North Dakota · BLS May 2025

Fast Food Cook Salary in North Dakota

The Bureau of Labor Statistics counted 580 cooks, fast food working in North Dakota. Here is what they are paid, what the median leaves after federal and FICA tax, and what that is worth against local prices.

Median pay · North Dakota

$30,220A year, or $14.53 an hour.
Take-home a month$2,205After federal and FICA tax at 12.4%
Worth at national prices$33,971Prices here sit at 89 against 100
Against the nation2.2% belowNational median $30,890
What cooks, fast food earn in North Dakota, May 2025
PercentileAnnualHourly
10th percentileEntry and lowest-paid$23,060$11.09
25th percentile$29,320$14.10
MedianHalf earn more, half less$30,220$14.53
75th percentile$35,080$16.87
90th percentileMost experienced and senior$38,480$18.50
MeanThe average, pulled up by the top$31,850$15.31
How we got this
  1. Median wage in North DakotaBLS OEWS May 2025. Half of cooks, fast food earned more than this, half less.$30,220
  2. Median hourly wagePublished separately by BLS, not divided out of the annual figure.$14.53
  3. Take-home after federal and FICA tax$2,205 a month at an effective rate of 12.4%.$26,462 a year
  4. Worth at national average pricesPrices in North Dakota sit at 89 against a national 100 (BEA, 2024).$33,971
  5. Against the national medianThe national median is $30,890.2.2% below
  6. Jobs countedA concentration of 0.32 against the nation's 1.00.580
What we assumed
  • Wages are BLS OEWS survey estimates for May 2025, not job postings or offers.
  • OEWS surveys wage and salary workers. The self-employed and business owners are outside it.
  • Take-home assumes one 2026 filer, filing single, taking the standard deduction, with no dependents, pre-tax retirement contributions or local income tax.
  • Regional price parities compare price levels between places in one year. They are not inflation, and they do not adjust for what a household actually buys.
Technical details

Method occupation-wage-v1Data bls-oews-2025-05-v1, us-tax-2026-v1, bea-rpp-2024-v1, census-acs5-2024-v1

What lands in the bank

A $30,220 salary in North Dakota, for one single filer taking the standard deduction in 2026.

  • Federal income tax. $1,446 a year.
  • State income tax. North Dakota levies no state income tax on wages.
  • Social Security and Medicare. $2,312 a year.
  • Left over. $26,462 a year, $2,205 a month, an effective rate of 12.4%.

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What $30,220 is worth in North Dakota

Prices in North Dakota sit at 89 against a national average of 100, so $30,220 earned here buys what $33,971 buys at national average prices.

  • Rents. 71.4 against 100, the component that moves most between states.
  • Against local households. The median household in North Dakota takes in $76,657, so this occupation's median is 0.39 times that, on one income.
  • How common the job is here. 68% less concentrated in North Dakota than in the country as a whole.

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Common questions

Fast Food Cook pay in North Dakota, answered

How much does a fast food cook make in North Dakota?

The median wage for fast food cooks in North Dakota is $30,220 a year, or $14.53 an hour.

Half earn more than that and half earn less. The figure comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics occupational wage survey for May 2025.

What is the take-home pay for a fast food cook in North Dakota?

On the median wage of $30,220, one filer taking the standard deduction keeps about $26,462 a year, or roughly $2,205 a month.

That is after federal and FICA tax, an effective rate of 12.4%.

North Dakota levies no state income tax on wages, so nothing is withheld for it.

Do fast food cooks earn more in North Dakota than in the rest of the country?

No. The median in North Dakota is 2.2% below the national median of $30,890.

Nominal pay is only half the comparison: prices in North Dakota sit at 89 against a national 100, so the gap in what the money buys is different from the gap in the salary.

Is $30,220 a good salary in North Dakota?

It is 0.39 times the median household income of $76,657. A household often has more than one earner, so a single salary at this level goes further than the ratio alone suggests.

Prices in North Dakota run at 89 against a national average of 100, with rents at 71.4, so $30,220 here buys about what $33,971 buys at national average prices.

What do the highest-paid fast food cooks earn in North Dakota?

The top tenth earn $38,480 a year or more, against $23,060 at the bottom tenth.

Experience, specialism, employer and the part of North Dakota someone works in all move a wage inside that range; the survey reports the spread, not the reason for it.

How many fast food cooks are there in North Dakota?

The survey counted 580 of these jobs in North Dakota for May 2025.

That makes the occupation 68% less concentrated here than in the country as a whole. It counts wage and salary jobs, so the self-employed are outside it.

Sources

Where this data comes from