Salary comparison
Cooks, Restaurant: San Diego vs San Francisco
San Diego, CA pays about 0.9% more for cooks, restaurant on paper — $46,440 vs $46,030. But once you factor in what it costs to live there, San Diego comes out ahead by $410 a year in real buying power.
San Diego, CA
$46,440
$40,330
$47,560
$22.33
100
$46,440/yr
Median adjusted for local cost of living.
San Francisco, CA
$46,030
$44,340
$49,360
$22.13
100
$46,030/yr
Median adjusted for local cost of living.
What the numbers mean in practice
The headline gap is $410 a year (0.9%) in favor of San Diego. That is the raw salary difference before any living costs.
San Diego runs a cost index of 100 against the national baseline of 100; San Francisco sits at 100. After adjusting the median for those costs, San Diego is the better deal by $410 a year — that is what each paycheck actually buys locally.
If you are weighing a move from San Francisco to San Diego for this role, the raise needs to beat 0.9% to come out ahead after living costs. Anything below that and you are earning more on paper but keeping less.
Common questions
Where do cooks, restaurant earn more, San Diego or San Francisco?
San Diego pays $46,440 on median — about 0.9% more than San Francisco ($46,030). Based on BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics.
Which city is the better deal after living costs?
San Diego. Once you divide each median by the local cost index, San Diego gives you roughly$46,440 of real buying power versus $46,030 in the other city.