Cooks, Restaurant salary in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX
Official BLS OEWS May 2025 pay for Cooks, Restaurant in the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX metro area — and the estimated take-home pay on the median wage under 2026 Texas tax rules.
The figures
The median Cooks, Restaurant in the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX metro area earns $35,050 a year ($16.85 an hour), according to the BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates (full citation in Sources). The middle half of Cooks, Restaurant in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX earn between $28,290 and $37,090 a year. At the ends of the distribution, the lowest-paid 10 percent earn $24,600 or less and the top 10 percent earn $38,370 or more. BLS estimates 32,710 Cooks, Restaurant jobs in the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX area — 9.943 of every 1,000 jobs in the area, a location quotient of 1.1 (above the national concentration). That is 2.3% of all Cooks, Restaurant employment in the United States (1,409,890 jobs nationally). By employment, Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX is the #6 largest of the 25 covered metro areas for Cooks, Restaurant. In aggregate, Cooks, Restaurant in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX earn about $1.08 billion a year (BLS employment multiplied by the mean wage). At the mean wage, the engine's take-home is $28,671.42 a year, so the aggregate take-home of Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX Cooks, Restaurant is about $0.94 billion. BLS reports a relative standard error of 7.1% for this employment estimate. Ranked by median pay, Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX stands #25 of the 25 metro areas covered on this site for Cooks, Restaurant. By employment, Cooks, Restaurant is the #18 largest of the 30 covered occupations in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX. Placed against the national distribution for Cooks, Restaurant, the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX median of $35,050 falls between the national 25th percentile ($34,010) and the national median ($37,390). Across all occupations, the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX median is $49,410 a year — Cooks, Restaurant pay is 29.1% below the area's overall median.
Wages in detail
| Wage level | Hourly | Annual |
|---|---|---|
| Mean | $15.85 | $32,970 |
| 10th percentile | $11.83 | $24,600 |
| 25th percentile | $13.60 | $28,290 |
| Median (50th percentile) | $16.85 | $35,050 |
| 75th percentile | $17.83 | $37,090 |
| 90th percentile | $18.45 | $38,370 |
What the wage distribution says
The top 10 percent of Cooks, Restaurant in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX earn 1.6 times what the bottom 10 percent earn ($38,370 against $24,600). The middle half spans $8,800 — from $28,290 to $37,090. Hourly, the 90th percentile ($18.45) is 1.56 times the 10th ($11.83). In the upper half of the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX distribution, the 75th percentile wage of $37,090 takes home $31,981.78 and the 90th percentile wage of $38,370 takes home $33,010.10 — $1,028.32 more net for $1,280 more gross. Against the median take-home of $30,342.70, the top decile keeps 1.09 times as much. The mean wage of $32,970 sits 5.9% below the median: the average is held down by the lower end of the distribution in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX. Among the 30 covered occupations in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, Cooks, Restaurant ranks #24 by median pay. In the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX wage ladder of covered occupations, Cooks, Restaurant sits between Security Guards at $35,460 and Retail Salespersons at $31,340. Cooks, Restaurant accounts for 1.0% of all employment in the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX metro area. The average covered metro employs 24,720 Cooks, Restaurant; Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX employs 1.3 times that.
Take-home pay on the median wage in Texas
Single filer, no dependents, no pre-tax contributions, paid biweekly, a full year of W-2 wages in Texas; city and local taxes are not included:
| Gross pay (annual) | $35,050.00 |
|---|---|
| Federal income tax | $2,026.00 |
| Social Security (FICA) | $2,173.10 |
| Medicare (FICA) | $508.22 |
| Texas income tax | $0.00 |
| Total deductions | $4,707.30 |
| Net pay (annual) | $30,342.70 |
| Net pay per biweekly paycheck | $1,167.03 |
| Total deduction rate | 13.43% of gross |
At the median, $30,342.70 of the $35,050 gross is kept ($1,167.03 per paycheck) — a deduction rate of 13.43%. The deduction rate moves with pay: 11.10% at the 10th percentile, 11.96% at the 25th percentile, 13.77% at the 75th percentile, 13.97% at the 90th percentile. Between the 25th and 75th percentile wages, annual take-home rises by $7,074.90 on a gross rise of $8,800.
The same engine at the other published points of the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX wage distribution:
| Wage point | Net per year | Net per paycheck | Deduction rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile ($24,600) | $21,868.18 | $841.08 | 11.10% |
| 25th percentile ($28,290) | $24,906.88 | $957.96 | 11.96% |
| Median ($35,050) | $30,342.70 | $1,167.03 | 13.43% |
| 75th percentile ($37,090) | $31,981.78 | $1,230.07 | 13.77% |
| 90th percentile ($38,370) | $33,010.10 | $1,269.62 | 13.97% |
Across the published distribution, take-home pay runs from $21,868.18 a year at the 10th percentile to $33,010.10 at the 90th — a spread of $11,141.92 of net pay inside one occupation and one metro area.
For scale: across all occupations, the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX median wage of $49,410 takes home $41,880.92 a year ($1,610.80 per paycheck, deduction rate 15.24%). The Cooks, Restaurant median take-home of $30,342.70 sits $11,538.22 (below that area-wide figure.
Run your own numbers
Your own withholding depends on your Form W-4, your benefits and your other income — run your exact figures through the calculator:
Against the national median
Nationally, the median Cooks, Restaurant earns $37,390 a year ($17.98 an hour). The Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX median of $35,050 is $2,340 (6.3%) below the national median.
The means rank the area the same way: $32,970 a year in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX against $38,730 nationally, a gap of $5,760 (14.9%).
Set against the whole local market, the Cooks, Restaurant 90th percentile of $38,370 is 30% of the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX all-occupations 90th percentile ($128,040), and its 10th percentile of $24,600 is 90% of the area-wide 10th ($27,380).
| Median annual | Median hourly | Mean annual | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX | $35,050 | $16.85 | $32,970 |
| United States | $37,390 | $17.98 | $38,730 |
Frequently asked questions
What is the median salary for Cooks, Restaurant in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?
$35,050 a year ($16.85 an hour), per the BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates. The mean is $32,970 a year. Ranked by median pay, Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX stands #25 of the 25 covered metro areas for this occupation.
What is the take-home pay on $35,050 in Texas?
About $30,342.70 a year ($1,167.03 per biweekly paycheck) for a single filer with no dependents and no pre-tax contributions, under 2026 rules — a total deduction rate of 13.43% of gross. At the 75th percentile wage of $37,090, take-home is $31,981.78.
How does pay in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX compare with the national median for Cooks, Restaurant?
The Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX median of $35,050 is $2,340 (6.3%) below the national median of $37,390 a year. At the top of the distribution, the local 90th percentile is $38,370, against a national 90th percentile of $47,900.
How much do the top 10% of Cooks, Restaurant earn in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?
$38,370 a year or more ($18.45 an hour or more), per the BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates.
What is the take-home pay at the 90th percentile for Cooks, Restaurant in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?
On $38,370 a year, the engine gives a take-home of $33,010.10 a year ($1,269.62 per biweekly paycheck) in Texas under the same assumptions — a deduction rate of 13.97%.
How many Cooks, Restaurant jobs are there in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?
BLS estimates 32,710 Cooks, Restaurant jobs in the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX metro area — 9.943 of every 1,000 jobs in the area.
How concentrated are Cooks, Restaurant jobs in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?
The location quotient is 1.1 — above the national concentration. A quotient of 1.0 means the occupation's share of local employment equals its national share.
How much does take-home pay vary for Cooks, Restaurant in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?
From $21,868.18 a year at the 10th percentile wage ($24,600) to $33,010.10 at the 90th ($38,370), under the same single-filer assumptions in Texas.
What is the total wage bill for Cooks, Restaurant in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?
About $1.08 billion a year — the BLS employment estimate of 32,710 multiplied by the mean wage of $32,970.
Sources and method
Wage data: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 estimates (released May 15, 2026), retrieved October 27, 2026 — bls.gov/oes. OEWS figures are survey estimates for May 2025, not job offers. Take-home pay is computed by this site's paycheck engine with 2026 federal and state rules; the method, and what the engine does not model, is documented in the paycheck methodology guide. Estimates only — not tax advice.