A Lunch Lady's salary isn't a fixed number. It's shaped by several important factors.
Below, we'll explore how your years of experience, geographic location
and company size
can directly affect your earning potential.
How Experience Level Affects Lunch Lady Salaries?
Experience is a primary driver of a Lunch Lady's salary. As you build your skills and take on more complex tasks, your compensation generally increases. Here's how the average salary grows at different career stages:
Salaries can also vary between different cities.
Major metropolitan areas or cities with a high demand for technicians often offer more competitive pay.
Here are a few examples of average annual salaries in different U.S. cities:
San Jose: $35,590
San Francisco: $35,201
Oakland: $34,459
San Jose, CA$35,590
San Francisco, CA$35,201
Oakland, CA$34,459
New York, NY$32,489
Paramus, NJ$32,094
Queens Village, NY$32,092
Passaic, NJ$32,066
Bergenfield, NJ$32,063
Stamford, CT$32,001
Huntington, NY$31,989
Newark, NJ$31,781
Bridgeport, CT$31,721
Vallejo, CA$31,665
New Brunswick, NJ$31,654
Petaluma, CA$31,637
Middlesex, NJ$31,583
Somerset, NJ$31,564
Santa Cruz, CA$31,527
Boston, MA$31,355
Monterey, CA$31,256
Seattle, WA$31,191
Santa Rosa, CA$31,186
Los Angeles, CA$31,177
Juneau, AK$31,104
Washington, DC$31,073
Orange, CA$30,972
Santa Ana, CA$30,898
Long Beach, CA$30,870
Anaheim, CA$30,864
Anchorage, AK$30,850
Santa Maria, CA$30,765
Everett, WA$30,759
Danbury, CT$30,660
Bremerton, WA$30,621
Tacoma, WA$30,520
New Suffolk, NY$30,519
Sacramento, CA$30,511
Santa Barbara, CA$30,480
Trenton, NJ$30,449
San Diego, CA$30,449
Brockton, MA$30,418
Fairbanks, AK$30,349
Lompoc, CA$30,277
Lowell, MA$30,254
Ventura, CA$30,249
Nashua, NH$30,243
Stockton, CA$30,240
Modesto, CA$30,034
Poughkeepsie, NY$29,972
Olympia, WA$29,919
Kennewick, WA$29,919
New Haven, CT$29,907
Lawrence, MA$29,806
Hartford, CT$29,778
Riverside, CA$29,772
New Bedford, MA$29,744
Richland, WA$29,744
Bakersfield, CA$29,704
San Bernardino, CA$29,693
New Britain, CT$29,690
Atlantic City, NJ$29,690
New London, CT$29,679
Norwich, CT$29,670
Portsmouth, NH$29,665
Boulder, CO$29,605
Portland, OR$29,566
Worcester, MA$29,563
Minneapolis, MN$29,476
Philadelphia, PA$29,436
Honolulu, HI$29,343
Saint Paul, MN$29,329
Vineland, NJ$29,323
Providence, RI$29,241
Chicago, IL$29,160
Bellingham, WA$29,126
Springfield, MA$29,103
Baltimore, MD$29,095
Chico, CA$29,024
Pittsfield, MA$28,948
Manchester, NH$28,894
Spokane, WA$28,770
Denver, CO$28,767
Albany, NY$28,635
Troy, NY$28,623
Nassau, NY$28,593
Schenectady, NY$28,564
Wilmington, DE$28,542
Burlington, VT$28,502
Salem, OR$28,491
Portland, ME$28,403
Yakima, WA$28,375
Rochester, MN$28,288
Reno, NV$28,274
Fresno, CA$28,274
Milwaukee, WI$28,248
Detroit, MI$28,220
Ann Arbor, MI$28,215
Allentown, PA$28,211
Colorado Springs, CO$28,163
Syracuse, NY$28,149
Carson City, NV$28,149
Houston, TX$28,110
Eugene, OR$28,096
Gary, IN$28,062
Springfield, OR$28,039
Bismarck, ND$28,034
Galveston, TX$28,014
Medford, OR$27,972
Fort Collins, CO$27,960
Concord, NH$27,946
Austin, TX$27,938
Mesa, AZ$27,878
Reading, PA$27,876
Phoenix, AZ$27,873
Dallas, TX$27,864
Saint Cloud, MN$27,837
Madison, WI$27,799
Utica, NY$27,723
Rochester, NY$27,678
Des Moines, IA$27,675
Raleigh, NC$27,673
Atlanta, GA$27,630
Battle Creek, MI$27,622
Salt Lake City, UT$27,613
Lancaster, PA$27,571
Harrisburg, PA$27,531
Kansas City, MO$27,503
Champaign, IL$27,498
Kansas City, KS$27,498
Fort Worth, TX$27,495
Columbus, OH$27,490
Boca Raton, FL$27,483
Pittsburgh, PA$27,472
Richmond, VA$27,461
Indianapolis, IN$27,455
Cleveland, OH$27,452
Las Vegas, NV$27,419
Cincinnati, OH$27,419
Petersburg, VA$27,376
Huntsville, AL$27,334
Lansing, MI$27,315
Lebanon, PA$27,311
Pueblo, CO$27,309
Appleton, WI$27,300
Buffalo, NY$27,289
Dayton, OH$27,280
Racine, WI$27,275
Charlotte, NC$27,272
Saint Louis, MO$27,263
York, PA$27,246
Elkhart, IN$27,246
Gastonia, NC$27,241
Billings, MT$27,234
Beaumont, TX$27,227
Lorain, OH$27,221
Benton Harbor, MI$27,215
Toledo, OH$27,210
Binghamton, NY$27,196
Rock Hill, SC$27,193
Rockford, IL$27,179
Springfield, IL$27,167
Elyria, OH$27,165
Fargo, ND$27,165
Flagstaff, AZ$27,145
Fort Lauderdale, FL$27,128
Duluth, MN$27,111
Miami, FL$27,111
Cheyenne, WY$27,091
Grand Forks, ND$27,091
Bangor, ME$27,029
Cedar Rapids, IA$26,998
Durham, NC$26,986
Louisville, KY$26,984
Grand Rapids, MI$26,978
Hialeah, FL$26,976
Casper, WY$26,936
Scranton, PA$26,902
New Orleans, LA$26,894
Virginia Beach, VA$26,891
Akron, OH$26,877
Peoria, IL$26,840
Sarasota, FL$26,834
Nashville, TN$26,815
Omaha, NE$26,815
Green Bay, WI$26,815
Baton Rouge, LA$26,801
Charleston, SC$26,795
Jamestown, NY$26,781
Davenport, IA$26,781
Tucson, AZ$26,767
Saint Petersburg, FL$26,750
Tampa, FL$26,744
Evansville, IN$26,727
Port Arthur, TX$26,727
Bradenton, FL$26,716
Santa Fe, NM$26,665
Orlando, FL$26,614
Clearwater, FL$26,606
Canton, OH$26,547
La Crosse, WI$26,547
Albuquerque, NM$26,530
Newport News, VA$26,527
High Point, NC$26,518
Ogden, UT$26,507
Corpus Christi, TX$26,485
Norfolk, VA$26,468
Laramie, WY$26,468
Rock Island, IL$26,451
Saginaw, MI$26,445
Jacksonville, FL$26,442
Salisbury, NC$26,437
Boise, ID$26,431
Moline, IL$26,417
Fort Myers, FL$26,408
Memphis, TN$26,403
Tulsa, OK$26,389
Waterloo, IA$26,372
Spartanburg, SC$26,343
Lincoln, NE$26,329
Fort Wayne, IN$26,324
Provo, UT$26,321
Cedar Falls, IA$26,287
San Antonio, TX$26,276
Greensboro, NC$26,264
South Bend, IN$26,262
Savannah, GA$26,231
Muskegon, MI$26,219
Birmingham, AL$26,217
Winston Salem, NC$26,203
Lake Charles, LA$26,135
Anderson, IN$26,129
Lexington, KY$26,121
Augusta, GA$26,112
Greenville, SC$26,112
Lima, OH$26,090
Wichita, KS$26,087
Tuscaloosa, AL$26,087
Columbia, SC$26,061
Springfield, OH$26,056
Asheville, NC$26,011
Bloomington, IN$25,991
Knoxville, TN$25,889
Shreveport, LA$25,886
Wilmington, NC$25,850
Roanoke, VA$25,850
Topeka, KS$25,799
Frankfort, KY$25,796
Oklahoma City, OK$25,776
Chillicothe, OH$25,765
Longview, TX$25,762
Melbourne, FL$25,759
Sioux Falls, SD$25,714
Mobile, AL$25,711
Terre Haute, IN$25,700
Altoona, PA$25,683
Amarillo, TX$25,663
Killeen, TX$25,655
Fayetteville, AR$25,632
Chattanooga, TN$25,624
Sioux City, IA$25,599
Idaho Falls, ID$25,593
Lynchburg, VA$25,570
Gainesville, FL$25,534
Portsmouth, OH$25,520
Little Rock, AR$25,514
Lafayette, LA$25,503
Youngstown, OH$25,503
Daytona Beach, FL$25,486
Clarksville, TN$25,483
Pensacola, FL$25,480
Temple, TX$25,478
Hopkinsville, KY$25,395
Erie, PA$25,390
Florence, SC$25,378
Charleston, WV$25,333
Great Falls, MT$25,319
Macon, GA$25,280
Tallahassee, FL$25,277
Fayetteville, NC$25,271
Waco, TX$25,266
Helena, MT$25,246
Pine Bluff, AR$25,235
Vincennes, IN$25,201
Lubbock, TX$25,189
Alamogordo, NM$25,172
Twin Falls, ID$25,147
Rapid City, SD$25,139
Jackson, MS$25,088
Huntington, WV$25,086
Greenville, MS$25,085
Parkersburg, WV$25,056
Montgomery, AL$25,051
Wichita Falls, TX$25,023
Springfield, MO$25,023
Biloxi, MS$25,009
Monroe, LA$24,981
Johnstown, PA$24,961
Sumter, SC$24,950
Columbus, GA$24,947
Pascagoula, MS$24,893
Abilene, TX$24,893
Kingsport, TN$24,820
Albany, GA$24,820
Gulfport, MS$24,811
Alexandria, LA$24,718
Fort Smith, AR$24,648
El Paso, TX$24,571
Las Cruces, NM$24,444
Harlingen, TX$24,373
Pocatello, ID$24,368
Florence, AL$24,332
Brownsville, TX$24,326
Mcallen, TX$24,267
Dothan, AL$24,227
Columbus, MS$24,060
Altus, OK$23,928
Lawton, OK$23,874
Pierre, SD$23,773
Lunch Lady Salary by Industry: Top Paying Sectors
For Lunch Lady roles, the industry you choose can impact your earning potential
by as much as 40% (the gap between the highest and lowest paying industries).
Data shows that the highest-paying industry, Hospitality & Leisure,
offers compensation 20% above the average. Conversely,
Lunch Lady positions in Business Services typically offer lower base pay,
as this sector often view Lunch Lady as a support function rather than a direct revenue driver.
The top paying industry for a Lunch Lady
Industry Sector
Average Annual Salary
Average Hourly Rate
Pay vs.Avg
Hospitality & Leisure
$34,278
$16.0
20%
Lunch Lady Salary: Hourly Rate, Weekly Pay, and Monthly Pay
Understanding how a Lunch Lady's annual salary breaks down can help with budgeting.
Below, you can see the average hourly rate, weekly pay, and monthly pay for this role.
Use the buttons to switch between different pay periods.
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Where Does Our Salary Data Come From?
Salary.com salary estimates, histograms, trends, and comparisons are derived from both employer job postings and third-party data sources.
We also provide multiple percentiles of salary information for your reference, click here to know Why the Salary Midpoint Formula Is Crucial to Getting Pay Equity Right.
With more online, real-time compensation data than any other website, Salary.com helps you determine your exact pay target.
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