Income/Wages
$15 Minimum Wage by State 2026
Standard Wage
$8
$10
$12
$14
$16
$18
$20
State | $15+ Current Min Wage↓ | Standard Wage 2026 | Additional Details | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Arizona | $15.15 | Effective January 1st, 2026, combined cash & tip minimum wage rate is $12.15 with maximum tip credit of $3.00. | |
 | California | $16.90 | The State minimum wage now applies to all employers (prior to January 1, 2023, there was a minimum wage for employers with 25 or less employees and 26 or more employees). However, many California cities and counties have varying minimum wages. | |
 | Colorado | $15.16 | Effective January 1st, 2026, combined cash & tip minimum wage rate is $15.16 with maximum tip credit of $3.02. | |
 | Connecticut | $16.94 | Effective 06-01-2023. Restaurant and hotel workers working a 7th consecutive day will have those hours treated as overtime.| Minors (Under 18) may be paid 85% of the minimum wage for their first 90 days of employment.| $6.38 - Tipped Wages for Wait Staff | $8.23 - Tipped Wages fo Bartenders | |
 | Delaware | $15 | Combined cash & tip minimum wage rate is $15.00 with maximum tip credit of $12.77. | |
 | District of Columbia | $17.95 | ||
 | Florida | $15 | Florida's minimum wage will increase by $1.00 each year until 2026 when it reaches $15.00 per hour. | |
 | Hawaii | $16 | Any employees that earn a guaranteed monthly compensation of $2,000 or more are exempt from minimum wage and overtime requirements.| Effective January 1, 2026, combined cash & tip minimum wage rate is $14.75 with maximum tip credit of $1.25. | |
 | Illinois | $15 | Combined cash & tip minimum wage rate is $15.00 with maximum tip credit of $6.00 (40% of the applicable minimum wage). | |
 | Maine | $15.10 | Effective January 1, 2026, combined cash & tip minimum wage rate is $15.10 with maximum tip credit of $7.55 (50% of the applicable minimum wage). | |
 | Maryland | $15 | Effective 01-01-2023. | |
 | Massachusetts | $15 | Effective 01-01-2023. | |
 | Missouri | $15 | Retail or Service businesses earning less than $500,000 a year are not covered by the state minimum.| Effective January 1, 2026, combined cash & tip minimum wage rate is $15.00 with maximum tip credit of $7.50 (50% of the applicable minimum wage). | |
 | Nebraska | $15 | ||
 | New Jersey | $15.92 | Effective January 1, 2026, combined cash & tip minimum wage rate is $15.92 with maximum tip credit of $9.87. | |
 | New York | $17 | ||
 | Rhode Island | $16 | Effective January 1, 2026, combined cash & tip minimum wage rate is $16.00 with maximum tip credit of $12.11. | |
 | Washington | $20.74 | ||
 | Alabama | $7.25 | ||
 | Alaska | $14 | Employers in Alaska that use an approved voluntary flexible work hour plan can schedule 10-hour days (40-hour weeks), and overtime pay would start after 10 hours per day instead of after 8. | Additionally, employers with fewer than 4 employees are not subject to daily or weekly overtime pay requirements. | |
 | Arkansas | $11 | Drops to $7.25 for employers with fewer than 4 employees. | Combined cash & tip minimum wage rate is $11.00 with maximum tip credit of $8.37. | |
 | Georgia | $7.25 | Same as federal minimum, but drops top $5.15 for some limited FLSA exceptions. | |
 | Idaho | $7.25 | Combined cash & tip minimum wage rate is $7.25 with maximum tip credit of $3.90 | |
 | Indiana | $7.25 | ||
 | Iowa | $7.25 | Combined cash & tip minimum wage rate is $7.25 with maximum tip credit of $2.90 (40% of the applicable minimum wage). | |
 | Kansas | $7.25 | ||
 | Kentucky | $7.25 | ||
 | Louisiana | $7.25 | ||
 | Michigan | $13.73 | Minimum wage for tipped employees is 38% of the applicable minimum wage through December 31, 2025. Starting January 1, 2026, minimum wage for tipped employees is 40% of the minimum hourly wage. | |
 | Minnesota | $11.41 | Effective January 1, 2026, a training wage rate of $9.31 (up from $9.08 in 2025) may be paid to employees less than 20 years old during the first 90 days of employment. | |
 | Mississippi | $7.25 | Businesses that are not covered by the FLSA with gross annual sales of $110,000 or less are subject to a minimum wage of $4.00 per hour. | |
 | Montana | $10.85 | Businesses that are not covered by the FLSA with gross annual sales of $110,000 or less are subject to a minimum wage of $4.00 per hour. | |
 | Nevada | $12 | Starting July 1, 2024, a uniform minimum wage of $12.00 per hour for all employees is applicable. | |
 | New Hampshire | $7.25 | Tipped wages are 55% of the applicable minimum wage. | Combined cash & tip minimum wage rate is $7.25 with maximum tip credit of $3.98 (45% of the applicable minimum wage). | |
 | New Mexico | $12 | Effective 01-01-2023. | |
 | North Carolina | $7.25 | ||
 | North Dakota | $7.25 | ||
 | Ohio | $11 | Employers with gross revenue or receipts of $394,000 or less are permitted to pay employees the federal minimum wage. | |
 | Oklahoma | $7.25 | Same as federal minimum for employers with 10 or more full-time same-location employees or gross receipts of more than 100k per year. All other employees are subject to a minimum wage of $2.00, except those covered by FLSA, who are subject to federal minimum wage. | |
 | Oregon | $14.70 | $14.20/$13.50 standard, rises to $15.45/$14.75 in Portland and drops to $13.20/$12.50 in non-urban counties as of 07-01-2023. Rises each July based upon the increase, if any, to the US City average Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers. | |
 | Pennsylvania | $7.25 | Combined cash & tip minimum wage rate is $7.25 with maximum tip credit of $4.42. | |
 | South Carolina | $7.25 | ||
 | South Dakota | $11.85 | Effective January 1, 2026, combined cash & tip minimum wage rate is $11.85 with maximum tip credit of $5.925 (50% of the applicable minimum wage). | |
 | Tennessee | $7.25 | ||
 | Texas | $7.25 | With specified restrictions, employers may count tips and the value of meals and lodging toward the minimum wage | |
 | Utah | $7.25 | ||
 | Vermont | $14.42 | Employers with 2 or more employees qualify for overtime, except for some industry-specific exemptions. | |
 | Virginia | $12.77 | ||
 | West Virginia | $8.75 | Combined cash & tip minimum wage rate is $8.75 with maximum tip credit of $6.13 (70% of the applicable minimum wage). | |
 | Wisconsin | $7.25 | ||
 | Wyoming | $7.25 | ||
 | United States | $11.59 |
The minimum wage is the lowest hourly wage an employer can pay an employee for labor. The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) of 1938 set the first federal minimum wage in the U.S. at $0.25 per hour. Since then, the federal minimum wage has increased 22 times. The most recent federal minimum wage increase was in 2009, bringing the minimum wage to $7.25.
The current Federal Minimum Wage in the United States is $7.25 per hour, according to the Fair Labor Standards Act. However, thirty states and the District of Columbia have increased their minimum wage above the federal minimum of $7.25. Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Tennessee have not adopted a state minimum wage. If the state, county, or city minimum wage is mandated higher than the federal wage, employers must pay their workers the greater of the two amounts.
Minimum Wage by State
The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) has a minimum wage table with each state’s minimum wage. According to the NCSL, 21 states began 2021 with higher minimum wages, and five raised their minimum wages later in the year. Nine states (Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Maine, Minnesota, Montana, Ohio, South Dakota, and Washington) increased their minimum wages based on the cost of living while 17 states increased their minimum wages as a result of previously passed legislation.
Some states have two minimum wages depending on specified employment conditions. In Nevada, the minimum wage for an employee who receives health benefits is $9.50 while the minimum wage for employees who do not seek health benefits is $10.50. Montana has a $4.00 minimum wage for businesses with annual gross sales of $110,000 or less; all other businesses must pay $9.20. Ohio also allows a lower minimum wage for businesses grossing $299,000 or less.
Additionally, some states have different minimum wages for tipped workers vs. non-tipped workers. In some states, the minimum wage for tipped workers can be as low as $2.13 per hour. Some states require that tipped employees are paid the state’s minimum wage for non-tipped employees.
Eleven states and the District of Columbia (Nevada, Minnesota, California, Washington, Oregon, Arizona, Maine, Vermont, Alaska, South Dakota, and Montana) have minimum wages that automatically adjust annually. Five more states (Colorado, Connecticut, Missouri, New Jersey, and Florida) plan to add an annual adjustment.
States With a $15 Minimum Wage
Several states are currently in the process of automatically increasing their minimum wage annually to eventually reach $15 over a set period. Currently, only California($15.00), Massachusetts ($15.00), and the District of Columbia ($15.20) have at least a $15 minimum wage. There are more states that have voted to approve a $15 minimum wage.
In Massachusetts, the minimum wage rose from $14.25 to $15 in January 2023. Connecticut will follow in June 2023 with a raise increase from $14.00 to $15.00. New York currently has a $13.20 minimum wage and it will increase to $15.00 with annual adjustments for inflation.
New Jersey’s minimum wage rose to $14.00 on January 1, 2023, and will raise to $15.00 on January 1, 2024. Maryland will follow a similar trajectory from $13.25 to $14 and finally $15.00 on January 1, 2025. Illinois and Delaware will reach the $15.00 minimum wage on January 1, 2025, as well. Nebraska’s and Florida’s $15.00 minimum wage will be reached in 2026 with small increases to reach that point.
