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Chefs and Head Cooks salary in Florida

SOC 35-1011 · BLS OEWS May 2025

Median
$58,240
per year in Florida
Middle half
$43,680–$75,840
25th to 75th percentile
Employed
19,670
in Florida
Concentration
1.54×
share of workforce vs. U.S.

How local pay compares

Florida
$58,240
published median
United States
$62,470
6.8% below the national median
Rank among states and DC
38th
51 with a published estimate

After local prices: the $58,240 median has purchasing power comparable to about $56,317 nationally. Florida's BEA regional price parity is 103.4 (2024).

What the local range looks like

The wash spans the 10th to 90th percentile, the darker section is the middle half, and the tick is the median for Florida.

$31,920$92,300

Getting in

Typical education to enter
High school diploma or equivalent
Related work experience
5 years or more
On-the-job training
None

Narrow to a metro in Florida

Every linked area below has a published estimate for chefs and head cooks. Missing areas were withheld by BLS rather than measured at zero.

The median wage as published, before local prices are taken into account.

#Metro areaMedianCost of livingEmployedConcentrationvs. national
1Naples-Marco Island, FL$68,830103.26402.85×
2Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL$61,390101.42,3601.30×
3North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL$60,180102.48802.01×
4Wildwood-The Villages, FL$59,51085.41302.42×
5Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL$58,240100.91,7200.92×
6Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL$57,940114.28,2102.26×
7Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL$56,83097.03802.34×
8Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL$56,220102.36601.68×
9Port St. Lucie, FL$56,130100.23401.55×
10Ocala, FL$55,54095.21200.79×
11Jacksonville, FL$55,06099.51,2301.25×
12Punta Gorda, FL$54,340100.51602.19×
13Tallahassee, FL$53,06093.92200.92×
14Sebring, FL$52,76092.5401.10×
15Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, FL$52,11099.43301.17×
16Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL$50,72097.12800.82×
17Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL$50,220100.02700.86×
18Sebastian-Vero Beach-West Vero Corridor, FL$49,66098.32002.65×
19Pensacola-Ferry Pass-Brent, FL$48,71097.72801.14×
20Panama City-Panama City Beach, FL$47,54097.32001.68×
21Gainesville, FL$47,38096.72501.30×
22Homosassa Springs, FL$41,68093.5701.63×

Cost of living is the BEA regional price parity for all items, where 100 is the national average. Concentration is the BLS location quotient: how much more of the local workforce does this job than the national average, so 2.00× means twice the national share. It is often the reason wages differ — a place that concentrates an occupation has the employers and the competition for it. Metro areas where chefs and head cooks wages are suppressed by BLS for confidentiality are omitted.

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