The Department of Commerce of Ohio has announced the 2026 minimum wage increase under the annual adjustment. If you are working in Ohio, you can find the new minimum wage rates effective from 01 January 2026 here.
Ohio Minimum Wage Increase 2026
Under the Ohio constitutional amendment passed in 2006 (II-34a), the state needs to increase the minimum wage every year in January based on the inflation rate. The minimum wage rate is connected to the Consumer Price Index for clerical workers and urban wage earners.
The Department of Commerce has announced the minimum wage boost for the next year based on the CPI-W index from 01 September 2024 to 31 August 2025. Based on the CPI-W, the authority has announced the following minimum wage for tipper and non-tipped employees:
- Non-Tipped employees: Minimum wage is increased from $10.70 to $11 per hour
- Tipped employees: Minimum wage boosted from $5.35 to $5.50 per hour.
The new rate is based on the 2.8% CPI-W increase from 2025. The state boost for the lowest wages is quite higher from the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per four. Along with the wage increase, the department also increased the threshold for the annual gross receipts of businesses.
Who can experience the increase in minimum wage?
As mentioned earlier, the department also increased the gross receipt of businesses with the minimum wage boost. The annual gross receipt of businesses decides if the minimum wage rate is applicable to your company or not.
You can check if your employer will follow the state and federal minimum wage rules, based on the following annual gross receipt:
- The businesses with annual gross receipt more than $405,000 a year will follow the Ohio state minimum wage rules. The authority has increased the annual gross receipt for businesses from $394,000 to $405,000 for 2026.
The businesses who meet annual gross receipt conditions must implement the change in the minimum wage rates from January 01, 2026 for both tipped or non-tipped employees. With the announcement, the department advised the employers to calculate the gross receipt and see what minimum wage they should follow.
What happens to those who work for businesses with receipts less than $405,000?
Now, businesses with a gross receipt less than $450,000, the employees will receive the minimum wage based on the federal rate. Also, if you are working for a small business or you are a younger worker of age 14 and 15 years old, the federal minimum wage will apply.
- If the business annual gross receipt is less than $405,000, you will receive the minimum wage based on the federal rules, that is $7.25 per hour.
The $7.25 per hour rate for the minimum wage has remained constant from July 2009 under the Fair Labor Standards Act, while state and local territories have increased the rates based on their requirement, demographic, and cost of living.
What is the Ohio Minimum wage increase exemption?
The Ohio minimum wage increase is not applicable to all employees just like federal minimum wage has some exceptions. Here you can check Ohio minimum wage increase exemption:
- If you are working for federal government, the boost is not for you;
- If you worked for a family-owned business or operated business, or the owner is your relative, the minimum wage system is not applicable.
- If you are working as a babysitter at the employer’s residence or living with someone to care for them, such as elderly, disabled person, or sick person as they can’t do their daily tasks.
- If you are working for camps or recreational areas for children of age under 18 and the area or camp must be managed by the non-profit organization or organizations group, you will be exempted from the minimum wage boost.
What was the Ohio Minimum wage increase over the years?
Since the constitutional amendment, the minimum wage in Ohio is been increasing, here you can check the boost of past five years:
| Year | Increasing Rate |
| 2021 | $8.80 |
| 2022 | $9.30 |
| 2023 | $10.10 |
| 2024 | $10.45 |
| 2025 | $10.70 |
With the constitutional amendment, the minimum wage in Ohio has been increasing , however as the boost depends on the inflation, it is not necessary it will always increase. If the inflation is negative or flat, the wage will not increase and it will remain the same.
The minimum wage for workers in Ohio will increase from 01 January 2026 to $11 per hour, so employees and employers both need to look if the increase applies to them.
Disclaimer: Ohio 2026 minimum wage details are informational; official rates are set by state authorities.