Maine Minimum Wage in 2026
Maine’s minimum wage is $15.10 an hour in 2026, $7.85 above the federal minimum of $7.25. It rises every January 1 with the cost of living in the Northeast (Maine Department of Labor; 26 M.R.S. sec. 664).
Key facts
- The rate rises to $15.70 on January 1, 2027, after a 4.1% rise in the cost-of-living index.
- Employers can count tips toward up to half the minimum, so the cash wage for tipped workers is $7.55.
- Maine voters set the current system in a 2016 ballot question that passed with 55.5%.
- About 8% of Maine’s hourly workers earned less than $15 in 2025, the Department of Labor reports.
- $15.10
- Maine minimum wage, 2026
- $15.70
- Maine minimum wage from January 1, 2027
- $31,408
- A full-time year at the 2026 rate, before taxes
At 2,080 hours a year, the 2026 rate pays $31,408 before taxes, $16,328 more than a full-time year at the federal minimum.
The Maine Minimum Wage in 2027
On September 18, 2026, the Maine Department of Labor announced that the minimum wage will rise to $15.70 an hour on January 1, 2027, an increase of $0.60. A full-time year at the 2027 rate pays $32,656 before taxes. The cash wage for tipped workers rises to $7.85 (Maine Department of Labor).
The same release sets the salary a worker must earn to be exempt from overtime pay at $905.79 a week, or $47,101.08 a year, starting January 1, 2027. Salary is only one of the tests; a worker’s duties also count.
How Maine’s Minimum Wage Rises Each Year
State law raises the minimum wage each January 1 by the past year’s increase in the cost of living, so it changes without a new vote. The law measures prices from August to August in the Consumer Price Index for urban wage earners in the Northeast and rounds the new wage to the nearest 5 cents. If the federal minimum ever rises above Maine’s, Maine’s rises to match (26 M.R.S. sec. 664, sub-sec. 1).
That system came from Question 4 in 2016, which raised the wage to $12 by 2020 and then tied it to prices. It passed 420,892 votes to 337,486 (Ballotpedia).
Maine minimum wage rates
Source: Maine Department of Labor, September 18, 2026
Tipped Workers in Maine
An employer may count tips toward no more than half of the minimum wage, and must make up the difference if a worker’s tips fall short. The employer has to tell the worker in advance how much of the wage it counts as tips, and tips belong to the worker (26 M.R.S. sec. 664, sub-sec. 2).
In 2027, a tipped worker must be paid at least $7.85 an hour in cash, and the cash wage plus tips must reach $15.70 over each workweek (Maine Department of Labor).
Maine Minimum Wage by Situation
Maine minimum wage rules for your situation
- Your employer must pay at least $7.55 an hour in cash in 2026, rising to $7.85 in 2027.
- If your tips plus that wage fall below the minimum over a workweek, your employer must pay the difference.
- Agricultural workers in Maine are covered by the state minimum wage under a 2025 law, the Department of Labor says.
- Keep your pay stubs and a record of your hours.
- Contact the Maine Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Standards.
Maine Minimum Wage Questions
What is the minimum wage in Maine?
$15.10 an hour in 2026. It rises to $15.70 on January 1, 2027.
What will the Maine minimum wage be in 2027?
$15.70 an hour from January 1, 2027, after a 4.1% rise in the cost-of-living index the law uses. The cash wage for tipped workers rises to $7.85.
What is the tipped minimum wage in Maine?
$7.55 an hour in cash in 2026. An employer can count tips toward no more than half the minimum wage, and must make up the difference if tips plus wages fall short over a workweek.
How does Maine raise its minimum wage each year?
Each January 1 it rises by the past year’s August-to-August increase in the Consumer Price Index for urban wage earners in the Northeast, rounded to the nearest 5 cents.
What You Can Do
- Check your pay stub against the $15.10 rate, or $7.55 in cash if you earn tips.
- Report unpaid wages to the Maine Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Standards.
- Compare other states on our minimum wage by state page.
- Vote on November 3. The governor and every seat in the Legislature are on the ballot. See our Maine governor race guide.