Chefs and Head Cooks in Sebastian-Vero Beach-West Vero Corridor

BLS metro-level wage data places Chefs and Head Cooks pay in Sebastian-Vero Beach-West Vero Corridor, FL at a median of $49,660 per year ($23.88/hr/hour), drawn from the OEWS May 2025 release for this Metropolitan Statistical Area. Compared to the national median of $62,470, Sebastian-Vero Beach-West Vero Corridor pays 21% below, which typically tracks with a lower local cost of living or smaller specialized-employer cluster. Approximately 200 chefs and head cookss are employed across the Sebastian-Vero Beach-West Vero Corridor MSA in SOC 35-1011.

The Sebastian-Vero Beach-West Vero Corridor pay distribution spans from $34,890 at the 10th percentile to $83,770 at the 90th, a 2.4× spread that reflects experience tenure, specialization, employer size, and the difference between public-sector, nonprofit, and private-sector compensation inside the metro. The 25th percentile sits at $42,100 and the 75th at $68,370, so half of Sebastian-Vero Beach-West Vero Corridor-based chefs and head cookss earn within that middle band.

Metro figures capture where you actually work, not just where you live, which matters for commuters. BLS draws metro boundaries from the OMB MSA definitions, so Sebastian-Vero Beach-West Vero Corridor, FL covers the central city plus outlying counties tied to the metro economically. Remember that OEWS wages reflect base pay only: employer-provided health insurance, retirement matches, stock options, signing bonuses, overtime, and tips are excluded and can add 20-40% to real total compensation. Before using this metro median as a negotiation anchor, triangulate against the same occupation's national profile (linked below), its state-wide FL data, and peer-metro comparisons, a median is a starting point, not a ceiling.