Food Cooking Machine Operators and Tenders Salary
Food Cooking Machine Operators and Tenders in Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ make a median of $40,740 a year, or about $19.59 an hour. The range runs from $32K at the entry level to $47K for experienced workers. Adjusted for local prices (RPP 99.97), that's roughly $40,752 in purchasing power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $1,634/month, about 57.7% of take-home, which is tight.
So what does $41K get you in Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton?
Groceries, utilities, transportation, and healthcare scaled from national averages by Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton’s Regional Price Parity (99.97). 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 food cooking machine operators and tenders
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What this looks like in Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton
Food cooking machine operators and tenders pay in Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton tracks closely to the national median, $41K locally vs. $42K nationwide, a 2% difference. The catch: housing math doesn't keep up. A 2-bedroom at the HUD median rents for $1,634/month, which is 58.5% of the median worker's take-home, past the 30% guideline most planners use. Cost of living (RPP 99.97) 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 food cooking machine operators and tenders in metros near Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, adjusted for local cost of living.
| Metro | Median pay | COL-adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington | $39K | $38K |
| York-Hanover | $46K | $48K |
| Scranton--Wilkes-Barre | $57K | $61K |
| Pittsburgh | $40K | $42K |
COL-adjusted = median salary ÷ (BEA Regional Price Parity ÷ 100). Expresses purchasing power in national-average dollars.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ
Entry-level food cooking machine operators and tenders (10th percentile) start around $32K. Mid-career wages sit at $41K. Top earners bring in $47K or more, a $15K spread from bottom to top.
Food Cooking Machine Operators and Tenders pay across states
Median income ranked highest to lowest, compared to the national figure
View Food Cooking Machine Operators and Tenders salary in all states
| State | Median salary | vs. national | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Washington | $51K | +23% | 310 |
| Utah | $49K | +17% | 390 |
| Massachusetts | $48K | +15% | 170 |
| Iowa | $48K | +15% | 850 |
| Michigan | $47K | +14% | 380 |
| Minnesota | $47K | +14% | 1,410 |
| Colorado | $47K | +13% | 300 |
| Kansas | $46K | +10% | 750 |
| New York | $46K | +10% | 1,300 |
| Tennessee | $46K | +10% | 1,820 |
| Nebraska | $45K | +9% | 670 |
| Idaho | $45K | +8% | 790 |
| California | $45K | +8% | 2,010 |
| Oregon | $45K | +7% | 570 |
| Louisiana | $44K | +7% | 550 |
| Arizona | $44K | +6% | 560 |
| Indiana | $43K | +4% | 540 |
| Pennsylvania | $43K | +3% | 1,580 |
| Illinois | $43K | +3% | 2,460 |
| Missouri | $42K | +1% | 620 |
| Kentucky | $42K | +1% | 300 |
| Ohio | $41K | -1% | 980 |
| Arkansas | $40K | -3% | 330 |
| New Hampshire | $40K | -3% | 110 |
| Wisconsin | $40K | -4% | 850 |
| South Dakota | $39K | -6% | 120 |
| North Carolina | $39K | -6% | 770 |
| Connecticut | $39K | -7% | 60 |
| Georgia | $38K | -8% | 690 |
| South Carolina | $38K | -8% | 520 |
| Maine | $38K | -10% | 170 |
| New Jersey | $37K | -11% | 430 |
| Maryland | $37K | -11% | N/A |
| Nevada | $37K | -12% | N/A |
| Florida | $36K | -12% | 970 |
| Oklahoma | $36K | -13% | 1,140 |
| Virginia | $35K | -16% | 510 |
| Texas | $34K | -18% | 3,180 |
| Delaware | $31K | -25% | N/A |
| Mississippi | $31K | -25% | 110 |
| Alabama | $27K | -35% | 250 |
Showing 1–10 of 41 states
BLS does not publish data for every state when sample sizes are too small
Track food cooking machine operators and tenders salary changes
BLS updates this data quarterly. We'll email you when Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton numbers change.
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Frequently asked questions
Can a food cooking machine operators and tender afford a 2BR apartment alone in Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton?
It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $41K, rent takes 58.5% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,634/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 food cooking machine operators and tenders in Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new food cooking machine operators and tenders typically earn — is $32K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $1,933/month. At HUD’s $1,634/month FMR, rent would take 85% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.
Is food cooking machine operators and tender a high-paying job in Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton?
Pay here is roughly in line with the national average — $41K locally vs. $42K nationally, a 2% difference.
How does Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton compare to the national average for food cooking machine operators and tenders?
Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton pays $41K median vs. the U.S. average of $42K — that’s -2%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 99.97), the purchasing-power equivalent is $41K — below the national median.
How much do food cooking machine operators and tenders make in Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ?
The median is $40,740 a year, that works out to about $20 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $32,220, and experienced food cooking machine operators and tenders can clear $46,980. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $41K enough to live in Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $2,794/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,634/month, which eats 58.5% 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 food cooking machine operators and tenders salary go in Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton?
Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton has a Regional Price Parity of 99.97 (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 food cooking machine operators and tenders salary is worth about $40,752 in national-average purchasing power.
Where do food cooking machine operators and tenders 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.