Waiters and Waitresses Salary in Kentucky
The median annual wage for waiters and waitresses in Kentucky is $29,660 ($14.26 per hour) — -15.8% vs. the national median of $35,230. Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025 estimates.
- Median annual wage
- $29,660
- Mean annual wage
- $35,410
- Median hourly wage
- $14.26
- Employment in KY
- 27,150
27,150 employed · 13.6 per 1,000 jobs
Wage percentiles in Kentucky
| Percentile | Annual wage | Hourly wage |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $16,520 | $7.94 |
| 25th percentile | $18,170 | $8.74 |
| Median (50th) | $29,660 | $14.26 |
| 75th percentile | $45,710 | $21.98 |
| 90th percentile | $62,030 | $29.82 |
What this salary is worth in Kentucky
- Cost-of-living adjusted salary
- $32,897
- Median rent burden
- 39.1%
- Est. affordable home price
- $108,198
Kentucky prices are 90.2 vs. U.S. average = 100 (BEA RPP, 2024)
Median gross rent in Kentucky: $967/mo (ACS 2020-2024). 30% of income = $742/mo
At 6.67% 30-yr rate (FRED, 2026-08), 20% down, 28% front-end DTI, 1.5%/yr taxes+insurance
For context, the median home value in Kentucky is $205,600 (ACS 2020-2024).
Estimates from documented formulas — see methodology. Not financial advice.
Waiters and Waitresses salary in other states
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- District of Columbia
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
Other salaries in Kentucky
- Accountants and Auditors in Kentucky
- Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks in Kentucky
- Business Operations Specialists, All Other in Kentucky
- Cashiers in Kentucky
- Construction Laborers in Kentucky
- Cooks, Restaurant in Kentucky
- Customer Service Representatives in Kentucky
- Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education in Kentucky
- Fast Food and Counter Workers in Kentucky
- First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers in Kentucky
- First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers in Kentucky
- First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers in Kentucky
- General and Operations Managers in Kentucky
- Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers in Kentucky
- Home Health and Personal Care Aides in Kentucky
- Human Resources Specialists in Kentucky
- Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners in Kentucky
- Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand in Kentucky
- Landscaping and Groundskeeping Workers in Kentucky
- Light Truck Drivers in Kentucky
- Maintenance and Repair Workers, General in Kentucky
- Management Analysts in Kentucky
- Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists in Kentucky
- Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants in Kentucky
- Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators in Kentucky
- Nursing Assistants in Kentucky
- Office Clerks, General in Kentucky
- Project Management Specialists in Kentucky
- Receptionists and Information Clerks in Kentucky
- Registered Nurses in Kentucky
- Retail Salespersons in Kentucky
- Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel in Kentucky
- Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products in Kentucky
- Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education in Kentucky
- Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive in Kentucky
- Security Guards in Kentucky
- Software Developers in Kentucky
- Stockers and Order Fillers in Kentucky
- Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary in Kentucky
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.
- Regional Price Parities — data period 2024, retrieved August 13, 2026.
- American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates — data period 2020-2024, retrieved August 13, 2026.
- Federal Reserve Economic Data — data period 2026-08, retrieved August 17, 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.