Food Preparation Workers pay in Indianapolis-Carmel-Greenwood
$32,660avg. a year
$15.70 an hour · 4,870 employed
Food Preparation Workers in the Indianapolis-Carmel-Greenwood, IN metro area earn an average of $32,660 a year. That is $1,100 (3%) more than the Indiana average of $31,560. The U.S. average is $35,290.
$30,490Median pay
$15.70Average hourly
+3%vs. Indiana average
4,870Jobs in this metro
Other Indiana metro areas
Average pay for food preparation workers in other Indiana metro areas. Swipe to see all 14.
127,100 jobs
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN
$36,980
$17.78 an hour
25,320 jobs
Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN
$33,850
$16.27 an hour
3660 jobs
Elkhart-Goshen, IN
$32,970
$15.85 an hour
4200 jobs
Columbus, IN
$32,060
$15.41 an hour
5900 jobs
Fort Wayne, IN
$31,840
$15.31 an hour
6760 jobs
South Bend-Mishawaka, IN-MI
$31,810
$15.29 an hour
7230 jobs
Kokomo, IN
$31,710
$15.25 an hour
84,910 jobs
Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN
$31,570
$15.18 an hour
9400 jobs
Bloomington, IN
$31,230
$15.02 an hour
10420 jobs
Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN
$31,060
$14.93 an hour
11860 jobs
Evansville, IN
$30,040
$14.44 an hour
12240 jobs
Michigan City-La Porte, IN
$30,030
$14.44 an hour
13340 jobs
Terre Haute, IN
$29,590
$14.22 an hour
14280 jobs
Muncie, IN
$29,350
$14.11 an hour
Why people trust JobPayFacts
Official government dataEvery number comes from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics wage survey of employers, not self-reported salaries.
Every state and city830 jobs across all 50 states, D.C. and 199 large metro areas.
Updated every yearNew figures each spring when BLS releases them. This site uses May 2025 data.
How Indianapolis-Carmel-Greenwood compares
Pay range: metro vs. state vs. U.S.
Annual wage percentiles, May 2025
This metroIndianaU.S.
Indiana metro areas
Average pay, May 2025 · this metro highlighted
Related jobs in Indianapolis-Carmel-Greenwood
| Job | Avg. pay in this metro |
|---|---|
| Cooks, Restaurant | $35,550 |
| Fast Food and Counter Workers | $29,780 |
| Waiters and Waitresses | $32,300 |
| First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers | $47,300 |
| Bartenders | $29,510 |
| Cooks, Fast Food | $31,760 |
Questions and answers
How much do food preparation workers make in Indianapolis-Carmel-Greenwood?
The average is $32,660 a year, and the median is $30,490. About 4,870 people work in this job in the metro area.
Is that more than the Indiana average?
That is $1,100 (3%) more than the Indiana average of $31,560.
Is this job common in Indianapolis-Carmel-Greenwood?
It makes up 4.4 of every 1,000 jobs in the metro area, 0.77 times the national share.
Sources and notes. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025, occupation code 35-2021. Metro area: Indianapolis-Carmel-Greenwood, IN metropolitan statistical area (BLS area code 26900). Wages are gross pay before taxes and don't include overtime premiums, tips, bonuses or benefits; self-employed workers aren't included. How we use the data. JobPayFacts isn't affiliated with BLS.