What Fast Food and Counter Workers earn in Macomb County, MI
If you are weighing a move or a job offer, start with $29,590: the median annual pay for Fast Food and Counter Workers in Macomb County, MI. Spread over a standard 2,080-hour work year, that is $14.23 an hour. Because the wage survey covers the whole Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI metropolitan area, the number reflects employers across the region rather than a single town or a single company.
The mean wage is $30,860, which is 4.3% above the median, a sign that a group of high earners lifts the average. The survey counts about 42,430 people working in this occupation across the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI metropolitan area, so the estimate rests on a substantial pool of workers. Macomb County, MI has roughly 879,853 residents, according to the population figures used by the rent data.
The salary range, from entry level to top earners
Pay for Fast Food and Counter Workers in the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI metropolitan area is not one number. The lowest-paid tenth of workers earn up to $25,960 a year ($12.48 an hour), while the highest-paid tenth earn $36,140 or more ($17.38 an hour). That is a gap of $10,180 between the bottom and the top of the scale. The middle half of workers falls between $28,170 at the 25th percentile and $33,950 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: $14.23 an hour or $29,590 a year at the median for Macomb County, MI. Before any deductions, that is $2,466 a month, $1,138 every two weeks and $569 each week. After taxes the same job pays $11.97 per hour of take-home income, which is the number that actually has to cover rent and groceries.
How pay in Macomb County, MI compares
Compared with the Michigan average
A worker in this occupation in Macomb County, MI earns $556 more than the Michigan average of $29,034, a premium of 1.9%. Over a year that premium is worth $556 before tax and roughly $467 after tax. Within Michigan, Macomb County, MI already has the highest median we track for this job.
Compared with the national average
The national employment-weighted average for Fast Food and Counter Workers is $31,431 across the contiguous United States. At $29,590, Macomb County, MI pays $1,841 less, which is 5.9% below 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 Macomb County, MI
Among the 590 occupations with published wages in Macomb County, MI, Fast Food and Counter Workers ranks number 584 by median pay, ahead of about 1% of them. The best-paying occupation we track here is Financial Managers at $160,240 a year, which is $130,650 more than the median for Fast Food and Counter 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 Fast Food and Counter Workers earning the Macomb County, MI median of $29,590, they add up to $4,697. The result is $24,893 of take-home pay a year ($2,074 a month), based on a single filer using the standard deduction.
Put another way, of every $100 earned, about $16 goes to taxes and $84 reaches the paycheck. The overall effective tax rate is 15.9%.
Federal income tax
After the $15,750 standard deduction, taxable income is $13,840. 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 $1,422, an effective 4.8% 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 $1,835 on this salary. Medicare takes 1.45%, or $429. FICA totals $2,264, which is 7.6% of gross pay.
State income tax in Michigan
Michigan income tax on this salary is $1,011 a year, or 3.4% of gross pay, after the state's own deductions and exemptions are applied. That is 71% of the federal income tax bill, and it comes out to $84 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 Macomb County, MI
IRS Statistics of Income data for Macomb County, MI show an average adjusted gross income of $72,497 per return and an average effective federal income tax rate of 11.5% 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 4.8% 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 Macomb County, MI
Take-home pay only means something next to what life costs. We price four basics for one adult in Macomb County, MI: a one-bedroom apartment, food, home energy and gasoline. All of them are converted to annual figures first, then compared with the $24,893 of take-home pay.
Rent
Housing is the largest line in most budgets. For Macomb County, MI, HUD sets the Fair Market Rent for a one-bedroom unit at $1,167 a month ($14,004 a year), and at $1,459 for two bedrooms. For Fast Food and Counter Workers, a one-bedroom absorbs 56.3% of take-home pay and 47.3% 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 11.6% of gross pay for Fast Food and Counter Workers in Macomb County, MI. It is a thrifty budget with no restaurant meals, so treat it as a floor.
Energy and gasoline
Using Michigan residential prices from the Energy Information Administration and national household averages for consumption, electricity costs about $2,039 a year and other home energy such as natural gas about $416, for $2,455 in total. Gasoline in Michigan averages $3.10 per gallon; at about 463 gallons a year (11,106 miles at 24 miles per gallon) fuel adds $1,436.
What is left over
Rent, food, energy and gasoline cost $21,331 a year in Macomb County, MI. Subtract that from $24,893 of take-home pay and $3,562 remains, which is $297 a month of breathing room. That margin equals 12.0% of gross pay, a workable but modest cushion.
Can Fast Food and Counter Workers afford to live in Macomb County, MI?
The 30% rent guideline
A common rule of thumb says rent should stay under 30% of gross income. For a gross salary of $29,590 that ceiling is $740 a month. The one-bedroom Fair Market Rent of $1,167 is $427 over it, so rent breaks the guideline. Put as a wage, covering a one-bedroom at the 30% guideline takes $22.44 an hour; the median for Fast Food and Counter Workers is $14.23, which is 37% below that mark. Another way to see it: at $11.97 of take-home pay an hour, a one-bedroom takes about 22.5 working hours every week.
Splitting a two-bedroom
Sharing a two-bedroom at $1,459 a month means $730 each. Compared with renting a one-bedroom alone, that saves $5,250 a year. With a roommate, the yearly margin after the basics becomes $8,812.
How fast you can save
At $297 a month of margin, building a $10,000 emergency fund would take about 34 months (2.8 years). Setting aside half of the margin stretches the same goal to about 68 months. These figures ignore interest, raises and any spending beyond the four basics.
Frequently asked questions about Fast Food and Counter Workers pay in Macomb County, MI
How much do Fast Food and Counter Workers make per hour in Macomb County, MI?
The median is $14.23 per hour, based on $29,590 a year over 2,080 hours. Hourly pay runs from about $12.48 at the 10th percentile to $17.38 at the 90th percentile.
How much do Fast Food and Counter Workers take home after taxes in Macomb County, MI?
After federal income tax, FICA and state income tax, the median salary of $29,590 becomes $24,893 a year. That is $2,074 a month, $957 every two weeks or $479 a week.
How much tax do Fast Food and Counter Workers pay in Macomb County, MI?
Total taxes are $4,697 a year, an effective rate of 15.9%: $1,422 federal income tax, $2,264 FICA and $1,011 Michigan income tax.
Do Fast Food and Counter Workers earn more in Macomb County, MI than elsewhere in Michigan?
Yes. The local median of $29,590 is +1.9% versus the Michigan average of $29,034, a difference of $556 a year.
Can Fast Food and Counter Workers afford a one-bedroom apartment in Macomb County, MI?
A one-bedroom costs $1,167 a month against take-home pay of $2,074, which is 56.3% of take-home pay. That does not meet the 30%-of-gross guideline, which allows up to $740 a month.
What is the monthly budget margin for Fast Food and Counter Workers in Macomb County, MI?
About $297 a month ($3,562 a year) remains after a one-bedroom apartment, food, home energy and gasoline, which together cost $21,331 a year.
What hourly wage covers a one-bedroom in Macomb County, MI at the 30% guideline?
$22.44 an hour for a full-time schedule, calculated as the $14,004 annual rent divided by 0.30 and by 2,080 hours. The median for Fast Food and Counter Workers is $14.23.
How we calculated these numbers
Wages are May 2025 medians from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey for the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI 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 Michigan 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.