Cooks, Restaurant salary in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ
Official BLS OEWS May 2025 pay for Cooks, Restaurant in the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ metro area — and the estimated take-home pay on the median wage under 2026 New York tax rules.
The figures
The median Cooks, Restaurant in the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ metro area earns $43,740 a year ($21.03 an hour), according to the BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates (full citation in Sources). The middle half of Cooks, Restaurant in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ earn between $36,740 and $47,310 a year. At the ends of the distribution, the lowest-paid 10 percent earn $33,040 or less and the top 10 percent earn $54,240 or more. BLS estimates 69,250 Cooks, Restaurant jobs in the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ area — 7.296 of every 1,000 jobs in the area, a location quotient of 0.8 (below the national concentration). That is 4.9% of all Cooks, Restaurant employment in the United States (1,409,890 jobs nationally). By employment, New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ is the #1 largest of the 25 covered metro areas for Cooks, Restaurant. In aggregate, Cooks, Restaurant in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ earn about $2.99 billion a year (BLS employment multiplied by the mean wage). At the mean wage, the engine's take-home is $34,968.66 a year, so the aggregate take-home of New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ Cooks, Restaurant is about $2.42 billion. BLS reports a relative standard error of 7.8% for this employment estimate. Ranked by median pay, New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ stands #8 of the 25 metro areas covered on this site for Cooks, Restaurant. By employment, Cooks, Restaurant is the #22 largest of the 30 covered occupations in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ. Placed against the national distribution for Cooks, Restaurant, the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ median of $43,740 falls between the national median ($37,390) and the national 75th percentile ($44,620). Across all occupations, the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ median is $61,430 a year — Cooks, Restaurant pay is 28.8% below the area's overall median.
Wages in detail
| Wage level | Hourly | Annual |
|---|---|---|
| Mean | $20.77 | $43,200 |
| 10th percentile | $15.89 | $33,040 |
| 25th percentile | $17.66 | $36,740 |
| Median (50th percentile) | $21.03 | $43,740 |
| 75th percentile | $22.75 | $47,310 |
| 90th percentile | $26.08 | $54,240 |
What the wage distribution says
The top 10 percent of Cooks, Restaurant in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ earn 1.6 times what the bottom 10 percent earn ($54,240 against $33,040). The middle half spans $10,570 — from $36,740 to $47,310. Hourly, the 90th percentile ($26.08) is 1.64 times the 10th ($15.89). In the upper half of the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ distribution, the 75th percentile wage of $47,310 takes home $38,031.38 and the 90th percentile wage of $54,240 takes home $43,195.72 — $5,164.34 more net for $6,930 more gross. Against the median take-home of $35,371.38, the top decile keeps 1.22 times as much. The mean wage of $43,200 sits 1.2% below the median: the average is held down by the lower end of the distribution in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ. Among the 30 covered occupations in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ, Cooks, Restaurant ranks #22 by median pay. In the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ wage ladder of covered occupations, Cooks, Restaurant sits between Security Guards at $43,980 and Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand at $43,290. Cooks, Restaurant accounts for 0.7% of all employment in the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ metro area. The average covered metro employs 24,720 Cooks, Restaurant; New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ employs 2.8 times that.
Take-home pay on the median wage in New York
Single filer, no dependents, no pre-tax contributions, paid biweekly, a full year of W-2 wages in New York; city and local taxes are not included:
| Gross pay (annual) | $43,740.00 |
|---|---|
| Federal income tax | $3,068.80 |
| Social Security (FICA) | $2,711.88 |
| Medicare (FICA) | $634.23 |
| New York income tax | $1,764.96 |
| New York Paid Family Leave (employee contribution) | $188.96 |
| Total deductions | $8,368.62 |
| Net pay (annual) | $35,371.38 |
| Net pay per biweekly paycheck | $1,360.44 |
| Total deduction rate | 19.13% of gross |
At the median, $35,371.38 of the $43,740 gross is kept ($1,360.44 per paycheck) — a deduction rate of 19.13%. The deduction rate moves with pay: 17.08% at the 10th percentile, 17.92% at the 25th percentile, 19.61% at the 75th percentile, 20.36% at the 90th percentile. Between the 25th and 75th percentile wages, annual take-home rises by $7,876.14 on a gross rise of $10,570.
The same engine at the other published points of the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ wage distribution:
| Wage point | Net per year | Net per paycheck | Deduction rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile ($33,040) | $27,397.48 | $1,053.75 | 17.08% |
| 25th percentile ($36,740) | $30,155.24 | $1,159.82 | 17.92% |
| Median ($43,740) | $35,371.38 | $1,360.44 | 19.13% |
| 75th percentile ($47,310) | $38,031.38 | $1,462.75 | 19.61% |
| 90th percentile ($54,240) | $43,195.72 | $1,661.37 | 20.36% |
Across the published distribution, take-home pay runs from $27,397.48 a year at the 10th percentile to $43,195.72 at the 90th — a spread of $15,798.24 of net pay inside one occupation and one metro area.
For scale: across all occupations, the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ median wage of $61,430 takes home $48,553.24 a year ($1,867.43 per paycheck, deduction rate 20.96%). The Cooks, Restaurant median take-home of $35,371.38 sits $13,181.86 (below that area-wide figure.
Multi-state metro area. New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ also covers parts of New Jersey. The take-home estimate above uses New York rules — the metro area's primary state. If the job is based in another part of the metro area, the state tax changes: see the New Jersey paycheck calculator.
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 New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ median of $43,740 is $6,350 (17.0%) above the national median.
The means rank the area the same way: $43,200 a year in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ against $38,730 nationally, a gap of $4,470 (11.5%).
Set against the whole local market, the Cooks, Restaurant 90th percentile of $54,240 is 33% of the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ all-occupations 90th percentile ($166,080), and its 10th percentile of $33,040 is 91% of the area-wide 10th ($36,130).
| Median annual | Median hourly | Mean annual | |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | $43,740 | $21.03 | $43,200 |
| United States | $37,390 | $17.98 | $38,730 |
Frequently asked questions
What is the median salary for Cooks, Restaurant in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ?
$43,740 a year ($21.03 an hour), per the BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates. The mean is $43,200 a year. Ranked by median pay, New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ stands #8 of the 25 covered metro areas for this occupation.
What is the take-home pay on $43,740 in New York?
About $35,371.38 a year ($1,360.44 per biweekly paycheck) for a single filer with no dependents and no pre-tax contributions, under 2026 rules — a total deduction rate of 19.13% of gross. At the 75th percentile wage of $47,310, take-home is $38,031.38.
How does pay in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ compare with the national median for Cooks, Restaurant?
The New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ median of $43,740 is $6,350 (17.0%) above the national median of $37,390 a year. At the top of the distribution, the local 90th percentile is $54,240, against a national 90th percentile of $47,900.
How much do the top 10% of Cooks, Restaurant earn in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ?
$54,240 a year or more ($26.08 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 New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ?
On $54,240 a year, the engine gives a take-home of $43,195.72 a year ($1,661.37 per biweekly paycheck) in New York under the same assumptions — a deduction rate of 20.36%.
How many Cooks, Restaurant jobs are there in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ?
BLS estimates 69,250 Cooks, Restaurant jobs in the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ metro area — 7.296 of every 1,000 jobs in the area.
How concentrated are Cooks, Restaurant jobs in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ?
The location quotient is 0.8 — below 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 New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ?
From $27,397.48 a year at the 10th percentile wage ($33,040) to $43,195.72 at the 90th ($54,240), under the same single-filer assumptions in New York.
What is the total wage bill for Cooks, Restaurant in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ?
About $2.99 billion a year — the BLS employment estimate of 69,250 multiplied by the mean wage of $43,200.
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.