Foster City minimum wage 2026
The minimum wage in Foster City is $17.85 an hour in 2026, $0.95 above the California rate of $16.90. Foster City's citywide minimum is recent: it began on January 1, 2023, at $16.50. Since 2025 it has followed San Francisco-area inflation every January 1, capped at 3% a year, and San Mateo County has investigated violations since December 1, 2025.
Contents10 sections
At a glance
| Minimum wage now | $17.85 an hour, since January 1, 20261 |
|---|---|
| Next change | Any increase on January 1, 2027 is limited to 3%. |
| Tipped employees | $17.85, the full minimum wage before tips2 |
| Full-time pay | $714 a week, $37,128 a year at 40 hours a week before taxes · calculate for your hours |
| Enforced by | San Mateo County Office of Labor Standards and Enforcement, 1-866-870-7725 |
What to know about the Foster City minimum wage
Foster City's minimum wage is recent. The citywide rate started on January 1, 2023, at $16.50, and rose to $17.00 a year later under a fixed schedule.3 From 2025 the ordinance switched to inflation increases tied to the regional consumer price index, with a 3% annual cap, which produced $17.39 on January 1, 2025 and $17.85 on January 1, 2026.21
Coverage depends on a business presence in the city. Employers that pay the Foster City business license tax or keep a facility there owe the rate to anyone who works at least two hours a week in the city, minors included and regardless of immigration status.2 Tips and benefits cannot be used to offset it.
Enforcement has changed hands. The City of San Jose's Office of Equality Assurance handled Foster City cases until San Mateo County's Office of Labor Standards and Enforcement began investigating violations on December 1, 2025. The county runs a Labor Advice Hotline at 1-866-870-7725, and the City Manager Department still answers general questions. Employers must give every worker a written notice of rights at hire and post the city notice.2
Compared with California
When a local minimum wage, the state minimum wage and the federal minimum wage differ, the employer must pay the highest one that applies to the work. For most covered work in Foster City, that is the local rate, but some jobs have a higher statewide minimum (see below the table).
| Minimum wage | Next change | Per hour now |
|---|---|---|
| Foster City | Due January 1, 2027, amount not announced | $17.85 |
| California (state) | $17.40 on January 1, 2027 | $16.90 |
| Federal | None scheduled | $7.25 |
California also sets higher statewide minimums for some jobs, which apply in Foster City when they exceed the local rate: Fast food restaurant employees ($20.00); Health care: large systems, dialysis clinics and large-county facilities ($25.00); Health care: community, rural and intermittent clinics ($22.00); Health care: other covered facilities ($23.00); Health care: safety net hospitals and small-county facilities ($19.28). See the California page for the rules.
Tipped employees
| Tip credit | Not allowed: tips are on top of the full minimum wage |
|---|---|
| Minimum cash wage | $17.85 an hour2 |
Tips and other benefits cannot be used to offset the Foster City minimum.
How the rate changes
Since 2025 the rate has risen each January 1 with the regional (San Francisco area) Consumer Price Index, by no more than 3% a year. The $17.00 rate for 2024 came from a fixed schedule.
Rate history
Who is covered
Employers that pay the Foster City business license tax or have a facility in the city must pay the city rate to every adult or minor who works at least two hours a week in Foster City, regardless of immigration status.
- Employers must give every current and new worker a written notice of rights and the employer's name, address and phone number, and must post the city notice.
- Remedies include reinstatement, back wages and penalties, and retaliation is prohibited. Workers can also sue in civil court.
- Before San Mateo County took over, the City of San Jose Office of Equality Assurance enforced the Foster City ordinance.
- The City Manager Department answers questions at (650) 286-3220 or [email protected].
Other local rates in California
- Emeryville$20.34
- West Hollywood$20.25
- Mountain View$19.70
- Berkeley$19.61
- San Francisco$19.61
- Sunnyvale$19.50
- Richmond$19.18
- Belmont$18.95
- El Cerrito$18.82
- Cupertino$18.70
- Los Altos$18.70
- Palo Alto$18.70
- Santa Clara$18.70
- Redwood City$18.65
- San Mateo$18.60
- Pasadena$18.57
- Milpitas$18.50
- Los Angeles County (unincorporated areas)$18.47
- Santa Monica$18.47
- Sonoma$18.47
- San Jose$18.45
- Los Angeles$18.42
- Petaluma$18.31
- Santa Rosa$18.21
- South San Francisco$18.15
- Fremont$18.05
- San Mateo County (unincorporated areas)$17.95
- Half Moon Bay$17.91
- Malibu$17.91
- East Palo Alto$17.90
- Burlingame$17.86
- Hayward$17.79
- Alameda$17.76
- San Carlos$17.75
- San Diego$17.75
- Novato$17.73
- Menlo Park$17.55
- Daly City$17.50
- Oakland$17.34
Everywhere else in California, the state rate applies.
Get help or file a claim
If you are paid less than the minimum wage that applies to your job, you can file a wage claim with the agency below. Federal law prohibits firing or otherwise retaliating against a worker for complaining about federal minimum wage rights.
| Agency | San Mateo County Office of Labor Standards and Enforcement |
|---|---|
| Phone | 1-866-870-7725 |
| The law | City of Foster City Minimum Wage Ordinance |
| Federal | U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division, 1-866-487-9243 |
Sources
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