How Much Does Olive Garden Pay?

Aside from successfully combining Italian and American cuisine in a unique blend of flavors, Olive Garden is also widely known for its attention to detail and great service.

But have you ever wondered how much do those who make that all happen earn — how much does Olive Garden pay its employees? What benefits do those working at Olive Garden have?

If you’d like to find out more, keep reading.

How Much Does Olive Garden Pay an Hour?

According to Payscale’s latest national pay average, Olive Garden employees make approximately $11.86 per hour. However, this amount doesn’t paint the real picture of an Olive Garden employee’s earnings.

Why? Well, for several reasons, but mostly because:

• Not all positions are paid the same (e.g., we cannot expect an Olive Garden busboy to have the same salary as a branch manager)
• Wages may differ based on location, both within the US and internationally.

Before moving on to Olive Garden salary calculations, we should mention that any estimates given in this article are just that — estimates.

Still, we will use the average hourly wage as reported by Payscale ($11.86) to give you an idea of how much an Olive Garden employee can expect to earn on a weekly, monthly, and yearly basis. We will also assume an average Olive Garden employee works 40 hours a week, 52 weeks (260 days) a year.

How Much does Olive Garden Pay Weekly, Bi-weekly, and Monthly?

According to current and former Olive Garden employee feedback, the payment frequency varies from branch to branch. Some of them pay on a weekly basis, and some on a bi-weekly basis.

So, according to the previously established calculation parameters, we get that an average Olive Garden employee makes approximately:

• $480 per week
• $949 every two weeks
• $2,056 per month

Of course, we should mention that these averages refer to gross rather than net pay. This means none of the estimated amounts takes local, state, or federal into consideration.

How Much Does Olive Garden Pay Per Year?

As already stated, Olive Garden employees are paid differently according to their position and the restaurant’s location. Therefore, not all employees can expect the same annual salary.

Based on the previously established parameters, an Olive Garden employee can make about $24,669 per year. However, this only refers to the expected annual income without vacations, holidays, days off, sick days, and taxes.

If you want a closer estimate with these parameters included, you can use a reliable take-home pay calculator.

For illustrative purposes, we will assume an average Olive Garden employee:

• Has an hourly wage of $11.86
• Uses ten holidays and 15 days off

This will get us the average annual salary adjusted for holidays and vacation days (taxes excluded), which amounts to about $22,297 per year.

How Old Do You Have to Be to Work at Olive Garden?

Like many restaurants and businesses across the country, Olive Garden has rules when it comes to the age of its employees.

To work at Olive Garden, you must be at least 16 years old. However, minors of this age are only allowed to work in certain entry-level positions, such as busser (or busboy).

When it comes to other positions, especially those involving machinery or serving alcohol, they can be occupied only by those 18 or older.

These rules are not set in stone and may vary according to local/state regulations. In general, however, most Olive Garden restaurants stick to these rules when hiring new staff members.

Olive Garden Salary by Position

How much do Olive Garden employees make depending on what they do? Here are the latest national averages for some positions at Olive Garden:

• Line cook – if you are seeking employment at Olive Garden as a line cook, you could make about $15.54 per hour.
• Server – one of the better-paid positions at Olive garden, at least as far as the front end is concerned. A server’s pay at Olive Garden is around $16.93 an hour.
• Food runner – this position is paid approximately $15.07 per hour.
• Restaurant manager – those who work as restaurant managers at Olive Garden earn approximately $58,947 per year.
• General manager – if you worked as a general manager at an Olive Garden restaurant, you could make about $68,107 per year.

Olive Garden Salary by State

As we’ve already mentioned, Olive Garden wages may vary depending on several factors, including the state where they work. This is mostly due to state regulations, taxes, and overall living standards.

Let’s take a look at how much Olive Garden pays for the most popular positions across the US.

How much does Olive Garden pay in Texas?

According to salary satisfaction surveys, Olive Garden restaurants in Texas pay their employees fairly. More than 50% of respondents stated they see their payment as fair and realistic. This includes:

• Servers, who make approximately $17.64 per hour
• Hostesses/Hosts, who earn about $11.34 an hour
• Restaurant managers, who are paid around $59,810 per year.

How much does Olive Garden Pay in California?

• In California, Olive Garden servers make around $23,870 per year.
• Those who work as hosts at Californian Olive Garden restaurants earn about $13.53 an hour.
• An Olive Garden restaurant manager in California is paid approximately $57,289 per year.

How much does Olive Garden pay in Florida?

• Olive Garden servers in Florida have an hourly wage of approximately $18.53 per hour.
• A line cook at Olive Garden in Florida makes about $15 an hour.
• An Olive Garden restaurant manager in Florida earns about $54,774 per year.

Olive Garden Employee Benefits

While pay is the most important factor when deciding on a job, benefits would probably take second place. Depending on their status (part-time/full-time) and eligibility, Olive Garden employees can count on the following benefits:

• Paid time off
• Retirement plan
• Dental insurance
• Health insurance
• Vision insurance
• Parental leave
• Employee discounts

Wrap Up

So, is it worth it to seek employment at Olive Garden? Our answer to that would be — probably yes.

Depending on your financial and career aspirations, there are plenty of job opportunities at Olive Garden — from entry-level to managerial positions.

Although some employees have stated the work environment is often fast-paced, many agree that they are fairly compensated for their work.

Overall, taking average hourly rates and benefits offered into consideration, working at Olive Garden might not be such a bad idea. Still, since wages differ across the country, it’s advisable to look into your local Olive Garden restaurant and see if what it offers seems acceptable to you.