Current Minimum Wage
District of Columbia minimum wage$18.40since July 1, 2026

State minimum wage

District of Columbia minimum wage

$18.40 an hour as of September 2, 2026. Tipped cash wage $10.30.

  • The District of Columbia minimum wage is $18.40 an hour, set by state law effective .
  • The next change is on : an indexed adjustment, amount to be announced.
  • Tipped employees must be paid at least $10.30 in cash, with a tip credit of up to $8.10.
  • At $18.40 an hour, full-time work (2,080 hours) pays $38,272 a year before taxes.

Tipped cash wage

$10.30
Tip credit up to $8.10

Youth / training

None
No student, youth or training sub-minimum wage appears in D.C. Code 32-1003 or the exemptions in 32-1004.

Next change

Indexed, TBA
· indexed-unannounced

Local rates

None found
Not applicable: the District is a single jurisdiction with no sub-local governments.

Scheduled increases in District of Columbia

July 1, 20271 jurisdiction
StateTBA
District of Columbiaindexed-unannounced · Annual CPI-U adjustment under D.C. Code 32-1003(a)(6); the Mayor must publish the new rate at least 30 days before it takes effect.
TBAindexed, amount to be announced
July 1, 20281 jurisdiction
StateTBA
District of Columbiastatute · Tipped cash wage rises from 56% to 60% of the standard minimum wage on 2028-07-01 (then 65% in 2030, 70% in 2032, 75% in 2034) under 32-1003(f) as...
TBAindexed, amount to be announced

Coverage, exemptions, and history

Who is covered. all workers regardless of employer size.

Tipped employees. From 2026-07-01 the tipped cash wage is 56% of the standard minimum wage ($10.30); if weekly-averaged tips plus cash wage fall short of $18.40 the employer pays the difference.

Indexing. Adjusted by CPI-U, Washington Metropolitan Statistical Area (annual average increase) on July 1 ; announced Mayor publishes in the D.C.

Recent history. Indexed increase from $17.95 to $18.40 on 2026-07-01; the tipped cash wage moved from a flat $10.00 (frozen since 2024-07-01) to 56% of the minimum ($10.30).

Initiative 82's original schedule to full parity was replaced in 2025 with a percentage schedule ending at 75% in 2034.

Statute. D.C.

Common questions

What is the minimum wage in District of Columbia?

$18.40 an hour as of September 2, 2026, under state law effective July 1, 2026.

When does the District of Columbia minimum wage go up next?

On July 1, 2027, by an indexed amount the agency will announce.

What is the tipped minimum wage in District of Columbia?

$10.30 in cash plus tips; the employer must make up any shortfall to $18.40.

Do any cities in District of Columbia have a higher minimum wage?

None were found in effect.

Sources

  1. https://does.dc.gov/service/office-wage-hour-compliance-0 official
  2. https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/minimum-wage/state official
  3. https://code.dccouncil.gov/us/dc/council/code/sections/32-1003 official
  4. https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/state/minimum-wage/tipped official
  5. https://code.dccouncil.gov/us/dc/council/code/sections/32-1004 official
  6. https://www.ncsl.org/labor-and-employment/state-minimum-wages

Checked 2026-09-02 against D.C; researcher confidence 0.90.