22 States Raising Their Minimum Wage in 2026 (As High As $17 Per Hour)

If you make the minimum wage — and live in the right place — you could be due for a pay raise this year.

In 22 U.S. states, the minimum wage is increasing in 2026, according to a roundup from Paycor, a company that creates human resources software.

Some of these states are gradually raising their minimum wage over a period of years with the goal of topping out at $15 an hour. Several other states already have a minimum wage that is at or above $15. Washington, D.C., has the highest minimum wage in the nation at $17.95, according to Paycor.

Other states do not have a $15 goal but are hiking their minimum wages nonetheless.

Here are the states that are raising their minimum wages in 2026, Paycor says. Each state is listed with its new minimum wage, followed by the 2025 rate in parentheses.

1. Alaska: $14, effective July 1, 2026 (up from $13)
2. Arizona: $15.15 (up from $14.70)
3. California: $16.90 (up from $16.50)
4. Colorado: $15.16 (up from $14.81)
5. Connecticut: $16.94 (up from $16.35)
6. Florida: $15, effective Sept. 30, 2026 (up from $14)
7. Hawaii: $16 (up from $14)
8. Maine: $15.10 (up from $14.65)
9. Michigan: $13.73 (up from $10.56)
10. Minnesota: $11.41 (up from $11.13)
11. Missouri: $15 (up from $13.75)
12. Montana: $10.85 (up from $10.55)
13. Nebraska: $15 (up from $13.50)
14. New Jersey: $15.92 for businesses with six or more employees and $14.23 for businesses with less than six employees (up from $15.49 and $13.73, respectively)
15. New York: $17 or $16, depending on the location (up from $16.50 or $15.50)
16. Ohio: $11 (up from $10.70)
17. Oregon: $14.05 to $16.30, depending on the location, which took effect July 1, 2025 (up from $13.70 to $15.95, which took effect July 1, 2024)
18. Rhode Island: $16 (up from $15)
19. South Dakota: $11.85 (up from $11.50)
20. Vermont: $14.42 (up from $14.01)
21. Virginia: $12.77 (up from $12.41)
22. Washington: $17.13 (up from $16.66)

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Paycor notes that some states have set out to reach a $15 minimum wage. The following states have passed legislation to reach that number in 2026:

• Arizona
• Colorado
• Florida
• Hawaii
• Maine
• Missouri
• Nebraska
• New Jersey
• Oregon

For more on what it takes to “get by” where you live, check out “Here’s the ‘Living Wage’ in Every State (and D.C.) in 2025.”