Cooks, Restaurant in the Corpus Christi Metro

BLS metro-level wage data places Cooks, Restaurant pay in Corpus Christi, TX at a median of $30,670 per year ($14.75/hr), drawn from the OEWS May 2025 release for this Metropolitan Statistical Area. Compared with the national median of $37,390, the metro estimate is 18% below. OEWS reports the difference but does not identify its cause. Approximately 2,130 cooks, restaurant are employed across the Corpus Christi MSA in SOC 35-2014.

The Corpus Christi pay distribution spans from $21,540 at the 10th percentile to $36,640 at the 90th, a 1.7× 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 $27,310 and the 75th at $35,410, so half of Corpus Christi-based cooks, restaurant earn within that middle band.

Metro figures use establishment work location, not worker residence. BLS draws metro boundaries from the OMB MSA definitions, so Corpus Christi, TX 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 TX estimate, and peer-metro rows provide distinct geographic comparisons. A published median is a benchmark, not a prediction or ceiling for one worker.