California cities with the highest minimum wage
Voters in the Golden State will have a chance next year to decide on raising the minimum wage to $18. Some cities in California are already there or higher.
In the United States, the minimum wage is $7.25 per hour, which has not changed since 2009. This marks the longest period without an increase since the base wage was created in 1938.
However, the current benchmark wage is not the same across the country, as 30 states, the District of Columbia, as well as several cities, including several in California, have adopted basic wage floor above the federal one.
States and some local governments can set their own laws regarding minimum wages. In some states with higher than federal minimum wages, certain cities and counties have adopted local ordinances that stipulate rates even higher than their state's minimum.
Some of these places have linked their increases to inflation so as not to affect purchasing power when consumer prices rise, while others have established automatic increases at the beginning of the year or in other months.
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Learn about the cities in California that have the highest minimum wage.
Several cities and counties in California have wages above the federal minimum, which range from $16 to just over $19. In addition, wages in several parts of California exceed the current state minimum of $15.50.
These are the 10 cities with the highest minimum wage in the Golden State, according to the Berkeley Labor Center:
- West Hollywood: $19.08 dollars per hour
- Emeryville: $18.67
- Mountain View: $18.15
- Berkeley: $18.07
- San Francisco: $18.07
- Sunnyvale: $17.95
- El Cerrito: $17.35
- Palo Alto: $17.25
- Cupertino: $17.20
- Los Altos: $17.20
California will raise minimum wage to $16 per hour in 2024
While these cities have higher reference wages than the state, California is preparing to increase the minimum wage to $16 per hour for all employers starting January 1, 2024.
Separately, California voters will consider a proposal on the November 2024 ballot to increase the statewide minimum wage to $18 per hour.
If a majority of Californians vote in favor of the initiative, the state minimum wage will increase to $18 in 2025 for large employers and 2026 for all employers in 2026. The rate would then be adjusted annually based on the cost of living.