SOC 35-1011BLS OEWS May 2025H-1B LCAs, last 12 months
Direct and may participate in the preparation, seasoning, and cooking of salads, soups, fish, meats, vegetables, desserts, or other foods. May plan and price menu items, order supplies, and keep records and accounts.
National median · BLS
$62,470
▲ +2.43%YoY
H-1B sponsor median
$70,000
▲ +7.69%YoY · 67 LCAs
Average salary · BLS
$66,700
Mean annual wage
U.S. employment
200,040
Jobs (BLS)
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Enter your pay and a location to see where you stand against BLS and H-1B pay, your estimated take-home pay, and your purchasing power.
Pay range for Chefs and Head Cooks
Annual base pay at each percentile. BLS covers all U.S. workers in this occupation; H-1B covers 67 certified Labor Condition Applications filed by sponsoring employers in the last 12 months.
Percentile
All U.S. workers (BLS)
H-1B sponsored
10th — entry pay
$37,900
$50,984
25th
$48,440
$60,000
Median (50th)
$62,470
$70,000
75th
$78,750
$81,600
90th — top pay
$98,560
$96,057
H-1B sponsors pay a median of $70,000 for Chefs and Head Cooks —
12.1% above
the BLS national median of $62,470.
Hourly ⇄ annual pay
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Monthly—
Every 2 weeks—
Weekly—
Daily—
Based on
hrs/week ×
weeks/year
= 2,080 hrs
Projections 2025–2035
Job outlook for Chefs and Head Cooks
BLS projects employment of chefs and head cooks to grow 6.6% from 2025 to 2035, faster than the 3.5% average for all occupations.
About 25,200 openings are projected each year, on average, from new jobs and from replacing workers who retire or move to other occupations.
Jobs 2025 → 2035
220,300 → 234,700
+14,400 jobs
Projected change
+6.6%
All occupations: +3.5%
Openings per year
25,200
Average, 2025–2035
Typical entry education
High school diploma or equivalent
Plus 5 years or more experience
Self-employed
6.8% of workers (2025)
Preparation needed (O*NET Job Zone 3)
Medium Preparation Needed. Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.
Employers assign every H-1B filing a Department of Labor prevailing-wage level, from Level I (entry) to Level IV (fully competent). Pay rises steeply with level.
H-1B median$70,000
Change vs prior year+7.69%
After inflation (CPI-U)+4.42%
Wage level
LCAs
Share
P25
Median
P75
Level II
17
25.4%
$58,240
$60,070
$65,000
Level III
15
22.4%
$60,950
$72,301
$80,000
Level IV
25
37.3%
$72,000
$85,000
$96,271
H-1B job titles
Salaries by job title in Chefs and Head Cooks
The 2 most-filed job titles inside SOC 35-1011, from 67 H-1B filings. Seniority words and level numbers are grouped (“Senior Data Engineer II” counts as Data Engineer). Tap a title for its full range, wage levels and the exact titles employers used.
Job title
LCAs
Share
P25
Median
P75
YoY
▶Executive Chef
18
26.87%
$60,000
$62,535
$82,419
-8.7%
Executive Chef · full pay range (18 LCAs)
P10$57,912
P25$60,000
Median$62,535
P75$82,419
P90$93,901
Median by H-1B wage level
Level II$60,0705 LCAs
Level III$64,9656 LCAs
Level IV$89,0196 LCAs
▶Chef De Cuisine
11
16.42%
$75,150
$85,000
$92,500
—
Chef De Cuisine · full pay range (11 LCAs)
P10$70,000
P25$75,150
Median$85,000
P75$92,500
P90$96,271
Median by H-1B wage level
Level IV$95,0005 LCAs
Titles are cleaned from the employer's own LCA text (codes and typos removed, nothing invented). Rows need 10+ filings in this SOC.
Top H-1B sponsors for Chefs and Head Cooks
Employers with the most certified LCAs for this occupation nationwide. Browse all sponsors →
Employer
Certified LCAs
Median
Profile
Chefs and Head Cooks salaries by state
BLS state medians, plus the same figure adjusted for local prices (BEA Regional Price Parities). Tap a state for its full range and H-1B pay.
State
Median
Jobs
Cost-adjusted
Profile
Chefs and Head Cooks salaries by metro area
Search by city, ZIP code or metro name. Tap a metro for its full range.
Metro area
Median
Jobs
Cost-adjusted
Profile
Skills & tools
Skills needed for Chefs and Head Cooks
How important each skill and knowledge area is for this job, rated by O*NET on a 1–5 scale from surveys of workers and occupational analysts.
Highlighted = in demand: frequently listed in employer job postings for this occupation (O*NET).
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
About the job
What chefs and head cooks do
Monitor sanitation practices to ensure that employees follow standards and regulations.
Instruct cooks or other workers in the preparation, cooking, garnishing, or presentation of food.
Supervise or coordinate activities of cooks or workers engaged in food preparation.
Order or requisition food or other supplies needed to ensure efficient operation.
Inspect supplies, equipment, or work areas to ensure conformance to established standards.
Check the quantity and quality of received products.
Check the quality of raw or cooked food products to ensure that standards are met.
Estimate amounts and costs of required supplies, such as food and ingredients.
Also called
ChefExecutive Chef (Ex Chef)Kitchen ManagerSous ChefBanquet ChefCookExecutive Pastry ChefExecutive Sous ChefFood and Beverage DirectorHead Cook
Source: O*NET 31.0 (USDOL/ETA, CC BY 4.0). These are general job titles, not H-1B filings; for titles employers actually filed, see “Job titles” above.
Similar jobs and how they pay
Occupations O*NET lists as closely related to Chefs and Head Cooks, with BLS national medians compared with this occupation's $62,470.
