Neither New York nor California: these are the highest minimum wages by state with the future hike enacted in 2025
A total of 21 US states will increase the minimum wage rate this year with others to follow. The move comes after years of stagnation.
Following years of stagnation with the federal minimum wage rate frozen at $7.25/hour since 2009, more than half of all US states are set to increase their effective minimum wage rate in 2025.
Today, 30 states along with Washington D.C. have an effective minimum wage that is higher than the federal minimum wage, while seven do not have a minimum wage law at all, or pay below the federal rate (Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Wyoming).
Which US states will raise the minimum wage in 2025?
A total of 21 US states will raise the minimum wage rate this year to compensate for inflation-adjusted increases with others set to follow.
The hike will affect over 9 million workers, according to the latest figures by the Economic Policy Institute (EPI).
Washington, which offers workers a minimum hourly rate from $16.66 to $21.10, becomes the state with the highest minimum wage - note that Seattle, SeaTac, Renton, and Tukwila have higher minimum wage ranges than the state minimum.
Minimum wage rate rises in US states from January 2025
- Alaska: $11.91
- Arizona: $11.00
- California: $16.50
- Colorado: $14.81
- Connecticut: $16.35
- Delaware: $15.00
- Illinois: $15.00
- Maine: $14.65
- Michigan: $10.56
- Minnesota: $10.13
- Missouri: $13.75
- Montana: $10.55
- Nebraska: $13.50
- New Jersey: $15.49
- New York: $16.50
- Ohio: $10.70
- Rhode Island: $15.00
- South Dakota: $11.50
- Vermont: $14.01
- Virginia: $12.41
- Washington: $16.66
Next are California and New York, whose rates rise to $16.50. The small employer rate in Hayward and Novato is $16.50 but overall, most Californian cities are over $17/hour with West Hollywood’s minimum at $19.65.
Delaware is the state to implement the largest increase, raising its minimum hourly wage by $1.75. Four other states: Illinois, Missouri, Nebraska and Rhode Island, have raised their minimum wages by at least $1 per hour.
The increases bring the wage floor to $15/hour or more in 10 states, including Delaware, Illinois and Rhode Island.
Which US states will not see an increase to the minimum wage?
Many of the southern states will not see a pay rise at all - the federal minimum remains in place in: Iowa, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, North Carolina, North Dakota, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah and Wisconsin.
The last federal minimum wage hike took place in July 2009, when Congress raised the pay floor from $6.55/hour to its current level, $7.25/hour.
Since then, the federal minimum wage rate has remained stagnant for almost 16 years - the longest period without an increase in history.
When adjusted for inflation, the federal minimum wage stands at its lowest level since February 1956.
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