 |
| Victoria | $30K | -15% | 340 |
| Texarkana | $29K | -15% | 640 |
| El Paso | $29K | -17% | 3,550 |
| Brownsville-Harlingen | $29K | -18% | 1,510 |
| McAllen-Edinburg-Mission | $28K | -18% | 2,590 |
| Laredo | $28K | -19% | 1,060 |
Showing 1–10 of 25 metros
Compare to other states
Track cooks, restaurant salary changes
BLS updates this data quarterly. We'll email you when Texas numbers change.
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Frequently asked questions
Can a cooks, restaurant afford a 2BR apartment alone in Texas?
It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $35K, rent takes 56.7% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,415/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 Texas?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new cooks, restaurants typically earn — is $23K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $1,400/month. At HUD’s $1,415/month FMR, rent would take 101% 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 Texas?
Pay here is roughly in line with the national average — $35K locally vs. $37K nationally, a 7% difference.
How does Texas compare to the national average for cooks, restaurants?
Texas pays $35K median vs. the U.S. average of $37K — that’s -7%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 91.49), the purchasing-power equivalent is $38K — still ahead of the national median.
How much do cooks, restaurants make in Texas?
The median is $34,760 a year, that works out to about $17 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $23,330, and experienced cooks, restaurants can clear $42,810. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $35K enough to live in Texas?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $2,497/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,415/month, which eats 56.7% 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 Texas?
Texas has a Regional Price Parity of 91.49 (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 $37,993 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.