Cooks, Restaurant in Wisconsin
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$30,599
after federal, FICA and Wisconsin tax
Tax takes
$5,951
16.3% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$32,868
Wisconsin costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Wisconsin — 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
$36,550
Kept after tax
$30,599
Worth in national money
$32,868
State rank
29
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Wisconsin sits in the middle of the pack for cooks, restaurant. The median is $36,550, ranking 29 of 51 states with figures. Close enough to the national middle that where you live matters more than the headline suggests.
- Measured against other jobs in Wisconsin, this one sits low: 448 of 491 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Here is where Wisconsin does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $36,550 you keep $30,599, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $32,868 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $36,690, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Wisconsin occupies the middle band for cooks, restaurant: a median of $36,550, ranking 29 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.
- Cooks, restaurant occupies position 448 of 491 in Wisconsin's occupational wage distribution, in the bottom quartile. National ranking and local ranking answer different questions and frequently disagree; this is the one a resident experiences.
- After federal, FICA and Wisconsin income tax, retained pay for cooks, restaurant on $36,550 is $30,599. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $32,868 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 $36,690 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Cooks, Restaurant
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $28,010 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $36,550 |
| Top tenth earn over | $46,270 |
| This salary | $36,550 |
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 Wisconsin | $30,599 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $31,548 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$403 |
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 | $35,369 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$488 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 93 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- A median is the middle, not an offer. Half of cooks, restaurant in Wisconsin earn under $36,550 and half over. The published range runs $28,010 at the tenth percentile to $46,270 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- In Wisconsin the take-home figure of $30,599, from $36,550, 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 448 of 491 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $32,868 uses one figure for the whole of Wisconsin. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 491 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 448.
- Figures are distribution medians for cooks, restaurant in Wisconsin, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $28,010 to $46,270; within-state dispersion of that width routinely exceeds the dispersion between states, so tenure, employer and metropolitan area predict an individual's pay better than geography does.
- Take-home for Wisconsin is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $30,599 from $36,550. 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 448 of 491 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $32,868, worked from $36,550, 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 Wisconsin address, on work sitting at 448 of 491 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $28,010 at the bottom tenth to $46,270 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. Wisconsin is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $32,868 in national terms.
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; Wisconsin then takes its own share, leaving $30,599.
Can I compare this job across every state?
All 51 jurisdictions report this work, which makes the ranking a like-for-like one.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($28,010 to $46,270) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Wisconsin rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Wisconsin'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 $32,868 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 $30,599 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Wisconsin 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.