How much do Chefs and Head Cooks make in Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY?

Percentile spread

For Chefs and Head Cooks, the published 10th percentile is $48,500 and the 90th percentile is $103,510. The difference is $55,010, which is 74.0% of the median. Ten percent of measured wages fall below the 10th percentile and ten percent fall above the 90th. How to read a percentile.

The middle half of the distribution, from the 25th percentile at $59,010 to the 75th at $92,080, covers $33,070.

The mean annual wage is $75,600, which sits above the median of $74,290. Median and mean measure different points in the same distribution.

National and state comparison

The Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY median is 18.9% higher than the national median of $62,470 for Chefs and Head Cooks. In 2024 national prices the local median is $77,511, which is 24.1% higher than that same national median. The national figure is already in national prices because the United States parity is 100.

It is 5.1% higher than the New York median of $70,670.

Price-adjusted pay

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY is 95.844, with the United States at 100. The Bureau of Economic Analysis released those parities on February 19, 2026. Dividing the May 2025 median of $74,290 by that parity and multiplying by 100 puts Chefs and Head Cooks at $77,511 in national prices. The wage year and the price year are different. Compare this wage after prices.

Nearby metros

17 other metropolitan areas within 200 miles publish a annual median for Chefs and Head Cooks. Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY ranks 1st of 18 on that median, counting itself. Distance is the great-circle mileage between Census Bureau internal points (U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 Gazetteer Files, Core Based Statistical Areas, internal points (INTPTLAT, INTPTLONG).).

• Rochester, NY is 62 miles away, with a median of $66,080 and employment of 690. That median is 11.1% lower than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $68,099, against $77,511 here.
• Erie, PA is 93 miles away, with a median of $51,340 and employment of 150. That median is 30.9% lower than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $56,449, against $77,511 here.
• Elmira, NY is 120 miles away, with a median of $63,410 and employment of 40. That median is 14.6% lower than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $67,173, against $77,511 here.

Employment share

Chefs and Head Cooks accounts for 0.12% of wage-and-salary employment in Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY (640 of 534,550). Nationally the occupation is 0.13% of employment (200,040 of 155,495,730). The local share is 0.93 times the national share. That ratio is the location quotient computed from these May 2025 employment counts. It is not copied from the location-quotient column in the BLS bulk file.