Last updated: 2025 BLS data · Page refreshed:
Florida employs 1,006,030 Food Preparation & Serving professionals across 14 occupations. Explore salary ranges, top paying jobs, and career opportunities within the Food Preparation & Serving industry.
The best-compensated occupations within Food Preparation & Serving in Florida, based on median salary data.
Complete breakdown of all occupations in the Food Preparation & Serving industry in Florida, sorted by median salary (highest to lowest). Click any job title for state-specific salary details.
| # | Job Title | Median Salary | Mean Salary | Employment | Hourly Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chefs and Head Cooks | $58,240 | $61,720 | 19,670 | $28/hr |
| 2 | First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers | $44,470 | $46,600 | 91,500 | $21/hr |
| 3 | Cooks, Restaurant | $37,020 | $38,320 | 124,040 | $17/hr |
| 4 | Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria | $36,250 | $38,170 | 25,100 | $17/hr |
| 5 | Waiters and Waitresses | $36,150 | $41,840 | 207,180 | $17/hr |
| 6 | Food Preparation Workers | $35,920 | $35,210 | 73,100 | $17/hr |
| 7 | Bartenders | $35,150 | $42,280 | 55,170 | $16/hr |
| 8 | Cooks, Short Order | $34,240 | $34,570 | 5,050 | $16/hr |
| 9 | Food Servers, Nonrestaurant | $33,930 | $34,530 | 19,240 | $16/hr |
| 10 | Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers | $33,280 | $35,130 | 50,400 | $16/hr |
| 11 | Dishwashers | $31,240 | $32,450 | 40,480 | $15/hr |
| 12 | Cooks, Fast Food | $29,900 | $32,230 | 22,600 | $14/hr |
| 13 | Hosts and Hostesses, Restaurant, Lounge, and Coffee Shop | $29,810 | $33,170 | 37,100 | $14/hr |
| 14 | Fast Food and Counter Workers | $29,080 | $30,940 | 235,400 | $13/hr |
Explore salary data and job opportunities in other industries across Florida:
Florida has 14 Food Preparation & Serving occupations with 1,006,030 total employed workers (2025 BLS data).
The highest-paying Food Preparation & Serving occupation in Florida is Chefs and Head Cooks with a median salary of $58,240/year.
The average median salary across 14 Food Preparation & Serving occupations in Florida is $36,049/year.
Salaries in Food Preparation & Serving in Florida range from $27,230 (entry-level) to $92,300 (senior) across all occupations.
Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) codes organize jobs into groups. Food Preparation & Serving occupations use SOC prefix 35. Data comes from BLS OEWS.
Data: BLS OEWS 2025. Salary figures represent May 2025 compensation for occupations classified under SOC code 35* in Florida. Percentile ranges (P10–P90) reflect the lowest and highest earning 10% of workers. Our Methodology · Data Sources