Is Chicago a strong pay market for Line Cooks?

At a $38,930 median, Chicago is $1,540 (4%) above the national median. The U.S. median is $37,390. Jobeezy shows you which local employers actually pay at the top of that band before you apply.

How can I earn more as a Line Cook in Chicago?

Target employers paying toward the $45,510 (75th-percentile) mark and anchor your negotiation to the BLS band. Jobeezy fit-scores Line Cook openings in Chicago and auto-applies, so you reach more high-paying employers fast.

How many Line Cooks work in Chicago?

BLS estimates roughly 41,690 line cook jobs across Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN (May 2025 metro employment — a count of jobs, not of salaries reported).

Line Cook Salary in Chicago, IL (2026)

Median in Chicago: $18.72/hour ($38,930/year) — $1,540 (4%) above the national median. Typical range: $36,300–$45,510.

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BLS OEWS May 2025 · Chicago, IL metro · refreshed 2026-08-25 · Reviewed by Dalton Metzler · U.S. Line Cook salary overview

The median Line Cook salary in Chicago, IL is $18.72/hour ($38,930/year) ($1,540 (4%) above the national median), with a typical range of $36,300–$45,510. Data from BLS + Jobeezy ghost-filter (2026).

Salary stats
Metric	Value	Source
Median	$18.72/hour ($38,930/year)	BLS OEWS May 2025
25th-75th pct	$36,300–$45,510	BLS OEWS May 2025
Metro employment	~41,690	BLS OEWS May 2025

### Key facts: Line Cook pay in Chicago, IL BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data for Line Cooks in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro. - Median Line Cook pay in Chicago, IL: $18.72/hour ($38,930/year) (BLS OEWS May 2025). - That is $1,540 (4%) above the national median (U.S. median $37,390). - 25th-75th percentile band: $36,300–$45,510. - BLS estimated metro employment: ~41,690 jobs.

Line Cook pay distribution in Chicago, IL

25th Pct (Chicago) $36,300 $17.45/hr

Median (Chicago) $38,930 $18.72/hr

75th Pct (Chicago) $45,510 $21.88/hr

National median: $37,390/yr. Chicago is $1,540 (4%) above the national median.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 — Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area (SOC 35-2014, Line Cook).

What line cook pay in Chicago really looks like

Chicago tracks the national market almost exactly. The local line cook median of about $18.72 an hour ($38,930 a year) sits within 4% ($1,540) of the U.S. median of $37,390, so national salary benchmarks translate cleanly to this metro — the number you have seen quoted nationally is, give or take, what line cooks actually earn in Chicago.

Pay is tightly clustered here: the 25th-to-75th-percentile band runs just $36,300 to $45,510 (BLS). A narrow spread means the metro median is a dependable expectation rather than a midpoint between wildly different jobs — there is little room above it without a credential, a specialty, or a supervisory step, so the ladder up is about the role, not just the employer.

This is a substantial local market: BLS estimates roughly 41,690 line cook jobs across the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area (a count of metro employment, not a survey of reported salaries). A deep employer base is good news for pay — it means more openings to compare side by side, more turnover creating vacancies, and more leverage to hold out for an employer at the top of the local range instead of settling for the first offer that lands.

Right now, Jobeezy is tracking 24 open line cook jobs in Chicago against the BLS $38,930 benchmark — the live listings and the employers hiring are below, so you can see which openings actually clear the metro median before you apply.

Put it together and the picture for Chicago is concrete: a metro median of $38,930 with most line cooks landing between $36,300 and $45,510. The practical move is to aim for the upper half of that band. Jobeezy fit-scores local line cook openings, surfaces the employers posting toward $45,510, and applies for you — so your time goes to the jobs that clear the Chicago median, not the ones that sit under it.

Line Cook pay by hour, week, month & year in Chicago

Period	Typical Pay
Per hour	$18.72
Per week (40 hrs)	$749
Per month	$3,244
Per year	$38,930

How we know this — Chicago sources

Wage figures for Line Cook in Chicago, IL are the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS May 2025 estimate for the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area (MSA code 16980) (SOC 35-2014), released 2026-08-25. Suppressed cells are shown as an em dash, never a zero.

Reviewed by Dalton Metzler · Jobeezy Compensation Data

Grow your line cook pay in Chicago

Advancing your pay in Chicago comes down to experience, credentials, and how you negotiate. We keep that guidance on the national Line Cook guide so it stays current in one place:

Compare Line Cook pay in nearby metros

Beyond Line Cook · same Chicago BLS dataset

Other roles hiring in Chicago, IL alongside line cooks, drawn from the same BLS OEWS May 2025 dataset:

See all IL jobs → IL salary overview →

Line Cook pay in Chicago, IL — common questions

How much does a Line Cook make in Chicago, IL?: The median Line Cook salary in Chicago, IL is $18.72/hour ($38,930/year) ($1,540 (4%) above the national median), with a typical range of $36,300–$45,510 (25th–75th percentile). Figures are BLS OEWS May 2025, released 2026-08-25.
Is Chicago a strong pay market for Line Cooks?: At a $38,930 median, Chicago is $1,540 (4%) above the national median. The U.S. median is $37,390. Jobeezy shows you which local employers actually pay at the top of that band before you apply.
How can I earn more as a Line Cook in Chicago?: Target employers paying toward the $45,510 (75th-percentile) mark and anchor your negotiation to the BLS band. Jobeezy fit-scores Line Cook openings in Chicago and auto-applies, so you reach more high-paying employers fast.
How many Line Cooks work in Chicago?: BLS estimates roughly 41,690 line cook jobs across Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN (May 2025 metro employment — a count of jobs, not of salaries reported).