Find an experienced cook near you

Fill in a short form and get free quotes for professional cooking services

4.3

Excellent rating - 4.3/5 (10900+ reviews)

Do you need help with meal preparation?

  • Home cooking
  • Cooking Lessons
  • Vegetarian meal preparation
  • Vegan meal preparation
  • Meal planning
  • … or anything else
It only takes 2 minutes. And it's free.
Up to 50% cheaper than franchise dealers
No job too big or small
Free insurance coverage
Secure cashless payments
Same day or next day service at no extra cost

Best rated cooks near me

Recent Cooking reviews

The cake is so cute and yummy!!! Cas is also easy to talk! Thank u for tge beautiful cake

Looking for a baker who can make a MIFFY Cake theme

$150

Job On time

Hotel Room Birthday Decoration

$150

Amazing food, great company and pleasure to have around.

Home cooking

$40

Job completed as requested 😀

Regular home cooked meals 2- 3 a week

$100

Shyam was fantastic. All of the kids really enjoyed getting their faces painted, even some of the adults 😀 I would very highly recommend her and would definitely use her again.

Face painting for my son’s 1st birthday

$150

Thank You Jenni for my Amazing Cow Cupcakes. They were identical to my Inspo Pic, if not better and were very tasty. Everyone just loved them. You were very friendly and easy to deal with and I will certainly be getting you to make my next cake. Thank You Jenni

Cup Cakes Twelve Cow Cup Cakes

$30

What's the average cost of a cook

$80 - $220

low

$80

median

$150

high

$220

Low, median and high bar chart distribuiton

Average reviews for Cooking Services

based on 481 reviews

4.9

454
16
5
4
2

What is Airtasker?

Post your task

Post your task

Tell us what you need, it's FREE to post.

Review offers

Review offers

Get offers from trusted Taskers and view profiles.

Get it done

Get it done

Choose the right person for your task and get it done.

Now Available
  • Get it done now. Pay later.
  • Repay in 4 fortnightly instalments
  • No interest
  • Available on payments up to $1,500

648+

Tasks successfully completed

1

Average amount of offers per task

3

 hrs

Average time to receive offers

Statistics from the most recent tasks on Airtasker over the last 4 years.

Hire trusted Cooks with Airtasker

Cooking is one of those skills that takes a moment to learn but a lifetime to master. Those who choose to master it over a lifetime are generally highly sought after, and for good reason.

Whether you’re a catering company who needs a chef to help serve up food at a gala event, a restaurant who requires the short term assistance of a chef while they search for a long term staffer, or perhaps even a hopeless romantic who wants to engage the services of a private chef to make an anniversary particularly special, you can now gain access to a huge amount of talent, and all at the click of a button.

Simply tell us about the job that you’d like the chef to do and suggest what you’d be willing to pay, and you’ll soon begin to receive offers from available chefs. Each chef comes with ratings and detailed reviews of their previous work, so you can be confident that your chosen hire will be able to produce the sort of quality food that you require.

So what are you waiting for? Get a free, no obligation quote today!

Offers in no time

Start getting offers to do your task ASAP!

Local, skilled pros

Take your pick of skilled Cooks nearby.

Real reviews

Judge for yourself – every task gets a review.

Flexible pricing

Choose the offer that’s right for you.

Top Cooking related questions

Professional cooks usually have previous kitchen experience or qualifications. They’re paid to prepare food, either in a commercial environment, in people’s homes as a personal cook, or they may work from their own kitchen at home.

Yes. Most cooks specialise in a particular type of cooking, like baking, seafood, gluten-free, vegan, steaming, frying, or even a particular cuisine.

A professional cook doesn’t necessarily need any set qualifications, but it’s common for professional chefs to hold a certificate or have some work experience in a professional kitchen.

Professional cooks can give you a restaurant quality meal but in the comfort (and convenience) of your own home. If you’re hosting a dinner party, it means you can spend more time with your guests and minimise the clean up afterwards.

This will depend on whether your cook is assembling the meal at your place or at theirs. Generally, private catering chefs will bring all the ingredients, along with any specific appliances they need. However, they may use your basic utensils and servingware.

The price for a professional or personal cook is usually between $70-$200 when you hire through Airtasker. It could be more or less than this, depending on how many people they need to cater for, the cost of ingredients, and the time it’ll take them to prepare the meal.


Suggested reads about Cooking

What do cooking services include?

You can hire a cook to provide food for a range of meals and occasions, from home cooking and meal prep to specialty cooking and even dinner party catering. You can arrange cooking services to happen in your own kitchen or your cook can bring the food ready-prepared. Your chef will take care of everything from buying ingredients to cleaning up. Here’s what you can expect depending on your cooking service:

Home cooking
Want fresh meals in your home? Your home chef can either offer regular home cooking services where they cook multiple nights per week, or provide a one-off meal if you just need occasional help. Your private chef will ask if you have any food preferences or intolerances, how many people they need to cook for, and what appliances and equipment they can use. They’ll usually plan the meals ahead of time, purchase the ingredients, and freshly cook the meals in your kitchen, and then clean up before they go.

Baking
Want to impress your best friend with an amazing cake for her birthday party? Or perhaps it’s your turn to bring some baking to work for morning tea? Hire a pastry chef or professional baker to create a cake, biscuits, muffins, or something else tasty. They’ll ask you how many people you’re baking for, any flavour preferences, and any special decorations you’d like. Your baker will bake at their place and deliver the finished product to your home or office once it’s ready.

Dinner party chef
If you’re planning a dinner party with friends, why not hire a dinner party chef to help take all the stress out of hosting? Your professional cook will contact you to confirm the number of guests, what courses/canapes you’d like, and whether the event is formal or informal. They’ll usually prepare most of the food where the event is being held (whether at your home or at a venue) and clean up the kitchen after they’re done.

Specialty cooking
Cooking paleo, vegetarian, vegan, or gluten-free can be a challenge, whether it’s for yourself, a family member, or for an event you’re catering. Fortunately, many cooks are experienced with a range of different food requirements, including food intolerances, special diets, and allergies. When you hire a cook, they’ll choose recipes and ingredients that are suitable, confirming any dietary requirements before they get started. They’ll be careful to avoid cross-contamination if they’re preparing alternative meals for certain members of your family or party.

Meal preparation & planning
If you struggle to come up with meal ideas and always find yourself short of time throughout the week, why not hire a cook to prep your meals for the week? Your personal cook will confirm how many meals you’d like, the number of people, and if you have any preferences. They’ll choose meals that keep well and are easy to store, and taste great fresh or reheated. They’ll either prepare the food in your kitchen (cleaning up afterwards) or drop your freshly prepared meals off when they’re done, packaged and ready for the fridge or freezer.

Recent Cooking tasks

Hoping to please be helped with 7 day meal prep for the week

$100

Sydney NSW 2000, Australia

11th Sep 2025

Hoping to please be helped with 7 day meal prep for the week.

Style baby shower decorations set up

$80

Rosehill NSW 2142, Australia

11th Sep 2025

I need someone to help me decorate and set up a garland for my baby shower. I will have the baloons, electic pump and arch. I have supplied photo as inspiration

Meal preparation

$100

Runcorn QLD 4113, Australia

11th Sep 2025

wanting to know if meal preps are possible for busy professional, interested in bodybuilding. so need accurate macros

Wedding cake

$5

Jindalee QLD, Australia

11th Sep 2025

Create two tier wedding cake Vanilla and a chocolate bottom

Meal prep, cooking, tidying, laundry, folding and ironing

$25

Bella Vista NSW, Australia

11th Sep 2025

Housekeeping tasks such as Meal prep Tidying Laundry

Eggless birthday cake -bombers (afl)

$80

Banksia Beach QLD, Australia

11th Sep 2025

Needing a bombers (afl team) birthday cake made although guests have some allergies and one is eggs so the cake would need to be an eggless cake

Meal preparation

$300

Asquith NSW, Australia

10th Sep 2025

Meal preparation for 1 week for family 5 . Gluten and dairy free meals.

Meal preparation, washing and ironing

$60

Carlton North VIC, Australia

10th Sep 2025

We need a hand on Mondays for a few hours to do washing, ironing and simple meal preparation

Kitchen tidy up and meal prep

$100

Holmview QLD, Australia

4th Sep 2025

Heya! Just moved in, Looking for someone to come help me set up the kitchen, put all the groceries away, meal prep for an entire week and then come weekly onwards for a general tidy up (I’m the only occupier so it doesn’t get too messy) meal prep for the entire week from then onwards No meal preference: Just looking for calorie controlled high protein meals. Will supply all ingredients.

Gede turned up on time and cooked the most amazing food for my meal prep. He is an expert in multiple cuisines Japanese, Balinese and western . Will be using him for upcoming cooking jobs surely.

Weekly Meal Prep – 14 Meals (Weight-Gain Focus)

$150

Upper Coomera QLD, Australia

29th Aug 2025

TL;DR: Batch-cook 1 lunch + 1 dinner x 7 days in one session. Menu is locked: Sweet Soy Chicken + Steamed Rice and Spaghetti Bolognese. Portions generous. I’ll freeze/reheat. Goal: Total meals: 14 (7× lunches, 7× dinners) Cook frequency: Once per week (single prep/block) Style: Simple, tasty, repeatable. Ideally follow my usual recipes (I’ll share them), keep it consistent week to week. The menu (locked) Lunch (7x): Simple Sweet Soy Chicken + Steamed Jasmine Rice Target portion (guide): ~220–250g cooked chicken + ~300g cooked rice per meal Notes: classic sweet soy, mild/neutral (no heat), clean oil (olive/neutral) Dinner (7x): Simple Spaghetti Bolognese Target portion (guide): ~180–220g cooked beef bolognese + ~300g cooked pasta per meal Notes: onion/garlic/herbs/tomato base, nothing fancy; consistent texture Packaging & labelling Containers: 750–1000ml, microwave-safe, leakproof (you supply or I can) Labels: dish name, cook date Packed for freezer; rice and pasta not overcooked (so they survive reheat) Shopping & kitchen Groceries: You can shop with receipt (I reimburse) or I’ll pre-buy a list you provide Where to cook:Open to drop-off if you have a safe, clean setup Hygiene & reliability Current Food Safety/Food Handler cert preferred (let me know if you have one) Consistent results matter: same taste, same portions, same labelling each week Timing Aim for a consistent weekly slot (e.g., Mon or Tue mornings/afternoons) Budget Labour: Open to offers; as a guide $150–$220 for the cook session (negotiable based on experience) Groceries: reimbursed with receipt

Will be a recurring client, thank you very much Nicole and family!

Family Meal Plan

$10

Bassendean WA, Australia

27th Aug 2025

Meal Planning needed for Family of 5 in Bassendean.

Aime is AMAZING to work with. She made the whole task of meal planning, shopping, prepping, cooking, a breeze for our family of 5. Will 💯 work with her again! Thanks Aime!

House maid - Doing laundry and meal prep weekly

$200

Eastlakes NSW, Australia

27th Aug 2025

Hi We had a house maid who has now retired. We had them weekly. We DO NOT need cleaning just 1. Washing and folding of clothes ( no ironing ) 2. Meal prep weekly- we buy everything and you just need to cook and pack it. All can de done within a work day and at our place on Tuesdays Thursday or Fridays Open to discussion. Thank you

The best you can possibly ask for and very reliable. Efficient and will definitely be using again. Thank you Luna

Weekly Meal prep

$200

Newstead QLD, Australia

25th Aug 2025

10 basic meals chicken rice, mince sweet potato veg protein

Ahhhhmazing thankyou so much Georgia amazing job good looks fabulous and I can have my nights back not having to worry about what’s for dinner

Meal prep for the week

$150

Berrinba QLD, Australia

19th Aug 2025

3 dinners for 5 ppl the week.

Nicole has been nothing short of helpful. Meals are delicious. Very prompt with time & so easy To get along with.

Weekly chef for meal prep

$150

Brunswick VIC 3056, Australia

15th Aug 2025

Looking for a reliable cook to prepare healthy meals for the week every Sunday. I have a specific meal plan I need to follow — cooking for 1 person. I’ll give the meal plan to you. Preferably have it all done by Sunday night & packed up. Open to either: - You doing the grocery shopping (happy to pay extra for your time), or - I can supply all ingredients in advance Happy for you to cook in my kitchen or yours (and bring the meals over). I have a busy schedule and can’t cook every Sunday, so consistency is key.

Amazing work!! Amazing communication and food looks amazing

Meal Preparation

$80

Richmond VIC 3121, Australia

11th Aug 2025

Prepare some simple meals / snacks for our freezer. This will help our family get through our busy schedules. Cooked & Frozen - egg & vegetable breakfast tarts x 6 - egg & bacon & veg breakfast tarts x 6 - capsicum & onion sauce x 6 portions - wilted greens x 4 serves - chicken & veg soup - 6 serves Frozen Uncooked - Chicken & veg burgers x 6 We will supply the recipes. You supply the ingredients, cook and deliver to us in Richmond on Friday, or Blairgowrie on Weekend. But needs to be organic vegetables, high quality free range eggs and meat - we can reimburse the value of your receipts. The choice of ingredients is important to us. This suits someone with attention to detail, food hygiene, and timeliness. If it goes well, this will be a fortnightly repeat job. Price excludes ingredients, will reimburse you for the cost of these on top of the task price.

Connie was awesome. Clear communication, punctual, clean and asked questions when the details of the task weren't clear. Best of all our meals tasted great. 100% would hire again!

Looking to get an entertainer for a baby shower

$200

Ormond VIC, Australia

5th Aug 2025

As per my note, entertainment for mostly adults but a few kids at our baby shower

Hythem was awesome, so good at what he does and definitely added some thrills and excitement to our event. Highly recommend

Mud kitchen

$75

Morley WA 6062, Australia

27th Jul 2025

Mud kitchen pickup 5pm. Pickup doubleview. Drop off embelton/morley - View all the details of this offer: https://www.airtasker.com/offers/01K15Y8GGG1R6Z5RN596ZDXBS5

Thanks Tre. Legend. Did the job as requested. Great communication and very reliable. Will book again. Highly recommend

Barbie decorated birthday cupcakes

$5

Banks ACT 2906, Australia

23rd Jul 2025

Need approximately 8 large sized cupcakes, with Barbie decorations

Annette has such an attention to detail, pleasure to work with, I'd highly recommend!

Looking for a Cook/Meal Planner – Weekly Help

$150

Applecross WA 6153, Australia

16th Jul 2025

Hi! I'm trialing the idea of having someone come in once a week to help with meals and general kitchen upkeep. The main goal is to ensure I have access to good food and a well-stocked, functional kitchen. Here’s what I’m looking for: * Plan and prepare a meal based on what’s available in the kitchen * Use my phone and Uber to order groceries if needed, pick them up, and put them away * Refresh fruit supplies and toss out anything expired * Help maintain a stocked and organized fridge * Gradually reorganize the kitchen over time to make it more user-friendly There’s a friendly dog on the property—she might hang around, but if she’s in the way, we can keep her out of the kitchen during your visit. This is a flexible role and a bit of an experiment, so I’d love to hear from you if you’re open-minded, reliable, and enjoy helping create calm, functional spaces. Thanks!

Exceptionally quick and professional service.