What First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers earn in St. Louis County, MO
The median pay for First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers in St. Louis County, MO is $38,520 per year, which works out to $18.52 per hour. The figure comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics wage survey for the St. Louis, MO-IL metropolitan area, the labor market that St. Louis County, MO 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 $44,790, which is 16.3% above the median, a sign that a group of high earners lifts the average. The survey counts about 10,090 people working in this occupation across the St. Louis, MO-IL metropolitan area, so the estimate rests on a substantial pool of workers. St. Louis County, MO has roughly 995,569 residents, according to the population figures used by the rent data.
The salary range, from entry level to top earners
Pay for First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers in the St. Louis, MO-IL metropolitan area is not one number. The lowest-paid tenth of workers earn up to $32,890 a year ($15.81 an hour), while the highest-paid tenth earn $62,630 or more ($30.11 an hour). That is a gap of $29,740 between the bottom and the top of the scale. The middle half of workers falls between $35,470 at the 25th percentile and $49,740 at the 75th percentile. A top-tier earner makes 1.9 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: $18.52 an hour or $38,520 a year at the median for St. Louis County, MO. Before any deductions, that is $3,210 a month, $1,482 every two weeks and $741 each week. After taxes the same job pays $15.46 per hour of take-home income, which is the number that actually has to cover rent and groceries.
How pay in St. Louis County, MO compares
Compared with the Missouri average
A worker in this occupation in St. Louis County, MO earns $673 more than the Missouri average of $37,848, a premium of 1.8%. Over a year that premium is worth $673 before tax and roughly $561 after tax. Within Missouri, St. Louis County, MO already has the highest median we track for this job.
Compared with the national average
The national employment-weighted average for First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers is $42,179 across the contiguous United States. At $38,520, St. Louis County, MO pays $3,659 less, which is 8.7% 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 St. Louis County, MO
Among the 578 occupations with published wages in St. Louis County, MO, First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers ranks number 507 by median pay, ahead of about 12% of them. The best-paying occupation we track here is Software Developers at $129,030 a year, which is $90,510 more than the median for First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving 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 First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers earning the St. Louis County, MO median of $38,520, they add up to $6,370. The result is $32,150 of take-home pay a year ($2,679 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 16.5%.
Federal income tax
After the $15,750 standard deduction, taxable income is $22,770. 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 $2,494, an effective 6.5% 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 $2,388 on this salary. Medicare takes 1.45%, or $559. FICA totals $2,947, which is 7.6% of gross pay.
State income tax in Missouri
Missouri income tax on this salary is $930 a year, or 2.4% of gross pay, after the state's own deductions and exemptions are applied. That is 37% of the federal income tax bill, and it comes out to $77 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 St. Louis County, MO
IRS Statistics of Income data for St. Louis County, MO show an average adjusted gross income of $124,514 per return and an average effective federal income tax rate of 17.1% across all filers. Filers in the $25,000 to under $50,000 bracket, where this salary falls, paid an average of 5.1%, compared with the 6.5% 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 St. Louis County, MO
Take-home pay only means something next to what life costs. We price four basics for one adult in St. Louis County, MO: a one-bedroom apartment, food, home energy and gasoline. All of them are converted to annual figures first, then compared with the $32,150 of take-home pay.
Rent
Housing is the largest line in most budgets. For St. Louis County, MO, HUD sets the Fair Market Rent for a one-bedroom unit at $1,104 a month ($13,248 a year), and at $1,349 for two bedrooms. For First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers, a one-bedroom absorbs 41.2% of take-home pay and 34.4% 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 8.9% of gross pay for First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers in St. Louis County, MO. It is a thrifty budget with no restaurant meals, so treat it as a floor.
Energy and gasoline
Using Missouri residential prices from the Energy Information Administration and national household averages for consumption, electricity costs about $1,364 a year and other home energy such as natural gas about $672, for $2,036 in total. Gasoline in Missouri averages $3.03 per gallon; at about 463 gallons a year (11,106 miles at 24 miles per gallon) fuel adds $1,403.
What is left over
Rent, food, energy and gasoline cost $20,123 a year in St. Louis County, MO. Subtract that from $32,150 of take-home pay and $12,027 remains, which is $1,002 a month of breathing room. That margin equals 31.2% of gross pay, a comfortable cushion by common budgeting rules.
Can First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers afford to live in St. Louis County, MO?
The 30% rent guideline
A common rule of thumb says rent should stay under 30% of gross income. For a gross salary of $38,520 that ceiling is $963 a month. The one-bedroom Fair Market Rent of $1,104 is $141 over it, so rent breaks the guideline. Put as a wage, covering a one-bedroom at the 30% guideline takes $21.23 an hour; the median for First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers is $18.52, which is 13% below that mark. Another way to see it: at $15.46 of take-home pay an hour, a one-bedroom takes about 16.5 working hours every week.
Splitting a two-bedroom
Sharing a two-bedroom at $1,349 a month means $675 each. Compared with renting a one-bedroom alone, that saves $5,154 a year. With a roommate, the yearly margin after the basics becomes $17,181.
How fast you can save
At $1,002 a month of margin, building a $10,000 emergency fund would take about 10 months. Setting aside half of the margin stretches the same goal to about 20 months. These figures ignore interest, raises and any spending beyond the four basics.
Frequently asked questions about First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers pay in St. Louis County, MO
How much do First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers make per hour in St. Louis County, MO?
The median is $18.52 per hour, based on $38,520 a year over 2,080 hours. Hourly pay runs from about $15.81 at the 10th percentile to $30.11 at the 90th percentile.
How much do First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers take home after taxes in St. Louis County, MO?
After federal income tax, FICA and state income tax, the median salary of $38,520 becomes $32,150 a year. That is $2,679 a month, $1,237 every two weeks or $618 a week.
How much tax do First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers pay in St. Louis County, MO?
Total taxes are $6,370 a year, an effective rate of 16.5%: $2,494 federal income tax, $2,947 FICA and $930 Missouri income tax.
Do First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers earn more in St. Louis County, MO than elsewhere in Missouri?
Yes. The local median of $38,520 is +1.8% versus the Missouri average of $37,848, a difference of $673 a year.
Can First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers afford a one-bedroom apartment in St. Louis County, MO?
A one-bedroom costs $1,104 a month against take-home pay of $2,679, which is 41.2% of take-home pay. That does not meet the 30%-of-gross guideline, which allows up to $963 a month.
What is the monthly budget margin for First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers in St. Louis County, MO?
About $1,002 a month ($12,027 a year) remains after a one-bedroom apartment, food, home energy and gasoline, which together cost $20,123 a year.
What hourly wage covers a one-bedroom in St. Louis County, MO at the 30% guideline?
$21.23 an hour for a full-time schedule, calculated as the $13,248 annual rent divided by 0.30 and by 2,080 hours. The median for First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers is $18.52.
How we calculated these numbers
Wages are May 2025 medians from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey for the St. Louis, MO-IL 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 Missouri 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.