Food Preparation Workers · SOC 35-2021
Food Preparation Workers Salary in the Southwest Oklahoma nonmetropolitan area
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025Southwest Oklahoma nonmetropolitan area
Figures describe the Southwest Oklahoma nonmetropolitan area, a BLS-defined region outside metropolitan areas — not a single city or town.
Food Preparation Workers in the Southwest Oklahoma nonmetropolitan area earned a median of $22,110 per year ($10.63 per hour) as of the May 2025 BLS OEWS estimates. Pay ranged from $18,720 at the 10th percentile to $32,680 at the 90th. BLS estimates 230 people work in this occupation in the area.
Pay distribution
Half of Food Preparation Workers in the Southwest Oklahoma nonmetropolitan area earn more than $22,110 per year, half earn less; the middle half earn between $19,830 and $28,230.
| Wage | 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annual | $18,720 | $19,830 | $22,110 | $28,230 | $32,680 |
| Hourly | $9.00 | $9.53 | $10.63 | $13.57 | $15.71 |
A percentile is a cut point: 25% of workers in this occupation and area earn less than the 25th-percentile wage. The median is the 50th percentile — half earn less, half earn more.
How this area compares
- Southwest Oklahoma nonmetropolitan area$22,110 median for Southwest Oklahoma nonmetropolitan area; middle half earns $19,830 to $28,230
- Oklahomastate$28,540 median for Oklahoma; middle half earns $22,870 to $33,960
- United Statesnational$35,320 median for United States; middle half earns $29,950 to $38,550
Bars span the 25th–75th percentile (the middle half of workers); the tick marks the median.
The median here is −23% vs Oklahoma overall and −37% vs the U.S. median for this occupation.
Other metro areas in Oklahoma
Metro areas in the same state with published May 2025 medians for food preparation workers, highest first. Areas without published estimates are not listed.
- Southwest Oklahoma nonmetropolitan areathis page$22,110 median for Southwest Oklahoma nonmetropolitan area; middle half earns $19,830 to $28,230
- $30,370 median for Tulsa metro area; middle half earns $26,830 to $35,740
- $30,160 median for Oklahoma City metro area; middle half earns $26,770 to $35,120
- $27,130 median for Lawton metro area; middle half earns $20,990 to $32,470
- $24,810 median for Enid metro area; middle half earns $21,330 to $28,050
Bars span the 25th–75th percentile (the middle half of workers); the tick marks the median.
Keep exploring
Other occupations in the same SOC group with published medians here, largest employment first:
Highest-paying metro areas for food preparation workerss · Highest-paying occupations in Southwest Oklahoma nonmetropolitan area
About this estimate
These figures are survey estimates from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program — modeled from employer reports collected over three years and benchmarked to May 2025. They describe what employers in this area currently pay across all industries, not what any individual worker will be offered.
Employment counts wage-and-salary jobs in the occupation (self-employed workers are excluded). Estimates carry sampling error; percentile wages are rounded by BLS. Some values are suppressed by BLS for confidentiality or quality — suppressed values appear here as “not published”, never as zero. Read the full methodology.
About this data. Estimates are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, May 2025 release, retrieved from bls.gov/oes/tables.htm on July 24, 2026. OEWS estimates describe metropolitan/nonmetropolitan areas and states — not city limits — and are not designed for year-over-year comparisons. See BLS methodology, our plain-English methodology, and sources. CitySalaryData is independent and not affiliated with BLS.