Restaurant labor cost percentage (10 figures)
The median published figure in the Restaurant Labour Benchmark is 15.20 USD across 10 figures from 5 sources' own pages in USD (range 2.13 to 17.62 USD; 6 sources publish a figure), read 29 October 2026.
Rotazo sells its own paid plan in this category (our pricing). It is not counted here: every figure in this index is another provider's own published price, read from its own page.
- 12 to 5
- 25 to 7
- 7 to 10
- 10 to 12
- 112 to 15
- 615 to 18
Bands
| Bucket | Value |
|---|---|
| 2 to 5 | 1 figure |
| 5 to 7 | 2 figures |
| 7 to 10 | 0 figures |
| 10 to 12 | 0 figures |
| 12 to 15 | 1 figure |
| 15 to 18 | 6 figures |
6 of the 19 named sources read in full publish a figure; 13 publish none, read 29 October 2026.
The median is unchanged since 21 October 2026 (was 15.20 USD across 10).
By jurisdiction and role
| Breakdown | Median | Range | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| jurisdictionUS federal | 7.25USD | 7.25 to 7.25USD | 1 |
| jurisdictionCalifornia | 16.9USD | 16.9 to 16.9USD | 1 |
| jurisdictionColorado | 15.16USD | 15.16 to 15.16USD | 1 |
| jurisdictionConnecticut | 16.94USD | 16.94 to 16.94USD | 1 |
| jurisdictionFlorida | 15USD | 15 to 15USD | 1 |
| jurisdictionWyoming | 5.15USD | 5.15 to 5.15USD | 1 |
| roletipped employee | 2.13USD | 2.13 to 2.13USD | 1 |
Every figure, with its source
One row per published figure: the figure as the source's own page publishes it, the page, and the day it was read. A figure that is not on a page we read is not on this one.
| Source | Figure | Breakdown | Read |
|---|---|---|---|
| ISED Canadian Industry Statistics, full-service and limited-service eating places (NAICS 7225) | 19.02CAD | 2026-10-12 | |
| BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: cooks | 17.62USD | 2026-10-12 | |
| BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: waiters and waitresses | 16.94USD | 2026-10-12 | |
| US DOL state minimum wage laws | 16.94USD | Connecticut | 2026-10-29 |
| US DOL state minimum wage laws | 16.9USD | California | 2026-10-29 |
| BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: food and beverage serving workers | 15.24USD | 2026-10-12 | |
| US DOL state minimum wage laws | 15.16USD | Colorado | 2026-10-29 |
| US DOL minimum wages for tipped employees by state | 15USD | Florida | 2026-10-12 |
| US DOL state minimum wage laws | 7.25USD | US federal | 2026-10-29 |
| US DOL minimum wages for tipped employees by state | 5.15USD | Wyoming | 2026-10-12 |
| US DOL minimum wages for tipped employees by state | 2.13USD | tipped employee | 2026-10-12 |
The sentence each figure was read from (11)
- ISED Canadian Industry Statistics, full-service and limited-service eating places (NAICS 7225), read 2026-10-12:
The average hourly wage paid in this industry is $19.02 an hour for 2024.
- BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: cooks, read 2026-10-12:
The median hourly wage for cooks was $17.62 in May 2025.
- BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: waiters and waitresses, read 2026-10-12:
The median hourly wage for waiters and waitresses was $16.94 in May 2025.
- US DOL state minimum wage laws, read 2026-10-29:
Basic Minimum Rate (per hour): $16.94
- US DOL state minimum wage laws, read 2026-10-29:
Basic Minimum Rate (per hour): $16.90
- BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: food and beverage serving workers, read 2026-10-12:
The median hourly wage for food and beverage serving and related workers was $15.24 in May 2025.
- US DOL state minimum wage laws, read 2026-10-29:
Basic Minimum Rate (per hour): $15.16
- US DOL minimum wages for tipped employees by state, read 2026-10-12:
The Florida minimum wage is scheduled to increase by $1.00 every year on September 30th until reaching $15.00 on September 30, 2026.
- US DOL state minimum wage laws, read 2026-10-29:
Employers subject to the Fair Labor Standards Act must pay the current Federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour.
- US DOL minimum wages for tipped employees by state, read 2026-10-12:
The Wyoming minimum wage is $5.15 per hour.
- US DOL minimum wages for tipped employees by state, read 2026-10-12:
State minimum cash wage payment is the same as that required under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act ($2.13/hr.)
Read in full, publishes no figure
13 named sources were read in full on the dates shown and print no usable figure. They are counted, never filled in.
- BLS OEWS industry highlight: food services and drinking places, read 2026-09-12: every candidate on the page was refused
- BLS OEWS national employment and wage table 1, read 2026-09-12: every candidate on the page was refused
- BLS OEWS industry estimates, NAICS 7225 restaurants and other eating places, read 2026-10-12: every candidate on the page was refused
- BLS employer costs for employee compensation, read 2026-10-12: every candidate on the page was refused
- US DOL fact sheet 15, tipped employees under the FLSA, read 2026-09-12: every candidate on the page was refused
- ONS average weekly earnings, accommodation and food services (series K58C), read 2026-10-12: read in full and no accepted figure on the page
- ONS average weekly earnings EARN01, read 2026-10-12: read in full and no accepted figure on the page
- ONS ASHE table 8, earnings by local authority, read 2026-09-12: read in full and no accepted figure on the page
- National Restaurant Association, restaurant labor costs above historical averages, read 2026-10-12: every candidate on the page was refused
- National Restaurant Association, elevated labor costs and profitability in 2024, read 2026-10-12: every candidate on the page was refused
- Epos Now, how many members of staff do I need in my restaurant, read 2026-10-12: read in full and no accepted figure on the page
- 7shifts, restaurant staffing, read 2026-10-12: read in full and no accepted figure on the page
- Job Bank Canada, food service worker wages (NOC 65201), read 2026-10-12: every candidate on the page was refused
Methodology
Every row is a verbatim sentence read from the named source's own page through our fetch service on the date shown, hash-pinned to the stored read (the sha of the page's visible text; the raw page is mirrored to R2).
6 of the 19 named sources that could be read published a usable figure; 13 published none and are recorded as not published, never filled in; 0 could not be read (blocked, dead or unreachable) and count nowhere.
The headline figures (median, minimum, maximum, quartiles) are over ONE figure per source for each breakdown it prices, in USD (a source's median where its page yielded several accepted sentences for one breakdown), so a page that gives figures for several breakdowns gives one for each and N counts 10 figures, never sentences; 148 candidate sentence(s) were refused by a reviewer with the reason recorded.
The fuller derivation this dataset is chartered to grow into (not yet what the figures above are; they are each source's own published figure as read): the labour line built from the authorities rather than asserted: the statistical agency's wage per restaurant ROLE (BLS OEWS by occupation and by NAICS 7225 for the US, ONS for GB, ISED and Job Bank for CA) multiplied by the employer's on-cost from the official compensation series, set against the statutory floor for that jurisdiction including the tipped-wage credit, and expressed as the share of sales a given cover count implies; the association's published industry ratio sits beside it as a comparison, attributed to the association and never merged in.
The two calculator keywords are the same table with the operator's own numbers substituted, and the staffing rows are the SPREAD between published staffing ratios, which disagree by a factor of three and have never been tabulated against each other.
148 candidate sentences on these pages were refused by a reviewer; each refusal and its reason is recorded in the review ledger.
Sources (19)
- BLS OEWS industry highlight: food services and drinking places(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: waiters and waitresses(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: cooks(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: food and beverage serving workers(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- BLS OEWS national employment and wage table 1(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- BLS OEWS industry estimates, NAICS 7225 restaurants and other eating places(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- BLS employer costs for employee compensation(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- US DOL minimum wages for tipped employees by state(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- US DOL fact sheet 15, tipped employees under the FLSA(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- US DOL state minimum wage laws(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- ONS average weekly earnings, accommodation and food services (series K58C)(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- ONS average weekly earnings EARN01(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- ONS ASHE table 8, earnings by local authority(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- National Restaurant Association, restaurant labor costs above historical averages(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- National Restaurant Association, elevated labor costs and profitability in 2024(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- Epos Now, how many members of staff do I need in my restaurant(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- 7shifts, restaurant staffing(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- Job Bank Canada, food service worker wages (NOC 65201)(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- ISED Canadian Industry Statistics, full-service and limited-service eating places (NAICS 7225)(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
Cite or embed this figure
Cite or embed this figure
The median published figure in the Restaurant Labour Benchmark is 15.20 USD across 10 figures from 5 sources' own pages in USD (range 2.13 to 17.62 USD; 6 sources publish a figure), read 29 October 2026.
6 of the 19 named sources read in full publish a figure; 13 publish none, read 29 October 2026.
Restaurant Labour Benchmark, jurisdiction US federal: median 7.25 USD across 1 source, read 29 October 2026.
Restaurant Labour Benchmark, jurisdiction California: median 16.90 USD across 1 source, read 29 October 2026.
Restaurant Labour Benchmark, jurisdiction Colorado: median 15.16 USD across 1 source, read 29 October 2026.
Restaurant Labour Benchmark, jurisdiction Connecticut: median 16.94 USD across 1 source, read 29 October 2026.
Restaurant Labour Benchmark, jurisdiction Florida: median 15 USD across 1 source, read 29 October 2026.
Restaurant Labour Benchmark, jurisdiction Wyoming: median 5.15 USD across 1 source, read 29 October 2026.
Restaurant Labour Benchmark, role tipped employee: median 2.13 USD across 1 source, read 29 October 2026.
The median is unchanged since 21 October 2026 (was 15.20 USD across 10).
Cite as: "Rotazo Restaurant Labour Benchmark", updated 2026-10-30, https://rotazo.com/datasets/restaurant-labour-benchmark/.
Download the CSV (11 rows, computed 2026-10-30)