What Fast Food and Counter Workers earn in King County, WA
The median pay for Fast Food and Counter Workers in King County, WA is $39,150 per year, which works out to $18.82 per hour. The figure comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics wage survey for the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metropolitan area, the labor market that King County, WA 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 $42,260, which is 7.9% above the median, a sign that a group of high earners lifts the average. The survey counts about 49,190 people working in this occupation across the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metropolitan area, so the estimate rests on a substantial pool of workers. King County, WA has roughly 2,287,171 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 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metropolitan area is not one number. The lowest-paid tenth of workers earn up to $35,580 a year ($17.11 an hour), while the highest-paid tenth earn $50,980 or more ($24.51 an hour). That is a gap of $15,400 between the bottom and the top of the scale. The middle half of workers falls between $36,690 at the 25th percentile and $45,250 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: $18.82 an hour or $39,150 a year at the median for King County, WA. Before any deductions, that is $3,263 a month, $1,506 every two weeks and $753 each week. After taxes the same job pays $16.15 per hour of take-home income, which is the number that actually has to cover rent and groceries.
How pay in King County, WA compares
Compared with the Washington average
A worker in this occupation in King County, WA earns $1,896 more than the Washington average of $37,254, a premium of 5.1%. Over a year that premium is worth $1,896 before tax and roughly $1,626 after tax. Within Washington, King County, WA 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 $39,150, King County, WA pays $7,719 more, which is 24.6% 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 King County, WA
Among the 612 occupations with published wages in King County, WA, Fast Food and Counter Workers ranks number 606 by median pay, ahead of about 1% of them. The best-paying occupation we track here is Computer and Information Systems Managers at $214,680 a year, which is $175,530 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 King County, WA median of $39,150, they add up to $5,564. The result is $33,586 of take-home pay a year ($2,799 a month), based on a single filer using the standard deduction.
Put another way, of every $100 earned, about $14 goes to taxes and $86 reaches the paycheck. The overall effective tax rate is 14.2%.
Federal income tax
After the $15,750 standard deduction, taxable income is $23,400. 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 $2,570, an effective 6.6% 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 $2,427 on this salary. Medicare takes 1.45%, or $568. FICA totals $2,995, which is 7.7% of gross pay.
State income tax in Washington
Washington does not tax wage income, so the state income tax line for Fast Food and Counter Workers in King County, WA is $0. That alone leaves more in the paycheck than the same salary would in a state with an income tax. For scale, a hypothetical flat 5% state tax on this salary would cost about $1,958 a year, so the absence of a state tax is worth roughly $163 a month.
A cross-check with IRS data for King County, WA
IRS Statistics of Income data for King County, WA show an average adjusted gross income of $164,464 per return and an average effective federal income tax rate of 18.9% across all filers. Filers in the $25,000 to under $50,000 bracket, where this salary falls, paid an average of 6.0%, compared with the 6.6% 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 King County, WA
Take-home pay only means something next to what life costs. We price four basics for one adult in King County, WA: a one-bedroom apartment, food, home energy and gasoline. All of them are converted to annual figures first, then compared with the $33,586 of take-home pay.
Rent
Housing is the largest line in most budgets. For King County, WA, HUD sets the Fair Market Rent for a one-bedroom unit at $2,180 a month ($26,160 a year), and at $2,549 for two bedrooms. For Fast Food and Counter Workers, a one-bedroom absorbs 77.9% of take-home pay and 66.8% 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 8.8% of gross pay for Fast Food and Counter Workers in King County, WA. It is a thrifty budget with no restaurant meals, so treat it as a floor.
Energy and gasoline
Using Washington residential prices from the Energy Information Administration and national household averages for consumption, electricity costs about $1,257 a year and other home energy such as natural gas about $475, for $1,732 in total. Gasoline in Washington averages $4.07 per gallon; at about 463 gallons a year (11,106 miles at 24 miles per gallon) fuel adds $1,883.
What is left over
Rent, food, energy and gasoline cost $33,210 a year in King County, WA. Subtract that from $33,586 of take-home pay and $375 remains, which is $31 a month of breathing room. That margin equals 1.0% of gross pay, a thin cushion that one unexpected expense could erase.
Can Fast Food and Counter Workers afford to live in King County, WA?
The 30% rent guideline
A common rule of thumb says rent should stay under 30% of gross income. For a gross salary of $39,150 that ceiling is $979 a month. The one-bedroom Fair Market Rent of $2,180 is $1,201 over it, so rent breaks the guideline. Put as a wage, covering a one-bedroom at the 30% guideline takes $41.92 an hour; the median for Fast Food and Counter Workers is $18.82, which is 55% below that mark. Another way to see it: at $16.15 of take-home pay an hour, a one-bedroom takes about 31.2 working hours every week.
Splitting a two-bedroom
Sharing a two-bedroom at $2,549 a month means $1,275 each. Compared with renting a one-bedroom alone, that saves $10,866 a year. With a roommate, the yearly margin after the basics becomes $11,241.
How fast you can save
At $31 a month of margin, building a $10,000 emergency fund would take about 320 months (26.7 years). Setting aside half of the margin stretches the same goal to about 640 months. These figures ignore interest, raises and any spending beyond the four basics.
Frequently asked questions about Fast Food and Counter Workers pay in King County, WA
How much do Fast Food and Counter Workers make per hour in King County, WA?
The median is $18.82 per hour, based on $39,150 a year over 2,080 hours. Hourly pay runs from about $17.11 at the 10th percentile to $24.51 at the 90th percentile.
How much do Fast Food and Counter Workers take home after taxes in King County, WA?
After federal income tax, FICA, the median salary of $39,150 becomes $33,586 a year. That is $2,799 a month, $1,292 every two weeks or $646 a week.
How much tax do Fast Food and Counter Workers pay in King County, WA?
Total taxes are $5,564 a year, an effective rate of 14.2%: $2,570 federal income tax, $2,995 FICA and no Washington income tax.
Do Fast Food and Counter Workers earn more in King County, WA than elsewhere in Washington?
Yes. The local median of $39,150 is +5.1% versus the Washington average of $37,254, a difference of $1,896 a year.
Can Fast Food and Counter Workers afford a one-bedroom apartment in King County, WA?
A one-bedroom costs $2,180 a month against take-home pay of $2,799, which is 77.9% of take-home pay. That does not meet the 30%-of-gross guideline, which allows up to $979 a month.
What is the monthly budget margin for Fast Food and Counter Workers in King County, WA?
About $31 a month ($375 a year) remains after a one-bedroom apartment, food, home energy and gasoline, which together cost $33,210 a year.
What hourly wage covers a one-bedroom in King County, WA at the 30% guideline?
$41.92 an hour for a full-time schedule, calculated as the $26,160 annual rent divided by 0.30 and by 2,080 hours. The median for Fast Food and Counter Workers is $18.82.
How we calculated these numbers
Wages are May 2025 medians from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey for the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA 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 Washington 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.