How Much Does Chick-fil-A Pay? Hourly Wages by Role

Chick-fil-A restaurants are generally owned and run by independent operators, who hire their own teams and decide what to pay them within local law. As a result, the pay at the restaurant down the road may not match the pay at the one near your home, even though the signs look the same.

The numbers on this page are a guide, not a rate card. Payscale averages come from employees who report their own pay. The BLS figures are industry-wide medians for fast food workers, supervisors and managers, and they describe the market a restaurant competes in, not Chick-fil-A pay. The California minimum comes from CalMatters.

The employee-reported average is $14.91/hr. Reports run from $10.85/hr to $22.36/hr, which is a broad spread across titles, restaurants and states.

Compared with the national median for fast food and counter workers across the industry, $15/hr, the reported Chick-fil-A average is slightly lower. The comparison is rough. The Payscale sample is small and self-selected, and the BLS median covers all fast food employers in every state.

The lowest-paid reported title is cashier. The highest-paid reported title is director of operations.

The top figure is a self-reported average for a leadership title, and what those jobs involve can differ from one restaurant to another. Entry-level team member pay sits closer to the cashier end.

State law shapes fast food pay more than any other factor. The table below shows what fast food and counter workers earn across the industry in the United States and five states, including the low and high ends of each range.

Pay in California and Washington is well above Texas and Florida. A restaurant in a higher-wage state has to offer more to attract workers, and the posted rate usually reflects that.

California's fast food minimum

California sets a separate minimum for fast food chains with 60 or more locations. CalMatters reports it at $20/hr. A Chick-fil-A in California is covered by the rule, so a posted rate there should be at or above it.

Chick-fil-A has not published manager wages that this page can cite. The BLS figures for the restaurant industry as a whole give a reference for shift supervisors and general managers.

The median for food service managers is higher than for supervisors, and supervisors are higher than line workers. Individual operators set their own structures, so a specific restaurant may pay more or less than these medians.

An average blends restaurants with different owners, states and job titles. It also blends new hires with people who have worked at a location for years. Employees choose whether to report their pay, so the sample may lean toward certain restaurants or time periods. When a figure here and a posting near you disagree, trust the posting. It reflects that operator's current rate, which is the one that applies if you are hired.

Hours matter as much as the rate. A slightly higher rate on a schedule with fewer hours can pay less over a week than a lower rate with steady shifts, so compare total weekly hours as well as the hourly figure.

• What is the hourly rate for the position, and does it change by shift?
• How many hours per week should a new team member expect?
• When is the first pay review, and what does it depend on?
• Are there leadership roles, and how does pay change in them?

Pay terms are set by the operator, so ask the restaurant directly and get the answers in writing.