Chefs and Head Cooks in Indiana
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$42,605
after federal, FICA and Indiana tax
Tax takes
$9,585
18.4% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$46,217
Indiana costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Indiana — roughly, since only five points along the band are published.
One filer, standard deduction, no dependants and nothing paid in before tax — the same household the rest of this page uses, so the comparison holds. City and school-district income taxes are not included.
Median here
$52,190
Kept after tax
$42,605
Worth in national money
$46,217
State rank
45
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Indiana is among the lower-paying states for chefs and head cooks. The middle earner takes $52,190, ranking 45 of 51 states — about 16.46% below the national middle. Costs here are often lower too, which the figures further down account for.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 493 occupations Indiana reports figures for, this is number 272.
- Indiana is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $52,190 the take-home is $42,605; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $46,217 would nationally. The average comes to $55,060, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- Indiana ranks 45 of 51 for chefs and head cooks, with a median of $52,190 — about 16.46% below the national figure. A nominal shortfall is not by itself a real one: lower-paying states frequently carry lower tax and lower price levels, and the adjusted figures below are where that is settled rather than assumed.
- In Indiana's occupational distribution, chefs and head cooks sits at 272 of 493 — neither quartile. This local position is what a resident compares against, and it is determined by the state's own labor market rather than by national patterns for this occupation.
- Post-tax income for chefs and head cooks in Indiana, on $52,190, is $42,605 — equivalent to $46,217 once regional price parity is applied. ⚠️ The adjustment uses a statewide index that describes no particular address; within-state price variation, concentrated in housing, routinely exceeds the difference between two states. At $55,060 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Chefs and Head Cooks
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $30,930 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $52,190 |
| Top tenth earn over | $82,430 |
| This salary | $52,190 |
Positions between the published tenth, quarter, half, three-quarter and ninetieth points are estimated by straight line.
The same pay, somewhere else
The state median for this job
| Take-home in Indiana | $42,605 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $44,115 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$820 |
The raise and the real gain point in opposite directions here.
State income tax and state price levels only. No city income tax, and no housing market.
What you would need there
The state median for this job
| To match take-home only | $50,311 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$991 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 92 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Indiana earn less than $52,190. The published range is $30,930 up to $82,430, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind Indiana's $42,605, worked from $52,190. That is on purpose. It lets states be compared with each other, not with each other's family circumstances. Local city taxes are left out. Locally this work ranks 272 of 493.
- One number stands for prices across all of Indiana, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $46,217, the adjusted value of that $52,190 median, as a way to compare states fairly, not as a quote for any particular place. The two datasets are also from different years. This job sits at 272 of 493 in the state.
- Reported values are medians; for chefs and head cooks in Indiana the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $30,930 to $82,430. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- The Indiana take-home of $42,605, on $52,190 for work ranking 272 of 493 locally, models the simplest household deliberately: holding it constant is what makes the interstate comparison meaningful. It also means the absolute figure overstates liability for most real filers, and municipal income taxes are outside the model entirely. The occupation ranks 272 of 493 in the state.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Indiana, so $46,217 — the adjusted value of that $52,190 median — establishes comparability between states rather than accuracy within one. The wage and parity series are dated independently, each following its own publication cycle, and neither is projected forward. This occupation sits at 272 of 493 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
It is the midpoint, not the average. The average here is $55,060, dragged up by high earners; the middle figure describes a typical worker better.
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
The label is broader than the work. From $30,930 at the bottom tenth to $82,430 at the top, the same title covers roles that share little beyond a name.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
A smaller wage in a cheaper place is not automatically less. Adjusted for local prices, this is worth $46,217.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Three of them are federal and one is not. After income tax, Social Security, Medicare and Indiana's own levy, $42,605 remains.
Can I compare this job across every state?
Yes for this one. Pay is published in all 51 jurisdictions, so a state-to-state comparison here rests on the same survey everywhere rather than on a patchwork.
How does the published median differ from the mean for this occupation?
The median is the midpoint of the distribution; the mean for this occupation in Indiana is $55,060. Wage distributions are right-skewed, so the mean exceeds the median wherever a minority earn substantially more. BLS publishes both because substituting one for the other misstates a typical worker's pay.
What drives the percentile dispersion in this occupation?
Dispersion between the tenth percentile ($30,930) and the ninetieth ($82,430) exceeds the family median dispersion. SOC codes aggregate roles differing in seniority, industry and specialisation, and BLS does not disaggregate below the detailed occupation level, so within-title variance is not separable from the published series.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Indiana's regional price parity is at or below the national average, so nominal wages understate purchasing power. Take-home deflated by the state price level is $46,217 in national-average terms. The adjustment uses an all-items index and does not isolate housing.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $42,605 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Indiana income tax for a single filer with no adjustments. The state layer is levied in addition to the federal one; only its rate and base differ between states.
Is this occupation's state coverage complete?
State-level estimates are published for all 51 jurisdictions for this occupation, so cross-state comparison is not confounded by suppression. ⚠️ Estimates remain survey-based and carry sampling error; small differences between adjacent states should not be over-read.