How much do Food Preparation Workers make in Elkhart-Goshen, IN?

Percentile spread

For Food Preparation Workers, the published 10th percentile is $27,280 and the 90th percentile is $37,650. The difference is $10,370, which is 30.8% 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 $29,450 to the 75th at $36,410, covers $6,960.

The mean annual wage is $32,970, which sits below the median of $33,640. Median and mean measure different points in the same distribution.

National and state comparison

The Elkhart-Goshen, IN median is 4.8% lower than the national median of $35,320 for Food Preparation Workers. In 2024 national prices the local median is $37,243, which is 5.4% higher than that same national median. The national figure is already in national prices because the United States parity is 100.

It is 13.3% higher than the Indiana median of $29,700.

Price-adjusted pay

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for Elkhart-Goshen, IN is 90.325, with the United States at 100. The Bureau of Economic Analysis released those parities on February 19, 2026. Dividing the May 2025 median of $33,640 by that parity and multiplying by 100 puts Food Preparation Workers at $37,243 in national prices. The wage year and the price year are different. Compare this wage after prices.

Nearby metros

44 other metropolitan areas within 200 miles publish a annual median for Food Preparation Workers. Elkhart-Goshen, IN ranks 10th of 45 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).).

• South Bend-Mishawaka, IN-MI is 18 miles away, with a median of $29,970 and employment of 760. That median is 10.9% lower than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $32,275, against $37,243 here.
• Michigan City-La Porte, IN is 46 miles away, with a median of $28,640 and employment of 240. That median is 14.9% lower than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $31,238, against $37,243 here.
• Niles, MI is 47 miles away, with a median of $29,640 and employment of 340. That median is 11.9% lower than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $32,088, against $37,243 here.

Employment share

Food Preparation Workers accounts for 0.52% of wage-and-salary employment in Elkhart-Goshen, IN (660 of 127,730). Nationally the occupation is 0.57% of employment (893,600 of 155,495,730). The local share is 0.90 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.