Florida’s minimum wage is bumping up again this year to reach $15 an hour, thanks to a constitutional amendment voters narrowly passed in 2020.
That will put Florida’s minimum wage more than double the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour, which has remained at that level since 2009 despite inflation and dramatic increases in the cost of living.
The amendment called for annual $1 increases in the minimum wage for tipped and non-tipped employees, spaced out to allow employers time to adjust and budget.
What is the current minimum wage in Florida?
Since Sept. 30, 2025, Florida’s minimum wage has been $14 an hour for non-tipped employees and $10.98 for tipped employees.
When does Florida’s minimum wage reach $15?
The minimum wage in Florida will go up another dollar on Sept. 30, 2026. Then it will be $15 an hour for non-tipped employees and $11.98 for tipped employees.
How did voters change Florida’s minimum wage?
In 2020, the minimum wage in Florida for non-tipped employees was $8.56. The wage had been gradually increasing in small increments, but it wasn’t keeping up with the state’s rising inflation.
Voters passed the “Fair Wage” constitutional amendment to increase the minimum wage to $10 in 2021, and then increase it again by $1 every year until the wage for non-tipped employees reached $15.
What happens to Florida’s minimum wage after 2026?
Once the minimum wage reaches $15 an hour, future increases are tied to inflation rather than fixed dollar amounts. That means the minimum can continue to rise over time as the cost of living changes, with annual adjustments meant to preserve the wage’s real purchasing power.
Starting in 2027, the new rate will be published on Sept. 30 each year and will go into effect on Jan. 1 the following year.
Does the minimum wage increase affect tipped workers in Florida?
Florida’s “Fair Wage” amendment also affects tipped staff.
Tipped employees must be paid the same minimum wage as untipped employees, but employers can count up to $3.02 per hour of the employee’s tips towards that amount. That’s the allowable tip credit established in the Fair Labor Standards Act of 2003.
So, the direct wage employers must pay tipped employees is the current state minimum wage, minus $3.02. The current minimum wage for tipped employees is $10.98 an hour, which will increase to $11.98 in September.
What is the federal minimum wage?
The federal minimum wage has been $7.25 an hour since 2009.
Most states, including Florida, have established higher minimum wages, and 22 states are raising theirs in 2026.
On Jan. 1, the minimum wage increased in 19 states and 49 cities and counties, with most of them hitting or exceeding $15 an hour for some or all employers, and some reaching at least $17 an hour in some areas, according to an annual report from the National Employment Law Project. Four more states (including Florida) and 22 local jurisdictions will raise their minimum wage later this year.
Florida’s minimum wage was first established in 2004 by another voter-approved amendment “to provide a decent and healthy life for them and their families, that protects their employers from unfair low-wage competition, and that does not force them to rely on taxpayer-funded public services in order to avoid economic hardship.”
Can you live on minimum wage in Florida?
The minimum wage is different from a living wage, which tries to calculate how much a person needs to earn per hour to afford the necessities such as housing, childcare, health care, food, etc., working full-time where they live.
According to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s living wage calculator, the living wage in Florida as of February 2026 is $24.09 an hour for one adult with no children, $39.87 for an adult with one child, $49.88 for an adult with two children, and $61.68 for an adult with three children.
C. A. Bridges is a journalist for the USA TODAY Network-Florida’s service journalism Connect team. You can get all of Florida’s best content directly in your inbox each weekday day by signing up for the free newsletter, Florida TODAY.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: What is the current minimum wage in Florida? Here’s when it hits $15
Reporting by C. A. Bridges, USA TODAY NETWORK – Florida / Tallahassee Democrat
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
