Home / Culinary Programs
Culinary arts programs
522 colleges and career schools report culinary programs to IPEDS, with 15,176 completions in 2023-24.
Programs listed
522
all states
Middle program cost
$15,125
$4,371 to $23,165, IPEDS
Middle length
11 months
36 certificates, IPEDS
Median pay
$62,470
chefs and head cooks, BLS May 2025
On state WIOA lists
431
programs, U.S. DOL file
Culinary Programs by state
| State | Programs | Median pay |
|---|---|---|
| Alaska | 2 | $52,190 |
| Alabama | 7 | $62,400 |
| Arkansas | 5 | $46,170 |
| Arizona | 12 | $59,890 |
| California | 55 | $64,500 |
| Colorado | 8 | $65,400 |
| Connecticut | 2 | $64,310 |
| Delaware | 1 | $61,440 |
| Florida | 47 | $58,240 |
| Georgia | 19 | $66,230 |
| Hawaii | 5 | $77,360 |
| Iowa | 8 | $47,990 |
| Idaho | 2 | $52,000 |
| Illinois | 19 | $58,830 |
| Indiana | 1 | $52,190 |
| Kansas | 4 | $58,390 |
| Kentucky | 9 | $48,070 |
| Louisiana | 10 | $45,570 |
| Massachusetts | 9 | $69,540 |
| Maryland | 6 | $61,590 |
| Maine | 5 | $57,010 |
| Michigan | 12 | $60,070 |
| Minnesota | 7 | $62,600 |
| Missouri | 8 | $64,480 |
| Mississippi | 11 | $54,850 |
| Montana | 2 | $57,470 |
| North Carolina | 26 | $61,130 |
| North Dakota | 1 | $74,740 |
| Nebraska | 1 | $60,510 |
| New Hampshire | 3 | $63,400 |
| New Jersey | 13 | $74,280 |
| New Mexico | 8 | $62,250 |
| Nevada | 2 | $62,380 |
| New York | 24 | $70,670 |
| Ohio | 10 | $53,990 |
| Oklahoma | 12 | $58,540 |
| Oregon | 5 | $63,600 |
| Pennsylvania | 17 | $63,860 |
| Rhode Island | 1 | $79,930 |
| South Carolina | 8 | $71,860 |
| South Dakota | 2 | $48,470 |
| Tennessee | 9 | $69,810 |
| Texas | 29 | $56,080 |
| Utah | 8 | $59,060 |
| Virginia | 13 | $63,270 |
| Washington | 16 | $76,010 |
| Wisconsin | 13 | $61,300 |
| West Virginia | 5 | $61,100 |
| Wyoming | 2 | $73,170 |
Programs counts IPEDS schools. Median pay: BLS OEWS, May 2025, annual.
Paying for culinary training
Culinary questions, answered from the data
How long is culinary training?
Among 36 certificate programs that report a length to IPEDS, the middle one takes 11 months; half take between 9 months and 12 months. Clock-hour programs run 644 to 1,200 hours (middle 1,000).
How much does a culinary arts program cost?
The middle whole-program tuition among 36 certificate programs reporting one to IPEDS for 2024-25 is $15,125; half cost between $4,371 and $23,165.
What do chefs and head cooks earn?
The national median annual wage for chefs and head cooks was $62,470 in May 2025 ($30 an hour), from BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics; the lowest-paid tenth earned under $37,900.