Ranked by median pay, with jobs and rent share; from BLS and Census data.
Click any dot to open that city: jobs, pay, rent, commute, county economy and climate. Dot size follows population; colours follow the state flag.
By AtiveSite · Published 07/11/2026 · Updated 08/11/2026 · Every figure is linked to its source below.
13 metro areas in Alabama publish pay for this occupation with at least 100 jobs, together 21,850 jobs. The three largest employers of cooks, fast food are Birmingham (6,120 jobs), Huntsville (2,950 jobs), Montgomery (2,130 jobs), which hold 51.3% of those jobs. Median pay across these metros runs from $25,900 to $29,310 a year, against $27,870 for the whole state and $30,890 for the whole country.
BLS reports a national median of $30,890 a year for cooks, fast food (the lowest-paid tenth earn under $22,580 and the highest-paid tenth over $42,910). Employment is projected to change by +0.6% between 2025 and 2035, with about 86,400 openings a year including replacements. The typical entry route is: No formal educational credential; on-the-job training: Short-term on-the-job training. Education requirements are BLS's typical ones, not legal rules; many states also license this work, so check the state board before applying.
Higher pay is not the whole story: look at the rent share column (yearly rent divided by median pay) and the price level (100 is the national average). A metro with a lower salary but cheaper housing can leave more money at the end of the month. The location quotient shows where the occupation is concentrated; employers cluster where it is above 1, which usually means more openings and more competition among employers for the same skills.
Cooks, fast food in Alabama: the highest median pay is in the Huntsville, AL area ($29,310 a year); the most jobs are in the Birmingham, AL area (6,120). Statewide the median is $27,870 with 26,740 jobs. Metro areas with at least 100 jobs in this occupation are listed; click a column to sort.
| Metropolitan area ⇅ | Jobs ⇅ | Median pay ⇅ | Entry (10th pct.) ⇅ | Top (90th pct.) ⇅ | Location quotient ⇅ | Yearly rent as % of median pay ⇅ | Price level (US = 100) ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Huntsville, AL | 2,950 | $29,310 | $23,650 | $35,100 | 2.68 | 48% | 93.1 |
| Decatur, AL | 920 | $28,480 | $23,560 | $34,660 | 3.65 | 36% | 87.2 |
| Birmingham, AL | 6,120 | $28,320 | $23,800 | $34,650 | 2.85 | 50% | 91.6 |
| Tuscaloosa, AL | 1,500 | $28,030 | $23,150 | $33,400 | 3.36 | 43% | 87.7 |
| Daphne-Fairhope-Foley, AL | 1,080 | $28,000 | $23,050 | $33,730 | 3.01 | 55% | 94.7 |
| Mobile, AL | 1,970 | $27,700 | $23,080 | $33,780 | 2.76 | 46% | 88.1 |
| Montgomery, AL | 2,130 | $27,650 | $22,640 | $33,360 | 3.13 | 48% | 89.7 |
| Auburn-Opelika, AL | 1,220 | $27,120 | $22,600 | $33,140 | 4.06 | 45% | 87.9 |
| Florence-Muscle Shoals, AL | 900 | $26,820 | $22,410 | $29,910 | 3.87 | 38% | 84.8 |
| Columbus, GA-AL | 790 | $26,560 | $21,040 | $33,620 | 1.66 | 48% | 89.3 |
| Anniston-Oxford, AL | 820 | $26,410 | $22,500 | $30,590 | 4.59 | 38% | 85.9 |
| Dothan, AL | 820 | $26,020 | $22,120 | $30,410 | 3.28 | 42% | 83.8 |
| Gadsden, AL | 630 | $25,900 | $21,720 | $34,800 | 4.59 | 39% | 85.7 |
National page: Cooks, fast food →Cities of Alabama
Rent uses the metro median gross rent (ACS) and appears only for metros that contain a city of this guide. "n/a" means BLS suppressed the figure or we have no rent for that metro.
In the Huntsville, AL area, with a median of $29,310 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025; metro areas with at least 100 jobs).
In the Birmingham, AL area, with 6,120 jobs.