Cooks, Fast Food
Also called: Cook, Grill Cook, Line Cook, Pizza CookPrepare and cook food in a fast food restaurant with a limited menu. Duties of these cooks are limited to preparation of a few basic items and normally involve operating large-volume single-purpose cooking equipment.
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What the data says: AI could halve the time on 1 of its 19 rated tasks, and jobs are projected to grow 0.6% by 2035. How to think about this →
About this projection
BLS builds AI into its projections where the research supports it: “BLS generally applies adjustments based on this research conservatively, where there is convincing evidence for a change.”
It also notes a limit: “BLS projection methods are not designed to capture extremely rapid technological change.”
On its AI exposure groups, BLS says exposure “does not imply job loss.”
Recent conditions
- In 2024, 8.0% of people in this work were unemployed, against 3.8% across all occupations Census ACS 2024, all workers in the Census group “Cooks”
- From Sep 2025 to Aug 2026, 10.1 hires for every 10 job openings in accommodation and food services, which employs about 97% of people in this work, against 7.3 across all industries BLS JOLTS
One box per opening, filled for each hire; hires beyond the openings are added in a lighter shade. Higher can mean openings get filled, or that people leave often; lower, that jobs go unfilled, or hiring is slow.10.1 this industry7.3 all industries
Median pay by state BLS OEWS May 2025, state estimates
Tap a state for its figures.
Median pay in every state
| State | Median | Middle half earn | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $27,870 | $23,590 to $29,380 | 26,740 |
| Alaska | $33,960 | $31,130 to $37,170 | 2,250 |
| Arizona | $32,660 | $30,960 to $35,040 | 11,210 |
| Arkansas | $27,710 | $24,600 to $29,150 | 7,860 |
| California | $42,050 | $37,260 to $43,300 | 124,440 |
| Colorado | $36,900 | $34,790 to $38,990 | 9,220 |
| Connecticut | $34,980 | $34,010 to $36,180 | 3,630 |
| Delaware | $31,840 | $31,200 to $38,950 | 850 |
| District of Columbia | $44,670 | $38,800 to $48,820 | 2,760 |
| Florida | $29,900 | $28,210 to $36,030 | 22,600 |
| Georgia | $26,940 | $21,880 to $32,060 | 12,940 |
| Guam | $21,690 | $21,380 to $21,910 | 650 |
| Hawaii | $48,120 | $29,120 to $49,260 | not published |
| Idaho | $31,070 | $23,790 to $33,540 | 1,610 |
| Illinois | $34,960 | $31,430 to $37,350 | 13,430 |
| Indiana | $29,870 | $28,440 to $35,310 | 6,830 |
| Iowa | $28,510 | $16,140 to $33,710 | 8,290 |
| Kansas | $28,640 | $24,520 to $34,170 | 1,610 |
| Kentucky | $23,500 | $22,030 to $27,890 | 21,750 |
| Louisiana | $24,960 | $22,000 to $28,190 | 3,000 |
| Maine | $36,350 | $33,770 to $37,910 | 1,470 |
| Maryland | $33,320 | $31,360 to $35,700 | 10,960 |
| Massachusetts | $37,870 | $36,400 to $41,600 | not published |
| Michigan | $29,460 | $27,300 to $30,880 | 14,340 |
| Minnesota | $34,120 | $29,890 to $38,630 | 5,190 |
| Mississippi | $22,670 | $21,350 to $26,750 | 11,170 |
| Missouri | $29,890 | $28,790 to $31,080 | 55,780 |
| Montana | $26,770 | $23,920 to $33,960 | 820 |
| Nebraska | $30,430 | $28,830 to $34,850 | 2,900 |
| Nevada | $33,840 | $27,740 to $38,010 | 5,890 |
| New Hampshire | $38,590 | $37,500 to $44,290 | 1,330 |
| New Jersey | $32,220 | $32,220 to $36,930 | 3,440 |
| New Mexico | $30,190 | $28,740 to $35,370 | 1,800 |
| New York | $35,770 | $33,340 to $38,130 | 11,710 |
| North Carolina | $27,190 | $22,740 to $29,190 | 81,980 |
| North Dakota | $30,220 | $29,320 to $35,080 | 580 |
| Ohio | $26,870 | $23,070 to $29,710 | 12,310 |
| Oklahoma | $27,720 | $25,280 to $29,280 | 8,860 |
| Oregon | $37,880 | $35,010 to $40,280 | 4,300 |
| Pennsylvania | $28,810 | $25,120 to $35,610 | 9,240 |
| Puerto Rico | $22,640 | $21,840 to $25,900 | 3,810 |
| Rhode Island | $35,230 | $31,200 to $35,690 | 1,210 |
| South Carolina | $27,420 | $22,830 to $33,540 | 9,110 |
| South Dakota | $30,950 | $29,330 to $33,000 | 1,720 |
| Tennessee | $28,330 | $24,550 to $34,780 | 14,020 |
| Texas | $28,280 | $23,090 to $36,450 | 36,240 |
| Utah | $31,800 | $29,220 to $36,400 | 4,400 |
| Vermont | $38,230 | $36,190 to $38,740 | 640 |
| Virginia | $29,950 | $28,330 to $34,570 | 12,520 |
| Washington | $39,120 | $36,390 to $44,050 | 9,020 |
| West Virginia | $23,120 | $22,290 to $26,680 | 16,490 |
| Wisconsin | $28,920 | $27,730 to $32,910 | 6,900 |
| Wyoming | $28,950 | $21,930 to $34,320 | 890 |
Nationally: $30,890. Shades run from the lowest state median to the highest; a territory below that range takes the lightest. How to read this
How AI touches the work
What AI could speed up, task by task, and where people already use it.
AI could halve the time on 1 of its 19 rated tasks
| AI rating | Its main tasks | Share of Claude conversations May 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Not much | Maintain sanitation, health, and safety standards in work areas. | Not published |
| Not much | Clean food preparation areas, cooking surfaces, and utensils. | Not published |
| Not much | Read food order slips or receive verbal instructions as to food required by patron, and prepare and cook food according to instructions. | Not published |
| Not much | Verify that prepared food meets requirements for quality and quantity. | Not published |
| Not much | Clean, stock, and restock workstations and display cases. | Not published |
| Not much | Cook the exact number of items ordered by each customer, working on several different orders simultaneously. | Not published |
See all 20 tasks
| Not much | Wash, cut, and prepare foods designated for cooking. | Not published |
| Not much | Operate large-volume cooking equipment, such as grills, deep-fat fryers, or griddles. | Not published |
| Not much | Measure ingredients required for specific food items. | under 0.01% |
| Not much | Prepare specialty foods, such as pizzas, fish and chips, sandwiches, or tacos, following specific methods that usually require short preparation time. | Not published |
| Not rated | Take out garbage. | Not published |
| Not much | Pre-cook items, such as bacon, to prepare them for later use. | Not published |
| Not much | Serve orders to customers at windows, counters, or tables. | Not published |
| Not much | Take food and drink orders and receive payment from customers. | Not published |
| Not much | Cook and package batches of food, such as hamburgers or fried chicken, prepared to order or kept warm until sold. | Not published |
| Not much | Prepare and serve beverages, such as coffee or fountain drinks. | Not published |
| Not much | Schedule activities and equipment use with managers, using information about daily menus to help coordinate cooking times. | Not published |
| Not much | Mix ingredients, such as pancake or waffle batters. | Not published |
| Not much | Prepare dough, following recipe. | Not published |
| AI + software | Order and take delivery of supplies. | Not published |
Ordered by how important O*NET's respondents rate each task (1 to 5) times the share who say it is part of their job. The ordering is ours. 1 of the 20 have a published share of Claude conversations; “not published” means too few conversations for Anthropic to publish a figure.
Where people already use AI
The tasks above say what AI could speed up. This shows what people are using it for. Its 20 tasks fall under 11 work activities that many occupations share, and Microsoft counted how often each one came up in 200,000 conversations with its Copilot assistant in 2024.
- #36 Purchase goods or services
| Work activity | This occupation's tasks under it | People asked AI for help in 10,000 conversations |
AI did it for them in 10,000 conversations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prepare foods or beverages | |||
| Clean tools, equipment, facilities, or work areas | |||
| Provide food or beverage services | |||
| Purchase goods or services | |||
| Prepare mixtures or solutions | |||
| Execute financial transactions | |||
| Measure physical characteristics of materials, products, or equipment | |||
| Inspect completed work or finished products |
Show all 11 activities
| Dispose of waste or debris | |||
| Direct organizational operations, activities, or procedures | |||
| Stock supplies or products |
How people in this work use Claude
What people in this work made with Claude % of conversations
- A recipe or meal plan44%
- An explanation or answer31%
- Advice or a recommendation10%
- Math or a calculation10%
- Data or a spreadsheet2%
How they worked with Claude
2% of these conversations were about work. Anthropic Economic Index, May 2026.
How to read this
Work activities come from O*NET, which links every task to the broader activities it involves. Microsoft's figures are for the activity across everyone who used Copilot, not for cooks, fast food specifically. Copilot is a general chat assistant; dedicated coding tools are not included, so programming help is under-counted here. Activities are listed by how many of this occupation's tasks fall under them.
The task ratings say whether AI could halve the time a task takes: on its own (“AI alone”), or with software built on it (“AI + software”). They were made by people in 2023 (Eloundou et al.). Claude's share is the task's share of all Claude.ai conversations in May 2026; Anthropic doesn't publish a task with too few conversations. None of these add up to the BLS exposure group, which combines five research measures.
More in the Guide: task ratings · task order · work activities · Copilot figures · Claude
High exposure doesn't mean fewer jobs
BLS projects most occupations in its two most exposed groups to grow: 141 of 206 rated Very high and 165 of 206 rated High. Each dot is one of the 831 occupations BLS rates.
Career moves into and out of this occupation
From moves between occupations found in online resumes, 2002–2016. Career changes only: a first job after school isn't a move.
Where people moved next
of 22,392 moves out
- 1 Customer Service Representatives Very high -5.3% 6%
- 2 First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers High -3.7% 5%
- 3 Retail Salespersons Very high -0.3% 5%
- 4 Food Service Managers Moderate +5.8% 5%
- 5 Waiters and Waitresses Moderate +2.0% 4%
Where people moved in from
of 7,074 moves in
- 1 Fast Food and Counter Workers Moderate +5.8% 14%
- 2 Cashiers High -6.5% 10%
- 3 Retail Salespersons Very high -0.3% 6%
- 4 Customer Service Representatives Very high -5.3% 6%
- 5 Waiters and Waitresses Moderate +2.0% 4%
Resumes over-represent younger, white-collar job-seekers and moves into management. Schubert, Stansbury and Taska (resume data).
Education and training for the occupation
Census survey (American Community Survey)
- 28% less than high school
- 42% high school
- 19% some college
- 5% associate's
- 5% bachelor's
- 1% master's
Census ACS 2024, all workers in the Census group “Cooks” · 20,501 people surveyed.
Median pay by highest degree full-time, year-round · Census ACS 2024, all workers in the Census group “Cooks”
Jobs that require a credential BLS Occupational Requirements Survey 2023
42.1% this occupation
45.3% all occupations
| By kind | This occupation | All occupations |
|---|---|---|
| a license | <0.5% | 19.1% |
| a certification | <0.5% | 5.8% |
| an educational certificate | <0.5% | 2.8% |
Share of jobs whose employer requires it. BLS doesn't say which credential. How to read this
Look up certifications, training and licenses U.S. Department of Labor
- Certification Finder ↗ certifications CareerOneStop lists for this occupation
- Training Finder ↗ schools and programs, nationwide; narrow the place there
- License Finder ↗ licenses by state
- Apprenticeship Finder ↗ DOL lists 1 registered apprenticeship in this occupation (Baker, Pizza (Hotel & Restaurant)). Apprenticeship.gov can't be linked to one occupation, so search for “Cooks, Fast Food” there.
These open in a new tab and send only the occupation's public code. More in the Guide
BLS AI exposure categories (Aug 2026) · BLS Employment Projections 2025–35 · O*NET 31.0 · Task ratings: Eloundou et al., Science (2024) · Microsoft "Working with AI" v1.1 · Anthropic Economic Index (2026-06-26) · Schubert, Stansbury and Taska · NCES CIP–SOC · Census ACS 2024 · BLS JOLTS
See it online, and explore any career: https://www.pathmosaic.com/card/35-2011.00