What is the Average Salary of a Chef?

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Recently, the average salary of a chef has diminished as far as recent reports show, if you are hoping of getting a job as one, you’ll need to be aware of the right numbers in order to successfully calculate your budget. The drop happened from top to bottom – the highest paid positions suffered the most, followed by the less prestigious ones.

Depending on CV

Payment with chefs usually depends on your past work. Always remember that a culinary degree will give you an advantage. Months of work spent inside an actual kitchen of any kind also go a long way. Remember, if you really want to get salaries that are high ($60,000 – $80,000), you will need to have a lot of experience. For instance, thirty-year veterans can actually get a salary exceeding the mind-blowing $120,000.

Depending on Location

The type of restaurant you are working at (is it big, is it small, does it belong to a brand, etc.) as well as whether or not it is in the city or somewhere less populated, makes all the difference. The prices for independent restaurants are now around $65,000, the ones in hotels dropped to $81,000. The highly paid country club chefs have experienced a serious drop in their payment that amounts to $60,000, which is still a very solid sum, but a diminishment nonetheless. The best place to work as a chef is still New York; however, other cities are coming slightly forward in the race. For instance, there is Florida. New York has also been challenged by Texas and New Jersey. There is additional development going around Miami and Chicago, although the latter might prove to be dissatisfying when it comes down to an average salary of a chef.

Statistics by Gender and Ethnicity

In theory, the selection process should have nothing to do with gender and ethnicity or race. However, the facts do show a significant trend. Nearly 90 percent of chefs are male and 10 percent are female. Usually, the difference in the average salary of a chef between male and female chefs is about $15,000 in favor of the male. The difference is the smallest with sous chefs, just $2,000, but it is still in favor of men. Apart from that, when it comes down to the ethnical side of calculations, Asian and Latino chefs are the highest paid, followed by Caucasian and at the bottom of the table are the African American chefs. Ethnicity doesn’t stand for quality, but you as a future employee need to be aware of what will be difficult and what will be easy for you to get based on market and social perception.

Yes, realistically speaking, there will be plenty of obstacles to overcome. It is a challenge for sure to make it in an industry that favors the status quo. However, if you are persistent, you can overcome all odds and make a name for yourself that’s bigger than a demographic.