What Food Preparation Workers earn in District of Columbia, DC
The median pay for Food Preparation Workers in District of Columbia, DC is $37,630 per year, which works out to $18.09 per hour. The figure comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics wage survey for the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV metropolitan area, the labor market that District of Columbia, DC belongs to. Half of the workers in this occupation earn more than the median and half earn less, which makes it a sturdier yardstick than an average that a few very high earners can pull upward.
The mean wage is $38,690, which is 2.8% above the median, so pay is spread fairly evenly. The survey counts about 14,810 people working in this occupation across the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV metropolitan area, so the estimate rests on a substantial pool of workers. District of Columbia, DC has roughly 681,294 residents, according to the population figures used by the rent data.
The salary range, from entry level to top earners
Pay for Food Preparation Workers in the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV metropolitan area is not one number. The lowest-paid tenth of workers earn up to $31,340 a year ($15.07 an hour), while the highest-paid tenth earn $45,010 or more ($21.64 an hour). That is a gap of $13,670 between the bottom and the top of the scale. The middle half of workers falls between $35,670 at the 25th percentile and $42,190 at the 75th percentile. A top-tier earner makes 1.4 times what someone at the bottom makes, so experience, certification and employer all matter.
What the hourly rate looks like
Employers quote this occupation by the hour or by the year, so here are both: $18.09 an hour or $37,630 a year at the median for District of Columbia, DC. Before any deductions, that is $3,136 a month, $1,447 every two weeks and $724 each week. After taxes the same job pays $15.00 per hour of take-home income, which is the number that actually has to cover rent and groceries.
How pay in District of Columbia, DC compares
Compared with the District of Columbia average
Pay for Food Preparation Workers in District of Columbia, DC is in line with the statewide figure: $37,630 locally against an employment-weighted District of Columbia average of $37,630, a difference of only $0 (0.0%).
Compared with the national average
The national employment-weighted average for Food Preparation Workers is $34,184 across the contiguous United States. At $37,630, District of Columbia, DC pays $3,446 more, which is 10.1% above that benchmark. Keep in mind that a higher salary only helps if living costs do not rise faster, which is why the cost sections below matter as much as the headline number.
Where this job ranks in District of Columbia, DC
Among the 618 occupations with published wages in District of Columbia, DC, Food Preparation Workers ranks number 591 by median pay, ahead of about 4% of them. The best-paying occupation we track here is Lawyers at $195,190 a year, which is $157,560 more than the median for Food Preparation Workers.
From gross pay to take-home pay
Three separate tax bills sit between the gross salary and the bank account: federal income tax, FICA, and state income tax. For Food Preparation Workers earning the District of Columbia, DC median of $37,630, they add up to $6,424. The result is $31,206 of take-home pay a year ($2,601 a month), based on a single filer using the standard deduction.
Put another way, of every $100 earned, about $17 goes to taxes and $83 reaches the paycheck. The overall effective tax rate is 17.1%.
Federal income tax
After the $15,750 standard deduction, taxable income is $21,880. Federal brackets are marginal, so only the slice of income above each threshold is taxed at the higher rate; the last dollars of this salary fall in the 12% bracket. The resulting federal income tax is $2,387, an effective 6.3% of gross pay, well below the 12% marginal rate because the lower brackets are cheaper.
Social Security and Medicare (FICA)
Payroll taxes are a flat percentage of wages. Social Security takes 6.2% up to a wage base of $176,100, which costs $2,333 on this salary. Medicare takes 1.45%, or $546. FICA totals $2,879, which is 7.7% of gross pay.
State income tax in District of Columbia
District of Columbia income tax on this salary is $1,158 a year, or 3.1% of gross pay, after the state's own deductions and exemptions are applied. That is 49% of the federal income tax bill, and it comes out to $96 a month. Local taxes such as county or city income taxes are not included, so a few jurisdictions may withhold slightly more.
A cross-check with IRS data for District of Columbia, DC
IRS Statistics of Income data for District of Columbia, DC show an average adjusted gross income of $143,628 per return and an average effective federal income tax rate of 19.0% across all filers. Filers in the $25,000 to under $50,000 bracket, where this salary falls, paid an average of 5.2%, compared with the 6.3% estimated here for a single filer taking the standard deduction. Gaps between the two reflect filing status, dependents, credits and other income, none of which a single-person wage estimate includes.
Cost of living in District of Columbia, DC
Take-home pay only means something next to what life costs. We price four basics for one adult in District of Columbia, DC: a one-bedroom apartment, food, home energy and gasoline. All of them are converted to annual figures first, then compared with the $31,206 of take-home pay.
Rent
Housing is the largest line in most budgets. For District of Columbia, DC, HUD sets the Fair Market Rent for a one-bedroom unit at $2,204 a month ($26,448 a year), and at $2,438 for two bedrooms. For Food Preparation Workers, a one-bedroom absorbs 84.8% of take-home pay and 70.3% of gross pay.
Food
The USDA Thrifty Food Plan (August 2026) puts the cost of a nutritious home-cooked diet for an adult at about $3,436 a year, which is $286 a month or $66.07 a week. That equals 9.1% of gross pay for Food Preparation Workers in District of Columbia, DC. It is a thrifty budget with no restaurant meals, so treat it as a floor.
Energy and gasoline
Using District of Columbia residential prices from the Energy Information Administration and national household averages for consumption, electricity costs about $1,871 a year and other home energy such as natural gas about $653, for $2,524 in total. Gasoline in District of Columbia averages $3.48 per gallon; at about 463 gallons a year (11,106 miles at 24 miles per gallon) fuel adds $1,611.
What is left over
The basics cost $34,019 a year in District of Columbia, DC, but take-home pay for Food Preparation Workers is $31,206. That is a shortfall of $2,813 a year, or $234 a month, before health care, transportation beyond fuel, debt or savings. Closing the gap would take roughly 187 extra paid hours a year at the take-home hourly rate of $15.00, or a second earner, a cheaper home or a roommate.
Can Food Preparation Workers afford to live in District of Columbia, DC?
The 30% rent guideline
A common rule of thumb says rent should stay under 30% of gross income. For a gross salary of $37,630 that ceiling is $941 a month. The one-bedroom Fair Market Rent of $2,204 is $1,263 over it, so rent breaks the guideline. Put as a wage, covering a one-bedroom at the 30% guideline takes $42.38 an hour; the median for Food Preparation Workers is $18.09, which is 57% below that mark. Another way to see it: at $15.00 of take-home pay an hour, a one-bedroom takes about 33.9 working hours every week.
Splitting a two-bedroom
Sharing a two-bedroom at $2,438 a month means $1,219 each. Compared with renting a one-bedroom alone, that saves $11,820 a year. With a roommate, the yearly margin after the basics becomes $9,007, which turns the shortfall into a surplus.
How fast you can save
With no monthly margin after the four basics, saving requires a change on one side of the ledger: higher pay than the $37,630 median, lower housing costs than the $2,204 one-bedroom rent, or a second income.
Frequently asked questions about Food Preparation Workers pay in District of Columbia, DC
How much do Food Preparation Workers make per hour in District of Columbia, DC?
The median is $18.09 per hour, based on $37,630 a year over 2,080 hours. Hourly pay runs from about $15.07 at the 10th percentile to $21.64 at the 90th percentile.
How much do Food Preparation Workers take home after taxes in District of Columbia, DC?
After federal income tax, FICA and state income tax, the median salary of $37,630 becomes $31,206 a year. That is $2,601 a month, $1,200 every two weeks or $600 a week.
How much tax do Food Preparation Workers pay in District of Columbia, DC?
Total taxes are $6,424 a year, an effective rate of 17.1%: $2,387 federal income tax, $2,879 FICA and $1,158 District of Columbia income tax.
Do Food Preparation Workers earn more in District of Columbia, DC than elsewhere in District of Columbia?
It is about the same. The local median of $37,630 is within 0.0% of the District of Columbia average of $37,630.
Can Food Preparation Workers afford a one-bedroom apartment in District of Columbia, DC?
A one-bedroom costs $2,204 a month against take-home pay of $2,601, which is 84.8% of take-home pay. That does not meet the 30%-of-gross guideline, which allows up to $941 a month.
What is the monthly budget margin for Food Preparation Workers in District of Columbia, DC?
Nothing remains: the basics cost $34,019 a year, which is $2,813 more than take-home pay, a monthly shortfall of $234.
What hourly wage covers a one-bedroom in District of Columbia, DC at the 30% guideline?
$42.38 an hour for a full-time schedule, calculated as the $26,448 annual rent divided by 0.30 and by 2,080 hours. The median for Food Preparation Workers is $18.09.
How we calculated these numbers
Wages are May 2025 medians from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey for the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV metropolitan area; hourly-only values are annualized at 2,080 hours. Rents are HUD Fair Market Rents, food costs come from the USDA Thrifty Food Plan, and energy prices come from the Energy Information Administration. County-level tax statistics come from the IRS Statistics of Income.
Taxes use tax-year 2025 federal brackets, FICA rates and the District of Columbia rules for a single filer with wage income only. Figures are estimates for planning and comparison, not tax or financial advice, and they exclude local income taxes, benefits, retirement contributions and individual circumstances.