Chefs and Head Cooks in Utah
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$47,007
after federal, FICA and Utah tax
Tax takes
$12,053
20.4% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$49,480
Utah costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Utah — 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
$59,060
Kept after tax
$47,007
Worth in national money
$49,480
State rank
34
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Utah sits in the middle of the pack for chefs and head cooks. The median is $59,060, ranking 34 of 51 states with figures. Close enough to the national middle that where you live matters more than the headline suggests.
- Against other work in Utah, this sits in the middle: 241 of 487 occupations with published pay. Solidly ordinary for the state, which is not the same as ordinary nationally.
- Here is where Utah does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $59,060 you keep $47,007, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $49,480 would elsewhere. The average is lower, $58,880, so pay clusters nearer the top than usual.
- Utah occupies the middle band for chefs and head cooks: a median of $59,060, ranking 34 of 51. Where nominal pay is close to the national figure, the tax and price adjustments below carry proportionally more weight in determining the real outcome.
- Chefs and head cooks ranks 241 of 487 occupations in Utah by median pay, in the middle bands. Within-state and national positions are separate measurements and a job commonly sits in different quartiles on each.
- After federal, FICA and Utah income tax, retained pay for chefs and head cooks on $59,060 is $47,007. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $49,480 in national-average terms. ⚠️ That figure is purchasing power, not a wage, and nobody is paid it; it is what the take-home buys. The mean of $58,880 falls below the median, a left skew that is uncommon in wage data.
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Pay band: Chefs and Head Cooks
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $27,940 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $59,060 |
| Top tenth earn over | $79,420 |
| This salary | $59,060 |
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 Utah | $47,007 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $49,635 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$1,598 |
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 | $55,789 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$1,933 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 95 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Utah earn less than $59,060. The published range is $27,940 up to $79,420, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- In Utah the take-home figure of $47,007, from $59,060, assumes one filer, no dependants, and nothing paid into a pension before tax. Each of those lowers the bill, so treat it as the plain case. City and school-district income taxes are not included either, and in a few states those are real money. It ranks 241 of 487 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $49,480 uses one figure for the whole of Utah. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 487 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 241.
- Reported values are medians; for chefs and head cooks in Utah the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $27,940 to $79,420. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Take-home for Utah is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $47,007 from $59,060. Each omitted item reduces taxable income, so the figure is a lower bound on retained pay for this household shape. Municipal and school-district income taxes are excluded, which understates the burden materially in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Maryland. The occupation ranks 241 of 487 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $49,480, worked from $59,060, deflates by a statewide parity that conceals substantial intra-state variation, concentrated in housing — so it supports comparison between states rather than the pricing of a move to a particular Utah address, on work sitting at 241 of 487 locally.
Questions people ask
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
One title, many jobs. The lowest tenth take $27,940, the highest tenth $79,420, and what separates them is experience, employer and what exactly the role does.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
More than the figure suggests. Prices in Utah sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $49,480 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Four deductions, stacked. The federal layer and the two payroll taxes apply wherever you work; Utah then takes its own share, leaving $47,007.
Can I compare this job across every state?
All 51 jurisdictions report this work, which makes the ranking a like-for-like one.
What drives the percentile dispersion in this occupation?
Dispersion between the tenth percentile ($27,940) and the ninetieth ($79,420) 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?
Utah'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 $49,480 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 $47,007 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Utah 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.