Home › Rankings › Best Culinary Arts Schools

Best Schools for Culinary Arts in 2026

137 schools ranked by TSW Score · Updated 2026

These are the top schools offering Culinary Arts, ranked by TradeSchoolOutlook Score. The score combines graduate earnings, AI automation resilience, job market demand, and return on tuition investment. The average Culinary Arts graduate earns $23,994/yr across 137 schools.

Programs Ranked
137
Avg Earnings
$23,994/yr
Avg TSW Score
61/100
AI-Proof Rating
AI-Proof
24% task exposure

All Culinary Arts Programs Ranked

Click any row for full AI scenario analysis, earnings projections, and career path breakdown.

# School TSW Score Earnings ROI
1 Johnson County Community College
Overland Park, KS · Culinary Arts 		82
80–83 		$38,977/yr 85.1x
2 Southeast Community College Area
Lincoln, NE · Culinary Arts 		83
81–83 		$36,734/yr 102.8x
3 Washtenaw Community College
Ann Arbor, MI · Culinary Arts 		75
74–76 		$33,382/yr 57.1x
4 Saint Paul College
Saint Paul, MN · Culinary Arts 		73
71–73 		$32,478/yr 52.8x
5 Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College
Asheville, NC · Culinary Arts 		74
72–74 		$32,602/yr 57.6x
6 Miami Dade College
Miami, FL · Culinary Arts 		72
71–73 		$31,101/yr 53.8x
7 Dallas College
Dallas, TX · Culinary Arts 		75
74–76 		$31,770/yr 66.0x
8 Fox Valley Technical College
Appleton, WI · Culinary Arts 		71
69–71 		$34,736/yr 40.6x
9 Hillsborough Community College
Tampa, FL · Culinary Arts 		72
70–72 		$29,451/yr 57.8x
10 Cincinnati State Technical and Community College
Cincinnati, OH · Culinary Arts 		70
69–70 		$36,330/yr 34.5x
11 Dallas College
Dallas, TX · Culinary Arts 		80
78–81 		$30,484/yr 127.6x
12 Grand Rapids Community College
Grand Rapids, MI · Culinary Arts 		72
71–73 		$27,630/yr 67.1x
13 Central Piedmont Community College
Charlotte, NC · Culinary Arts 		69
67–69 		$27,127/yr 53.7x
14 Sinclair Community College
Dayton, OH · Culinary Arts 		69
65–69 		$28,037/yr 49.3x
15 Southwestern Oregon Community College
Coos Bay, OR · Culinary Arts 		69
65–69 		$27,727/yr 49.7x
16 Montgomery County Community College
Blue Bell, PA · Culinary Arts 		68
67–69 		$28,885/yr 45.1x
17 Kapiolani Community College
Honolulu, HI · Culinary Arts 		69
64–70 		$26,882/yr 54.5x
18 Houston Community College
Houston, TX · Culinary Arts 		71
69–71 		$26,419/yr 54.2x
19 Salt Lake Community College
Salt Lake City, UT · Culinary Arts 		68
67–68 		$31,788/yr 36.3x
20 NorthWest Arkansas Community College
Bentonville, AR · Culinary Arts 		74
72–74 		$25,996/yr 86.2x
21 Valencia College
Orlando, FL · Culinary Arts 		68
65–69 		$25,227/yr 58.8x
22 University of Hawaii Maui College
Kahului, HI · Culinary Arts 		69
62–69 		$24,669/yr 58.4x
23 Kennebec Valley Community College
Fairfield, ME · Culinary Arts 		67
66–67 		$28,893/yr 39.6x
24 Grand Rapids Community College
Grand Rapids, MI · Culinary Arts 		66
60–66 		$24,473/yr 51.4x
25 Saint Louis Community College
Bridgeton, MO · Culinary Arts 		67
63–67 		$26,318/yr 47.1x
26 Southeast Community College Area
Lincoln, NE · Culinary Arts 		67
63–67 		$26,446/yr 47.1x
27 Atlantic Cape Community College
Mays Landing, NJ · Culinary Arts 		67
66–67 		$31,639/yr 31.5x
28 Hawaii Community College
Hilo, HI · Culinary Arts 		67
63–68 		$25,027/yr 52.4x
29 Schoolcraft Community College District
Livonia, MI · Culinary Arts 		65
62–66 		$27,248/yr 39.2x
30 Central New Mexico Community College
Albuquerque, NM · Culinary Arts 		69
66–70 		$23,139/yr 70.9x
31 Horry-Georgetown Technical College
Conway, SC · Culinary Arts 		65
58–65 		$24,466/yr 46.8x
32 Spokane Community College
Spokane, WA · Culinary Arts 		67
66–68 		$23,529/yr 57.0x
33 NorthWest Arkansas Community College
Bentonville, AR · Culinary Arts 		66
65–66 		$26,025/yr 42.6x
34 Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts-Boulder
Boulder, CO · Culinary Arts 		65
62–66 		$30,224/yr —
35 Des Moines Area Community College
Ankeny, IA · Culinary Arts 		65
59–65 		$26,913/yr 36.7x
36 Montgomery County Community College
Blue Bell, PA · Culinary Arts 		65
63–65 		$31,763/yr 24.3x
37 YTI Career Institute-York
York, PA · Culinary Arts 		65
62–65 		$29,494/yr —
38 Northern Wyoming Community College District
Sheridan, WY · Culinary Arts 		65
64–65 		$29,544/yr 29.6x
39 Arizona Culinary Institute
Scottsdale, AZ · Culinary Arts 		64
62–65 		$29,223/yr —
40 Delaware Technical Community College-Terry
Dover, DE · Culinary Arts 		64
59–64 		$26,031/yr 36.5x
41 Joliet Junior College
Joliet, IL · Culinary Arts 		64
63–64 		$28,252/yr 30.2x
42 Northwestern Michigan College
Traverse City, MI · Culinary Arts 		64
59–64 		$26,586/yr 35.1x
43 Ozarks Technical Community College
Springfield, MO · Culinary Arts 		63
61–64 		$25,879/yr 36.0x
44 College of Southern Nevada
Las Vegas, NV · Culinary Arts 		63
57–64 		$22,428/yr 43.8x
45 Hudson County Community College
Jersey City, NJ · Culinary Arts 		63
59–64 		$26,170/yr 34.6x
46 YTI Career Institute-York
York, PA · Culinary Arts 		64
61–64 		$28,351/yr —
47 Texarkana College
Texarkana, TX · Culinary Arts 		68
67–69 		$19,284/yr 76.9x
48 International Air and Hospitality Academy
Vancouver, WA · Culinary Arts 		64
61–64 		$28,085/yr —
49 Manatee Technical College
Bradenton, FL · Culinary Arts 		63
60–63 		$27,210/yr —
50 College of DuPage
Glen Ellyn, IL · Culinary Arts 		63
62–63 		$26,952/yr 30.2x

Methodology

Programs are ranked by TradeSchoolOutlook Score, which combines four equally weighted factors: graduate earnings (Year 1 after graduation), AI automation resilience (based on OpenAI and academic research), job market size (BLS annual openings), and earnings-to-tuition multiple (projected earnings vs. program tuition).

Earnings data comes from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, which reports actual median earnings of graduates — not self-reported surveys.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best school for Culinary Arts?
Based on our TradeSchoolOutlook Score, Johnson County Community College ranks #1 for Culinary Arts with a score of 82/100 and graduate earnings of $38,977/yr.
How much do Culinary Arts graduates earn?
Across 137 schools, Culinary Arts graduates earn an average of $23,994/yr in their first year. The highest-earning program reports $38,977/yr.
Is Culinary Arts an AI-proof career?
Culinary Arts has an average AI task exposure of 24%, rated "AI-Proof". This is a highly AI-proof trade — hands-on work that AI cannot automate.
Data: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (earnings, debt), Bureau of Labor Statistics 2024–2034 (employment projections), OpenAI GPTs-are-GPTs research (AI task exposure), Felten et al. AIOE. Last updated 2025.