Ohio Minimum Wage 2026
The minimum wage in Ohio is $10.95 per hour in 2026, effective January 1, 2026. Tipped employees can be paid a cash wage of $5.50 per hour, as long as tips bring them to the full minimum.
What is the minimum wage in Ohio in 2026?
The Ohio minimum wage is $10.95 per hour as of January 1, 2026, up from $10.70 in 2025. Ohio adjusts its rate every January under a 2006 constitutional amendment that ties the wage floor to inflation.
The state rate applies to employees of businesses grossing more than roughly $400,000 per year (the threshold itself adjusts annually). Employees of smaller businesses, and 14- and 15-year-olds, can be paid the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour.
Tipped minimum wage in Ohio
The tipped minimum wage in Ohio is $5.50 per hour in 2026. Ohio sets the tipped cash wage at half the full minimum wage, so it moves automatically with each January adjustment.
As everywhere, tips plus the cash wage must reach the full $10.95 per hour. Ohio employers must be able to show tip records if the state Department of Commerce asks, so keep point-of-sale tip data tied to payroll.
Ohio minimum wage history: 2020 to 2026
| Year | Minimum wage | Tipped wage |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $8.70 | $4.35 |
| 2021 | $8.80 | $4.40 |
| 2022 | $9.30 | $4.65 |
| 2023 | $10.10 | $5.05 |
| 2024 | $10.45 | $5.25 |
| 2025 | $10.70 | $5.35 |
| 2026 | $10.95 | $5.50 |
Upcoming minimum wage increases in Ohio
Ohio's minimum wage adjusts every January 1 based on the Consumer Price Index, with the new rate announced by the state each fall, typically by the end of September.
Campaigns to put a $15.00 minimum wage on the statewide ballot have been active in recent years and may return. If one qualifies and passes, it would override the CPI schedule, so multi-location employers should watch Ohio ballot news closely.
Minimum wage by city in Ohio
Ohio preempts local minimum wages, so Columbus, Cleveland, Cincinnati, and every other city follow the state rate. A 2016 state law blocked a planned Cleveland city minimum and removed local authority going forward.
The $10.95 rate is among the lower big-state minimums in 2026, and market wages in Ohio's metro areas typically run several dollars above it for most hourly roles.
State rate applies
State rate; 2016 local rate preempted
State rate applies
State rate applies
What Ohio employers need to know
Small business threshold
Businesses grossing under the annual receipts threshold (about $400,000, adjusted yearly) may pay the federal $7.25 rate instead of the state rate. Verify the current threshold each January.
Youth wage
Employees aged 14 and 15 may be paid the federal minimum of $7.25 per hour regardless of employer size.
Tipped employees
The tipped cash wage is half the state minimum ($5.50 in 2026). Track tips per pay period and make up any shortfall below $10.95.
Posting and records
Post Ohio's annual minimum wage poster (it changes every year with the new rate) and keep at least three years of payroll records.
How other states compare
See how Ohio's $10.95 rate stacks up against other state minimum wages in 2026, or browse the full minimum wage index for all 50 states.
Last verified:
Sources: the US Department of Labor's state minimum wage table and official announcements from the Ohio labor department. Minimum wage laws change frequently; confirm current rates with those sources or legal counsel before setting pay.
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