Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers Salary
The median pay for a dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers in Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA is $35,640/year ($17.14/hour), per BLS data. The range runs from $35K at the entry level to $50K for experienced workers. Prices run high here (RPP 109.9), so that salary is closer to $32,429 in real purchasing power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $4,214/month, about 171.3% of take-home, which is tight.
So what does $36K get you in Santa Cruz-Watsonville?
Groceries, utilities, transportation, and healthcare scaled from national averages by Santa Cruz-Watsonville’s Regional Price Parity (109.9). 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.
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What this looks like in Santa Cruz-Watsonville
Dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers pay in Santa Cruz-Watsonville tracks closely to the national median, $36K locally vs. $34K nationwide, a 5% difference. The catch: housing math doesn't keep up. A 2-bedroom at the HUD median rents for $4,214/month, which is 168.2% of the median worker's take-home, past the 30% guideline most planners use. Cost-of-living overall is 10% above the national average (BEA RPP 109.9), so groceries and services cost more too. Use the affordability calculator above to model your specific situation.
Compared to nearby metros
Median pay for dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers in metros near Santa Cruz-Watsonville, adjusted for local cost of living.
| Metro | Median pay | COL-adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim | $36K | $32K |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont | $39K | $34K |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad | $36K | $32K |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario | $35K | $32K |
COL-adjusted = median salary ÷ (BEA Regional Price Parity ÷ 100). Expresses purchasing power in national-average dollars.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA
Entry-level dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers (10th percentile) start around $35K. Mid-career wages sit at $36K. Top earners bring in $50K or more, a $15K spread from bottom to top.
Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers pay across states
Median income ranked highest to lowest, compared to the national figure
View Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers salary in all states
| State | Median salary | vs. national | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hawaii | $51K | +51% | 4,380 |
| Washington | $41K | +22% | 6,160 |
| District of Columbia | $39K | +15% | 4,130 |
| Maine | $39K | +13% | 1,540 |
| Maryland | $37K | +9% | 13,240 |
| Oregon | $37K | +8% | 3,910 |
| Colorado | $37K | +8% | 8,460 |
| New York | $37K | +8% | 41,340 |
| Arizona | $37K | +7% | 13,300 |
| California | $36K | +6% | 75,460 |
| Massachusetts | $35K | +4% | 11,510 |
| Connecticut | $35K | +2% | 5,810 |
| New Jersey | $34K | +1% | 16,490 |
| Vermont | $34K | +0% | N/A |
| Florida | $33K | -2% | 50,400 |
| Virginia | $32K | -5% | 11,910 |
| Delaware | $32K | -6% | 1,540 |
| Missouri | $32K | -6% | 11,590 |
| Illinois | $31K | -8% | 21,290 |
| Rhode Island | $31K | -8% | 2,880 |
| North Dakota | $31K | -9% | 890 |
| Nebraska | $31K | -10% | 2,160 |
| Michigan | $30K | -11% | 13,050 |
| South Dakota | $30K | -12% | 2,550 |
| Tennessee | $29K | -13% | 11,330 |
| Ohio | $29K | -13% | 13,670 |
| New Mexico | $29K | -14% | 2,960 |
| Pennsylvania | $29K | -14% | 20,800 |
| Minnesota | $29K | -14% | 7,220 |
| Georgia | $29K | -15% | 14,540 |
| Indiana | $28K | -17% | 10,220 |
| Iowa | $28K | -17% | 3,250 |
| Idaho | $28K | -18% | 1,520 |
| Arkansas | $28K | -19% | 2,160 |
| North Carolina | $28K | -19% | 11,230 |
| Montana | $28K | -19% | 1,150 |
| Nevada | $27K | -19% | 12,750 |
| West Virginia | $27K | -20% | 1,170 |
| Wisconsin | $27K | -20% | 7,220 |
| Alaska | $27K | -20% | 860 |
| Utah | $27K | -21% | 4,490 |
| South Carolina | $27K | -21% | 6,220 |
| Oklahoma | $27K | -21% | 5,400 |
| Louisiana | $27K | -21% | 4,810 |
| Kentucky | $26K | -23% | 3,350 |
| Kansas | $26K | -23% | 2,960 |
| New Hampshire | $26K | -23% | 1,510 |
| Wyoming | $25K | -28% | 650 |
| Mississippi | $23K | -32% | 2,620 |
| Alabama | $22K | -34% | 3,420 |
| Texas | $22K | -37% | 60,270 |
Showing 1–10 of 51 (all 50 states + DC)
Track dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers salary changes
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Frequently asked questions
Can a dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helper afford a 2BR apartment alone in Santa Cruz-Watsonville?
It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $36K, rent takes 168.2% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $4,214/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $800/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.
What’s the entry-level salary for dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers in Santa Cruz-Watsonville?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers typically earn — is $35K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $2,107/month. At HUD’s $4,214/month FMR, rent would take 200% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.
Is dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helper a high-paying job in Santa Cruz-Watsonville?
Pay here is roughly in line with the national average — $36K locally vs. $34K nationally, a 5% difference.
How does Santa Cruz-Watsonville compare to the national average for dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers?
Santa Cruz-Watsonville pays $36K median vs. the U.S. average of $34K — that’s +5%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 109.9), the purchasing-power equivalent is $32K — below the national median.
How much do dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers make in Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA?
The median is $35,640 a year, that works out to about $17 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $35,110, and experienced dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers can clear $49,810. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $36K enough to live in Santa Cruz-Watsonville?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $2,506/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $4,214/month, which eats 168.2% 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 dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers salary go in Santa Cruz-Watsonville?
Santa Cruz-Watsonville has a Regional Price Parity of 109.9 (100 is the national average). Prices are above average here, so your dollar buys less than the same salary would in a cheaper metro. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers salary is worth about $32,429 in national-average purchasing power.
Where do dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers 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.