SOC 35-3031 · Food Preparation and Serving Related Occupations · May 2025

How much do Waiters and Waitresses make in Clarksville, TN-KY?

In the May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics estimates, released May 15, 2026, the median annual wage for Waiters and Waitresses in Clarksville, TN-KY is $21,790. The 10th percentile is $15,080 and the 90th percentile is $47,440. Employment is 1,570.

Median annual wage

$21,790

10th percentile
$15,080
25th percentile
$15,090
Median
$21,790
75th percentile
$36,450
90th percentile
$47,440
Mean
$27,420

Annual wage from the May 2025 OEWS estimates.

Portrait of a woman police officer in uniform
A police officer during a United Nations visit to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, May 2012. Photograph by Myriam Asmani, MONUSCO. Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0

Percentile spread

For Waiters and Waitresses, the published 10th percentile is $15,080 and the 90th percentile is $47,440. The difference is $32,360, which is 148.5% 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 $15,090 to the 75th at $36,450, covers $21,360.

The mean annual wage is $27,420, which sits above the median of $21,790. Median and mean measure different points in the same distribution.

National and state comparison

The Clarksville, TN-KY median is 38.1% lower than the national median of $35,230 for Waiters and Waitresses. In 2024 national prices the local median is $23,959, which is 32% lower than that same national median. The national figure is already in national prices because the United States parity is 100.

It is 21.5% lower than the Tennessee median of $27,760.

Clarksville, TN-KY covers more than one state. The state comparison uses Tennessee, the primary state on the BLS area record.

Price-adjusted pay

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for Clarksville, TN-KY is 90.947, with the United States at 100. The Bureau of Economic Analysis released those parities on February 19, 2026. Dividing the May 2025 median of $21,790 by that parity and multiplying by 100 puts Waiters and Waitresses at $23,959 in national prices. The wage year and the price year are different. Compare this wage after prices.

Nearby metros

20 other metropolitan areas within 200 miles publish a annual median for Waiters and Waitresses. Clarksville, TN-KY ranks 20th of 21 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).).

  • Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN is 65 miles away, with a median of $29,390 and employment of 19,490. That median is 34.9% higher than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $30,507, against $23,959 here.
  • Paducah, KY-IL is 66 miles away, with a median of $29,280 and employment of 1,010. That median is 34.4% higher than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $34,013, against $23,959 here.
  • Owensboro, KY is 72 miles away, with a median of $29,790 and employment of 780. That median is 36.7% higher than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $33,619, against $23,959 here.

Employment share

Waiters and Waitresses accounts for 1.5% of wage-and-salary employment in Clarksville, TN-KY (1,570 of 103,220). Nationally the occupation is 1.5% of employment (2,270,910 of 155,495,730). The local share is 1.04 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.

Highest-paying jobs in Clarksville, TN-KY · Waiters and Waitresses by metro · How to read these percentiles · Median and mean · When a wage is not published · How the figures are made · Compare this wage after prices

Questions this page answers

How much do Waiters and Waitresses make in Clarksville, TN-KY?

In the May 2025 OEWS estimates, released May 15, 2026, the median annual wage for Waiters and Waitresses in Clarksville, TN-KY is $21,790. The 10th percentile is $15,080 and the 90th percentile is $47,440. Employment is 1,570.

How does that compare with the national median for Waiters and Waitresses?

The local median is 38.1% lower than the national median of $35,230.

What is Waiters and Waitresses pay in Clarksville, TN-KY after local prices?

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for Clarksville, TN-KY is 90.947, with the United States at 100. In those national prices, the May 2025 median of $21,790 is $23,959. The wage is May 2025 and the parity is 2024.

How does Clarksville, TN-KY compare with nearby metros for Waiters and Waitresses?

Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN is the closest metropolitan area within 200 miles with a published annual median, 65 miles away, at $29,390. Clarksville, TN-KY ranks 20th of 21 metros within 200 miles on that median. Distances use Census Bureau internal points.