Cooks (Fast Food) build service orientation, coordination and social perceptiveness skills that carry over to other work. Below are 25 careers ranked by how closely their skills match, with pay from BLS May 2025. The closest match is Butchers and Meat Cutters (88%).
Updated October 2026 · Data: O*NET 31.0 and BLS OEWS May 2025 · How we match careers
Sorted by skill match.
| # | Career | Skill match | Median pay | Pay change | Extra education |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Butchers and Meat Cutters | 88% | $40,140 | +30% | None |
| 2 | Bakers | 86% | $37,160 | +20% | None |
| 3 | Fast Food and Counter Workers | 86% | $31,200 | +1% | None |
| 4 | Baristas | 84% | $31,200Pay for the broader BLS group “Fast Food and Counter Workers” | Not compared | None |
| 5 | Food Servers, Nonrestaurant | 82% | $35,360 | +14% | None |
| 6 | Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers | 81% | $33,980 | +10% | None |
| 7 | Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products | 77% | $35,730 | +16% | None |
| 8 | Meat, Poultry, and Fish Cutters and Trimmers | 77% | $38,300 | +24% | None |
| 9 | Stockers and Order Fillers | 76% | $37,330 | +21% | None |
| 10 | Waiters and Waitresses | 75% | $35,230 | +14% | None |
Compared with Cooks, Fast Food, median $30,890. Skill match is our estimate (0–99) from O*NET 31.0 skills, knowledge, work activities and interests, adjusted for preparation and big pay drops. Pay: BLS OEWS May 2025, national median.
How important each skill is in work as cooks (fast food) (O*NET importance, scale 1–5).
The gaps that show up most often across your top 10 matches.
Free and low-cost training: use the CareerOneStop training finder below.
A concrete first step, the skills to add, and the hard parts of each job, from O*NET 31.0 education, training and work context data.
88% skill match · $40,140 · +30% pay
Complex Problem Solving · Negotiation · Management of Material Resources
86% skill match · $37,160 · +20% pay
Quality Control Analysis · Troubleshooting · Judgment and Decision Making
86% skill match · $31,200 · +1% pay
Social Perceptiveness · Management of Material Resources · Coordination
If you want to stay close to what you do now, these roles are the nearest.
The closest matches are Butchers and Meat Cutters (88% skill match, median $40,140), Bakers (86% skill match, median $37,160) and Fast Food and Counter Workers (86% skill match, median $31,200), based on O*NET 31.0 data and BLS May 2025 pay.
Among the 25 matches, 24 pay more than cooks (fast food) at the median. The biggest increases: Food Service Managers (+125%, $69,390), Chefs and Head Cooks (+102%, $62,470) and Weighers, Measurers, Checkers, and Samplers, Recordkeeping (+50%, $46,380).
24 of the 25 matches usually need no more education than you have now, based on O*NET Job Zones.
We compare the importance of skills, knowledge, work activities and interests in O*NET 31.0 for your job and every other career, then adjust for extra preparation and big pay drops. The full method is on our Methodology page.