Waiters and Waitresses Salary in the United States

The median annual wage for waiters and waitresses in the U.S. is $35,230 ($16.94 per hour), according to the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, May 2025 estimates.

Median annual wage: $35,230
Mean annual wage: $40,060
Median hourly wage: $16.94
Employment: 2,270,910

Wage percentiles

U.S. wage distribution for waiters and waitresses (OEWS May 2025).
Percentile	Annual wage	Hourly wage
10th percentile	$18,100	$8.70
25th percentile	$27,750	$13.34
Median (50th)	$35,230	$16.94
75th percentile	$47,110	$22.65
90th percentile	$64,720	$31.12

Highest-paying states for waiters and waitresses

State	Median annual wage	Employment
Hawaii	$62,390	14,090
Vermont	$59,140	4,040
Washington	$56,130	45,400
Oregon	$48,410	23,040
District of Columbia	$47,850	11,530
New York	$47,020	142,940
New Jersey	$44,960	55,800
Colorado	$44,860	40,680
Virginia	$44,760	59,370
Arizona	$43,950	55,950

Lowest-paying states

Louisiana: $15,080 median annual wage
Oklahoma: $17,910 median annual wage
South Carolina: $18,370 median annual wage
Georgia: $18,700 median annual wage
Iowa: $21,000 median annual wage

Related occupations

Fast Food and Counter Workers$31,200
Cooks, Restaurant$37,390
First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers$44,080
Food Preparation Workers$35,320
Bartenders$34,340
Cooks, Fast Food$30,890
Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers$33,980
Dishwashers$34,810

About this data

Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics — data period May 2025, retrieved August 13, 2026.
Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics — data period May 2025, retrieved August 13, 2026.

Figures are shown exactly as published by the source or derived by the documented formulas on our methodology page. Where a source suppresses an estimate, we show “—” rather than a substitute value.