Fast Food and Counter Workers salary

What Fast Food and Counter Workers earn across the United States and in the largest metro areas — the official BLS OEWS May 2025 figures.

National wages — United States

Nationally, BLS estimates 3,854,050 Fast Food and Counter Workers jobs — 2.5% of all US employment. The national median wage is $31,200 a year ($15.00 an hour) and the mean is $32,150 a year, per the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 estimates (released May 15, 2026), retrieved October 27, 2026.

Wage level	Hourly	Annual
Mean	$15.46	$32,150
10th percentile	$10.98	$22,840
25th percentile	$13.32	$27,700
Median (50th percentile)	$15.00	$31,200
75th percentile	$17.34	$36,070
90th percentile	$20.51	$42,650

Median pay by metro area

Metro area	Median annual	Median hourly	Employment	vs US median
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA	$43,870	$21.09	49,970	+40.6%
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA	$42,280	$20.33	51,310	+35.5%
San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA	$42,190	$20.28	42,550	+35.2%
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	$42,110	$20.24	160,270	+35.0%
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA	$39,150	$18.82	49,190	+25.5%
Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO	$37,070	$17.82	42,810	+18.8%
Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH	$36,290	$17.45	60,130	+16.3%
Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA	$35,620	$17.13	34,840	+14.2%
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ	$35,420	$17.03	166,040	+13.5%
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN	$34,630	$16.65	97,280	+11.0%
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV	$34,600	$16.64	60,560	+10.9%
Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ	$34,540	$16.61	54,900	+10.7%
Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD	$33,090	$15.91	21,090	+6.1%
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI	$33,040	$15.89	37,920	+5.9%
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD	$32,220	$15.49	69,080	+3.3%
St. Louis, MO-IL	$31,260	$15.03	19,170	+0.2%
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL	$29,600	$14.23	56,900	-5.1%
Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI	$29,590	$14.23	42,430	-5.2%
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX	$29,310	$14.09	35,000	-6.1%
Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL	$29,260	$14.07	33,910	-6.2%
Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC	$28,880	$13.88	27,050	-7.4%
Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL	$28,620	$13.76	34,830	-8.3%
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX	$28,070	$13.50	128,380	-10.0%
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA	$27,780	$13.36	80,730	-11.0%
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX	$27,570	$13.25	105,810	-11.6%

Each metro page carries the full OEWS wage distribution, the employment figures, and the estimated take-home pay on that metro's median under 2026 tax rules.

Sources

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. Take-home estimates are computed by this site's paycheck engine with 2026 rules.