Cooks, Fast Food in the Winston-Salem Metro

BLS metro-level wage data places Cooks, Fast Food pay in Winston-Salem, NC at a median of $27,280 per year ($13.12/hr), drawn from the OEWS May 2025 release for this Metropolitan Statistical Area. Compared with the national median of $30,890, the metro estimate is 12% below. OEWS reports the difference but does not identify its cause. Approximately 6,120 cooks, fast food are employed across the Winston-Salem MSA in SOC 35-2011.

The Winston-Salem pay distribution spans from $22,030 at the 10th percentile to $34,880 at the 90th, a 1.6× observed spread. Differences in specialization, employer, sector, location, credentials, schedule, and experience may all contribute, but OEWS does not isolate their effects. The 25th percentile sits at $23,010 and the 75th at $29,130, so half of Winston-Salem-based cooks, fast food earn within that middle band.

Metro figures use establishment work location, not worker residence. BLS draws metro boundaries from the OMB MSA definitions, so Winston-Salem, NC covers the central city plus outlying counties tied to the metro economically. OEWS includes straight-time pay, tips, commissions, incentive pay, and production bonuses. It excludes employer health and retirement benefits, overtime premiums, stock compensation, signing bonuses, and other nonproduction bonuses. The same occupation's national profile, statewide NC estimate, and peer-metro rows provide distinct geographic comparisons. A published median is a benchmark, not a prediction or ceiling for one worker.