Waiters and Waitresses Salary in New York
The median annual wage for waiters and waitresses in New York is $47,020 ($22.61 per hour) — +33.5% vs. the national median of $35,230. Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025 estimates.
- Median annual wage
- $47,020
- Mean annual wage
- $54,750
- Median hourly wage
- $22.61
- Employment in NY
- 142,940
142,940 employed · 14.8 per 1,000 jobs
Wage percentiles in New York
| Percentile | Annual wage | Hourly wage |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $33,540 | $16.12 |
| 25th percentile | $34,520 | $16.60 |
| Median (50th) | $47,020 | $22.61 |
| 75th percentile | $64,480 | $31.00 |
| 90th percentile | $83,210 | $40.01 |
What this salary is worth in New York
- Cost-of-living adjusted salary
- $43,569
- Median rent burden
- 41.4%
- Est. affordable home price
- $171,526
New York prices are 107.9 vs. U.S. average = 100 (BEA RPP, 2024)
Median gross rent in New York: $1,621/mo (ACS 2020-2024). 30% of income = $1,176/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 New York is $423,800 (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
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- 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 New York
- Accountants and Auditors in New York
- Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks in New York
- Business Operations Specialists, All Other in New York
- Cashiers in New York
- Construction Laborers in New York
- Cooks, Restaurant in New York
- Customer Service Representatives in New York
- Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education in New York
- Fast Food and Counter Workers in New York
- First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers in New York
- First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers in New York
- First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers in New York
- General and Operations Managers in New York
- Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers in New York
- Home Health and Personal Care Aides in New York
- Human Resources Specialists in New York
- Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners in New York
- Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand in New York
- Landscaping and Groundskeeping Workers in New York
- Light Truck Drivers in New York
- Maintenance and Repair Workers, General in New York
- Management Analysts in New York
- Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists in New York
- Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants in New York
- Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators in New York
- Nursing Assistants in New York
- Office Clerks, General in New York
- Project Management Specialists in New York
- Receptionists and Information Clerks in New York
- Registered Nurses in New York
- Retail Salespersons in New York
- Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel in New York
- Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products in New York
- Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education in New York
- Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive in New York
- Security Guards in New York
- Software Developers in New York
- Stockers and Order Fillers in New York
- Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary in New York
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.