How to become a chef
Official title: Chef
Also called: Sous chef, Executive chef, Commis chef, Chef de partie, Personal chef
Chefs oversee the preparation and cooking of food at restaurants and other places where food is served. They manage menu planning, supplies and kitchen staff.
Main tasks
- Prepare and cook food orders
- Plan and create menus
- Arrange food on plates
- Train kitchen staff
- Keep work areas clean
- Follow health and safety rules
- Order food and equipment
- Make sure kitchenware is clean
How to become one
You need experience to become a chef and a qualification may be useful. You usually don't need specific NCEA levels for this job, but Level 2 may be useful. Required: experience in similar work. Other requirements: a New Zealand Certificate in Cookery (Level 3); to do entry training in cookery; a New Zealand Certificate in Cookery (Level 4); to do intermediate and advanced training in cookery.
Ways in
- Certificates and diplomas: Intermediate certificates in cookery. TEC links this job to study in food tourism and hospitality. Qualifications: NZ Cert in Cookery. Usually 1 year. Graduates of these qualifications earn a median $44,000 a year one year after study and $54,000 five years after; 63% are employed one year after (TEC, from Stats NZ IDI data).
Pay · Past change · AI and this job
- Most common pay: $52,000 to $77,000 a year (median $64,000), a TEC estimate before tax.
- Upper: $94,000 a year
- TEC shows pay for this job by the hour: median $30.77 an hour.
- TEC's pay figures are estimates only. TEC says they must not be used to set pay, in pay negotiations or in visa applications.
- Change in the number of people doing this job between the 2018 and 2023 Censuses: Steady (TEC). This is past change, not a forecast.
- People employed in the group Chefs: 25,386 at the 2018 Census and 22,881 at the 2023 Census (-9.9%). Past change, not a forecast.
- Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.
Who does this work
- About 19,000 people did this job at the 2023 Census (TEC).
- In the group Chefs, 32% of workers are female (sex at birth, 2023 Census).
- Where people in the group Chefs work (2023 Census): Auckland 37.7%, Canterbury 13.8%, and Wellington 11%.
Related jobs
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Questions people ask
How do I become a chef?
You need experience to become a chef and a qualification may be useful. You usually don't need specific NCEA levels for this job, but Level 2 may be useful. Required: experience in similar work. Other requirements: a New Zealand Certificate in Cookery (Level 3); to do entry training in cookery; a New Zealand Certificate in Cookery (Level 4); to do intermediate and advanced training in cookery.
How much does a chef earn in New Zealand?
The Tertiary Education Commission estimates median pay at $64,000 a year, before tax. Most common pay is $52,000 to $77,000 a year.
Has the number of people working as a chef grown in New Zealand?
It has held steady: TEC records the number of people doing this job as steady between the 2018 and 2023 Censuses. This is past change, not a forecast.
Will AI change the work of a chef?
Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.
Sources
- Tertiary Education Commission (Tahatu Career Navigator): Tahatu career ideas: descriptions, tasks, pay estimates, people employed, employment change 2018 to 2023, entry requirements, registration, interest scores (Site scrape 2026-10 (816 career ideas, sitemap lastmod 2026-10-01)), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026
- Stats NZ (via Figure.NZ): Census totals by topic for individuals 2013, 2018, 2023 (CEN23_TBT_004): employed by occupation, ANZSCO V1.3, summed to unit group (2023 Census (CEN23_TBT_004)), CC BY 4.0 (Stats NZ), CC BY 3.0 NZ (Figure.NZ), retrieved 4 October 2026
- Stats NZ (via Figure.NZ): Census 2023: employed by regional council, occupation (ANZSCO V1.3 unit group) and sex at birth (2023 Census), CC BY 4.0 (Stats NZ), CC BY 3.0 NZ (Figure.NZ), retrieved 4 October 2026
- International Labour Organization, Generative AI and Jobs: A Refined Global Index of Occupational Exposure (ILO Working Paper 140, Gmyrek et al.) (ILO Working Paper 140, May 2025, Annex Table A1), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026
This content is sourced from the Tertiary Education Commission through the Tahatū Career Navigator website (www.tahatu.govt.nz) and used under the CC BY 4.0 licence. All or some of the information has been modified by Peernovo. TEC has not approved, endorsed or tested these modifications. TEC will not be held accountable for any errors within this content.
Qualification information from NZQA, used under CC BY 3.0 NZ.
This work is based on/includes Stats NZ's data which are licensed by Stats NZ for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence. Census data via Figure.NZ.
Includes information from O*NET OnLine by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.
Sources: Tertiary Education Commission, Tahatū Career Navigator (career ideas, pay estimates, entry requirements and study options, CC BY 4.0, modified by Peernovo); Stats NZ, 2023 Census (via Figure.NZ) and the National Occupation List (CC BY 4.0); NZQA qualification information (CC BY 3.0 NZ); O*NET interest scores (CC BY 4.0); ILO global generative AI exposure index (CC BY 4.0). Links between career ideas and ANZSCO groups, degree fields and broad job groups are Peernovo's.
These results are not official statistics. They have been created for research purposes from the Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI), which is carefully managed by Stats NZ.
Graduate outcomes: these results are not official statistics. They have been created for research purposes from the Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI), which is carefully managed by Stats NZ.
Updated 4 October 2026