Cooks, Restaurant salary in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
Official BLS OEWS May 2025 pay for Cooks, Restaurant in the Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, 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 Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX metro area earns $36,810 a year ($17.70 an hour), according to the BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates (full citation in Sources). The middle half of Cooks, Restaurant in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX earn between $31,860 and $39,320 a year. At the ends of the distribution, the lowest-paid 10 percent earn $27,540 or less and the top 10 percent earn $44,490 or more. BLS estimates 13,000 Cooks, Restaurant jobs in the Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX area — 10.047 of every 1,000 jobs in the area, a location quotient of 1.11 (above the national concentration). That is 0.9% of all Cooks, Restaurant employment in the United States (1,409,890 jobs nationally). By employment, Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX is the #23 largest of the 25 covered metro areas for Cooks, Restaurant. In aggregate, Cooks, Restaurant in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX earn about $0.47 billion a year (BLS employment multiplied by the mean wage). At the mean wage, the engine's take-home is $31,451.52 a year, so the aggregate take-home of Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX Cooks, Restaurant is about $0.41 billion. BLS reports a relative standard error of 7.9% for this employment estimate. Ranked by median pay, Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX stands #23 of the 25 metro areas covered on this site for Cooks, Restaurant. By employment, Cooks, Restaurant is the #17 largest of the 30 covered occupations in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. Placed against the national distribution for Cooks, Restaurant, the Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX median of $36,810 falls between the national 25th percentile ($34,010) and the national median ($37,390). Across all occupations, the Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX median is $56,950 a year — Cooks, Restaurant pay is 35.4% below the area's overall median.
Wages in detail
| Wage level | Hourly | Annual |
|---|---|---|
| Mean | $17.52 | $36,430 |
| 10th percentile | $13.24 | $27,540 |
| 25th percentile | $15.32 | $31,860 |
| Median (50th percentile) | $17.70 | $36,810 |
| 75th percentile | $18.91 | $39,320 |
| 90th percentile | $21.39 | $44,490 |
What the wage distribution says
The top 10 percent of Cooks, Restaurant in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX earn 1.6 times what the bottom 10 percent earn ($44,490 against $27,540). The middle half spans $7,460 — from $31,860 to $39,320. Hourly, the 90th percentile ($21.39) is 1.62 times the 10th ($13.24). In the upper half of the Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX distribution, the 75th percentile wage of $39,320 takes home $33,773.68 and the 90th percentile wage of $44,490 takes home $37,927.86 — $4,154.18 more net for $5,170 more gross. Against the median take-home of $31,756.64, the top decile keeps 1.19 times as much. The mean wage of $36,430 sits 1.0% below the median: the average is held down by the lower end of the distribution in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. Among the 30 covered occupations in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, Cooks, Restaurant ranks #25 by median pay. In the Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX wage ladder of covered occupations, Cooks, Restaurant sits between Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners at $36,930 and Cashiers at $33,940. Cooks, Restaurant accounts for 1.0% of all employment in the Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX metro area. The average covered metro employs 24,720 Cooks, Restaurant; Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX employs 0.5 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) | $36,810.00 |
|---|---|
| Federal income tax | $2,237.20 |
| Social Security (FICA) | $2,282.22 |
| Medicare (FICA) | $533.74 |
| Texas income tax | $0.00 |
| Total deductions | $5,053.36 |
| Net pay (annual) | $31,756.64 |
| Net pay per biweekly paycheck | $1,221.41 |
| Total deduction rate | 13.73% of gross |
At the median, $31,756.64 of the $36,810 gross is kept ($1,221.41 per paycheck) — a deduction rate of 13.73%. The deduction rate moves with pay: 11.80% at the 10th percentile, 12.81% at the 25th percentile, 14.11% at the 75th percentile, 14.75% at the 90th percentile. Between the 25th and 75th percentile wages, annual take-home rises by $5,994.12 on a gross rise of $7,460.
The same engine at the other published points of the Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX wage distribution:
| Wage point | Net per year | Net per paycheck | Deduction rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile ($27,540) | $24,289.22 | $934.20 | 11.80% |
| 25th percentile ($31,860) | $27,779.56 | $1,068.44 | 12.81% |
| Median ($36,810) | $31,756.64 | $1,221.41 | 13.73% |
| 75th percentile ($39,320) | $33,773.68 | $1,298.99 | 14.11% |
| 90th percentile ($44,490) | $37,927.86 | $1,458.76 | 14.75% |
Across the published distribution, take-home pay runs from $24,289.22 a year at the 10th percentile to $37,927.86 at the 90th — a spread of $13,638.64 of net pay inside one occupation and one metro area.
For scale: across all occupations, the Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX median wage of $56,950 takes home $47,939.44 a year ($1,843.82 per paycheck, deduction rate 15.82%). The Cooks, Restaurant median take-home of $31,756.64 sits $16,182.80 (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 Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX median of $36,810 is $580 (1.6%) below the national median.
The means rank the area the same way: $36,430 a year in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX against $38,730 nationally, a gap of $2,300 (5.9%).
Set against the whole local market, the Cooks, Restaurant 90th percentile of $44,490 is 32% of the Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX all-occupations 90th percentile ($137,820), and its 10th percentile of $27,540 is 92% of the area-wide 10th ($29,860).
| Median annual | Median hourly | Mean annual | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX | $36,810 | $17.70 | $36,430 |
| United States | $37,390 | $17.98 | $38,730 |
Frequently asked questions
What is the median salary for Cooks, Restaurant in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?
$36,810 a year ($17.70 an hour), per the BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates. The mean is $36,430 a year. Ranked by median pay, Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX stands #23 of the 25 covered metro areas for this occupation.
What is the take-home pay on $36,810 in Texas?
About $31,756.64 a year ($1,221.41 per biweekly paycheck) for a single filer with no dependents and no pre-tax contributions, under 2026 rules — a total deduction rate of 13.73% of gross. At the 75th percentile wage of $39,320, take-home is $33,773.68.
How does pay in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX compare with the national median for Cooks, Restaurant?
The Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX median of $36,810 is $580 (1.6%) below the national median of $37,390 a year. At the top of the distribution, the local 90th percentile is $44,490, against a national 90th percentile of $47,900.
How much do the top 10% of Cooks, Restaurant earn in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?
$44,490 a year or more ($21.39 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 Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?
On $44,490 a year, the engine gives a take-home of $37,927.86 a year ($1,458.76 per biweekly paycheck) in Texas under the same assumptions — a deduction rate of 14.75%.
How many Cooks, Restaurant jobs are there in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?
BLS estimates 13,000 Cooks, Restaurant jobs in the Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX metro area — 10.047 of every 1,000 jobs in the area.
How concentrated are Cooks, Restaurant jobs in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?
The location quotient is 1.11 — 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 Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?
From $24,289.22 a year at the 10th percentile wage ($27,540) to $37,927.86 at the 90th ($44,490), under the same single-filer assumptions in Texas.
What is the total wage bill for Cooks, Restaurant in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?
About $0.47 billion a year — the BLS employment estimate of 13,000 multiplied by the mean wage of $36,430.
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.