Side-by-side distribution
Chef
$56,500
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 24.7%
- Live roles
- 2,107
Cook
$20.50/hr
per hour · USD
- Disclosing
- 47.6%
- Live roles
- 4,347
Highest-paying jobs
Chef de Cuisine - Bluebird Restaurant
Chef principal des essais cliniques, IQVIA Biotech/Senior Clinical Trial Manager, IQVIA Biotech
Executive Chef - EC
Executive Chef
Executive Sous Chef
Chef d’équipe des données (Data Team Lead)
Executive Chef
Executive Chef - Little Beach House Malibu
Chef d'équipe données senior, Senior Data Team Lead
Senior Executive Sous Chef
Highest-paying jobs
Cook
Cook Full Time
Cook
Cook - Part Time
Cook - Part Time
In-Home Physician Full Time - Chicago, Cook County
In-Home Physician Part Time - Chicago, Cook County
In-Home Nurse Practitioner or Physician Assistant Part Time - Chicago, Cook County
In-Home Nurse Practitioner or Physician Assistant Full Time - Chicago, Cook County
Case Manager Registered Nurse - Field (Cook County)
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
DIG INN Chefs-In-Training
|
$36,400 | 65 |
Bupa
|
$41,218 | 37 |
|
Soho House & Co.
|
$45,666 | 34 |
JOEY Restaurants
|
$54,250 | 32 |
Pyramid Global Hospitality
|
$76,250 | 30 |
|
Four Seasons
|
$84,105 | 25 |
NEXDINE Hospitality
|
$70,000 | 21 |
DIG INN Restaurant Teams
|
$82,500 | 17 |
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
Chuck E. Cheese
|
$34,320 | 222 |
|
Pyramid Global Hospitality
|
$41,600 | 83 |
|
DIG INN Chefs-In-Training
|
$36,400 | 79 |
Sanford Health
|
$41,600 | 71 |
Wegmans
|
$37,440 | 71 |
| HH HHS | $37,440 | 63 |
ASM Global
|
$42,640 | 59 |
Global Partners
|
$40,279 | 52 |
Chef salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles | $82,000 | 7 |
| San Francisco | $76,250 | 4 |
| Denver | $76,250 | 4 |
| Chicago | $75,750 | 8 |
| Seattle | $75,000 | 3 |
| Austin | $75,000 | 3 |
| Atlanta | $67,500 | 4 |
| Toronto | $62,500 | 22 |
| London | $45,564 | 21 |
| New York | $40,560 | 53 |
Cook salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | $62,176 | 10 |
| Seattle | $56,160 | 13 |
| Chicago | $54,350 | 32 |
| Los Angeles | $52,562 | 9 |
| Denver | $50,440 | 6 |
| Austin | $43,971 | 11 |
| Toronto | $43,701 | 23 |
| Boston | $41,454 | 41 |
| Dublin | $37,856 | 4 |
| New York | $36,400 | 74 |
Chef vs Cook: which pays more?
The median for Chef is $56,500 per year (typically $41,321–$75,000), versus $20.50/hr for Cook ($18.00/hr–$23.50/hr). That puts Chef about 33% ahead at the median.
Both figures are computed live from active listings on JobsRadar and normalized to annualized USD, so Chef and Cook are compared on equal terms regardless of the currency each role was originally posted in. Only roles that publish a salary range feed the medians; numbers refresh every few hours as new roles post and older ones close, so this comparison reflects the market right now rather than a fixed survey. Use it as a directional benchmark when weighing one path against the other.