Lawton, OK metro area · BLS May 2025 · Updated

How much does a waiter or waitress make in Lawton, OK?

In the Lawton, OK metropolitan area, waiters or waitresses earned a median of $17,150 a year ($8.25 an hour) in May 2025, according to the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey for the metro. BLS counted 700 of these jobs there. That is 59% below the $42,090 median for all jobs in the metro. The middle 80% earned between $15,080 and $40,450; these percentiles do not measure years of experience. Applying 2026 federal and Oklahoma tax rules to the median leaves an estimated $15,507 in take-home pay.

Waiter or waitress pay in Lawton, OK at a glance

Median salary

$17,150$8.25 per hour · $1,429 monthly · BLS May 2025
10th percentile$15,080$7.25/hr
25th percentile$15,680$7.54/hr
75th percentile$27,970$13.45/hr
90th percentile$40,450$19.45/hr
Jobs in this metro700Location quotient 1.12 (U.S. = 1.00)
Against all jobs here59% belowAll-jobs median $42,090
Against Oklahoma4% belowStatewide median $17,910
Against the U.S.51% belowNational median $35,230

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Same U.S. tax tables as the rest of the site. Change the salary, state, or filing status.

Waiter or waitress salary in Lawton, OK after taxes

$17,150
$15,000$35,000
Filing status:
Gross salary breakdown$17,150
Net 90%
Fed 1%
OK 1%
FICA 8%
Annual take-home$15,507After all taxes
Monthly deposit$1,292Estimated per month
Biweekly paycheck$596Every 2 weeks (26/yr)
Effective tax rate9.6%Total tax burden
Federal income tax$105 / yr
Oklahoma state income tax$226 / yr
FICA (Social Security & Medicare)$1,312 / yr

Waiters or waitresses pay range in Lawton, OK, hourly and yearly

BLS May 2025 estimates for the Lawton, OK metropolitan statistical area. Monthly and take-home figures are ours, computed from the annual wage.

What waiters or waitresses earned in the Lawton, OK metro area, May 2025
PercentileHourlyMonthlyYearlyAfter tax a year (OK)
10th percentile$7.25/hr$1,257$15,080$13,793
25th percentile$7.54/hr$1,307$15,680$14,320
MedianMedian$8.25/hr$1,429$17,150$15,507
75th percentile$13.45/hr$2,331$27,970$23,930
90th percentile$19.45/hr$3,371$40,450$33,407

Is $17,150 a good salary in Lawton, OK?

It depends on what else people there earn and what things cost. Here is the median for waiters or waitresses next to both.

Median household income$60,665Census Bureau ACS
Local price level (U.S. = 100)85.914.1% below national average
One paycheck vs. a household28.3%of area median income

The same job statewide and nationally, and a calculator for your own paycheck.

Do waiters or waitresses pay tax on tips?

Yes, but less than before. This job is on the Treasury's list of tipped occupations, so from 2025 through 2028 up to $25,000 a year of reported tips comes off federal taxable income, shrinking above $150,000 of income ($300,000 joint). Social Security and Medicare are still owed on every tip, and most states still tax them. The BLS pay figures on this page already include tips as employers report them.

See what the tips deduction saves you →

Waiter or waitress pay in Lawton, OK: common questions

What is the median salary for waiters or waitresses in Lawton, OK?

The BLS median annual wage for waiters or waitresses in the Lawton, OK metro area was $17,150 in May 2025, about $1,429 a month or $8.25 an hour. Statewide, the Oklahoma median for this job is $17,910, so the metro pays 4% below the state.

What is the hourly pay for waiters or waitresses in Lawton, OK?

The median hourly wage for waiters or waitresses in Lawton, OK was $8.25 in the BLS survey. One in ten earned less than $7.25 an hour and one in ten earned more than $19.45.

How many waiters or waitresses work in Lawton, OK?

BLS estimated 700 jobs for waiters or waitresses in the metro in May 2025, or 16.4 of every 1,000 jobs. Its location quotient of 1.12 means the job is more concentrated here than in the country as a whole.

What is the pay range for waiters or waitresses in Lawton, OK?

BLS wage estimates for waiters or waitresses in Lawton, OK run from $15,080 at the 10th percentile to $15,680 at the 25th, $27,970 at the 75th, and $40,450 at the 90th. These are points in the wage distribution, not experience levels.

How much do waiters or waitresses take home after taxes in Lawton, OK?

On a median gross salary of $17,150, an estimated $15,507 lands in net take-home pay per year ($596 biweekly) for a single filer claiming the standard deduction in Oklahoma in 2026. Total tax withholding equals $1,643 (an effective rate of 9.6%).

How much do waiters or waitresses make per month in Lawton, OK?

On the median annual salary of $17,150, gross monthly income is $1,429. After federal, FICA, and Oklahoma state income taxes, estimated net take-home pay is $1,292 per month (or $596 every two weeks).

Is $17,150 a good salary in Lawton, OK?

At $17,150, the median salary for waiters or waitresses is 28.3% of the Lawton, OK median household income ($60,665). It is 59% below the $42,090 median for all jobs in the metro. The BEA regional price parity is 85.9, so prices here run 14.1% below the U.S. average.