Bakers: Salary Overview
Bakers make bread, pastries, and other baked goods.
They typically work in a bakery and may have different responsibilities depending on the place of employment, including checking the quality of ingredients, preparing equipment, measuring the ingredients, kneading, rolling, and shaping dough, placing the dough into pans, and setting over temperature.
Baker’s salaries vary depending on a wide range of factors, such as education, experience, the industry of employment, and region.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median annual wage for bakers was $27,700 in May 2019 but salaries in this field can be anywhere between less than $20,310 and more than $41,640 a year.
Some bakers work part-time while those who work for commercial bakeries that bake continuously may have to work during evenings or weekends.
Baker Salary by Industry
According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, bakers held around 192,000 jobs in 2018.
Around 29% of them worked in bakeries and tortilla manufacturing companies while food and beverage stores employed 26% of all bakers.
Around 20% of bakers worked for restaurants and other eating places and 6% were self-employed.
The numbers published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics show that bakers who worked for bakeries and tortilla manufacturing places earned a mean annual wage of $29,080.
Those who worked for food and beverage stores earned slightly less, with an average annual salary of $28,250.
Bakers who worked for restaurants and other eating places earned around $27,520 a year.
However, salaries vary depending on the type of establishment and the region, and bakers who work for high-end restaurants may earn way more than the average.
Bakers who work for colleges, universities, and professional schools are typically paid better than those who work in other fields- the annual mean wage in this industry was $35,640 as of May 2018.
This field employs only a small percentage of all bakers and competition for job openings in this field may be higher.
According to BLS, 4,070 bakers worked for the industry of Traveler Accommodation, a field where the average annual salary was $34,290 as of May 2018.
The field of Special Food Services employed around 3,330 bakers as of May 2018 who earned, on average, around $29,750 a year.
This industry includes establishments that provide food services from carts and motorized vehicles, at the customer’s location or at another location that is provided by the customer.
Elementary and Secondary Schools employed around 610 bakers in May 2018.
The average annual salary for bakers who worked in schools was $33,720.
Those who worked for dairy product manufacturers earned a mean annual salary of $33,010.
In conclusion, baker salaries vary widely depending on the place of employment but some of the best-paying fields offer few job openings and if you want to earn an advantage over the other candidates you should first gain a few years of experience working in a regular bakery or restaurant.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment for bakers is projected to grow 6 percent from 2018 to 2028, about as fast as the average for all occupations.
However, this growth may be limited by the fact that more facilities use automated machines to mass-produce baked goods.
Baker Salary by Compensation Structure
Bakers may be paid an annual salary or by the hour, depending on the employer and the baker’s role and level of experience.
Entry-level bakers are sometimes paid on an hourly basis while more experienced employees may earn a fixed salary plus other benefits.
Some employers also offer bonuses and profit-sharing, which can add up to several thousands of dollars to a baker’s annual salary.
The bonus percentage and profit-sharing vary depending on the baker’s role, the place of employment, and level of experience and experienced bakers who work for a high-end restaurant of a five-star hotel typically receive higher total compensation than the rest.
Some bakers also have other benefits, including paid vacation, sick days, and health insurance.
* Based on information from the May 2023 salary report from the BLS. The figures represent accumulated data for all states of employment for Bakers. BLS data represents averages and medians for workers at all levels of education and experience. This data doesn't represent starting salaries.
* Employment conditions in your area may vary.