Howard County minimum wage 2026
The minimum wage in Howard County is $16.00 an hour in 2026, $1.00 above the Maryland rate of $15.00. It rises to $16.45 on January 1, 2027. Howard County's wage comes from Council Bill 82-2021, which phased in $16.00 on separate schedules for larger and smaller employers. Since July 1, 2026 both groups pay the same $16.00, and the state Department of Labor, not the county, investigates complaints.
Contents11 sections
At a glance
| Minimum wage now | $16.00 an hour, since January 1, 202512 |
|---|---|
| Next change | $16.45 on January 1, 2027 (announced)1 |
| Tipped employees | $3.63 cash wage, tip credit up to $12.3714 |
| Full-time pay | $640 a week, $33,280 a year at 40 hours a week before taxes · calculate for your hours |
| Enforced by | Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Labor and Industry - Employment Standards Service, 410-767-2357 |
What to know about the Howard County minimum wage
Howard County set its own wage with Council Bill 82-2021, signed on December 13, 2021.1 The first step, on April 1, 2022, was $14.00 for larger employers and $12.50 for small ones; larger employers then reached $15.00 on January 1, 2023 and $16.00 on January 1, 2025.21
The small-employer group is wider than the name suggests. Besides businesses with 14 or fewer employees, it takes in 501(c)(3) nonprofits, home care providers that get at least 75% of their revenue from Medicaid, and every restaurant or other food service business regardless of size.1 Their schedule was overtaken by state law: Maryland's $15.00 minimum from January 1, 2024 replaced the county's planned $14.00 and $14.75. The group then rose to $15.50 on January 1, 2026 and to $16.00 on July 1, 2026, ending the two-tier system.14
Complaints are handled by the state rather than a county office. The Maryland Department of Labor's Employment Standards Service enforces the county law, and employers must display the state's Howard County poster.34
The county says increases tied to the CPI-U begin in January 2027, and the council must review the wage every four years.1
All 2026 rates
Until July 1, 2026 the county had two schedules. Larger employers reached $16.00 on January 1, 2025. Small employers, a group that includes businesses with 14 or fewer employees, 501(c)(3) nonprofits, Medicaid-funded home care providers and restaurants and other food service businesses of any size, followed a slower schedule and caught up on July 1, 2026. Workers under 18 may be paid 85% of the county rate.
| Rate | Applies to | Per hour |
|---|---|---|
| Employers with 15 or more employees | Employers that are not small employers, including Howard County Government and the public school system$16.45 from January 1, 20271 | $16.0012 |
| Small employers, nonprofits and food service | Employers with 14 or fewer employees, 501(c)(3) nonprofits, Medicaid-funded home care providers and food service businesses of any size; same rate as other employers since July 1, 2026$16.45 from January 1, 20271 | $16.00134 |
| Workers under 18 | Employers may pay workers under 18 85% of the county minimum wage. | See rule1 |
| Howard County Government employees | The county paid its own employees $15.00 from July 1, 2022 and $16.00 from July 1, 2024, ahead of the private-sector schedule. | $16.001 |
Compared with Maryland
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 Howard County, that is the local rate.
| Minimum wage | Next change | Per hour now |
|---|---|---|
| Howard County | $16.45 on January 1, 2027 | $16.00 |
| Maryland (state) | None scheduled | $15.00 |
| Federal | None scheduled | $7.25 |
Tipped employees
| Tip credit | Allowed |
|---|---|
| Minimum cash wage | $3.63 an hour14 |
| Maximum tip credit | $12.37 an hour |
Workers who usually get more than $30 a month in tips, have been told about the tip credit and keep all their tips may be paid $3.63 an hour in cash in 2026, as long as tips bring them to the $16.00 county rate. Restaurants that rely on tips must give a tip credit wage statement each pay period.
An employer that takes a tip credit must make up the difference whenever wages plus tips fall short of the full minimum wage for the workweek. See the tipped minimum wage guide.
How the rate changes
The fixed schedule in Council Bill 82-2021 ended at $16.00 for all employers on July 1, 2026. The county says later increases follow the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) starting in January 2027, and the County Council must review the wage every four years, in the year after a council election.
Rate history
Who is covered
Covers employees working in Howard County for an employer doing business there with at least one employee besides the owners, including Howard County Government and the public school system but not the federal, state or other local governments. Workers under 16 working no more than 20 hours a week, the employer's immediate family, nonprofit volunteers, certain hand-harvest farm workers and non-administrative camp staff are excluded.
- Small employers' schedule originally called for $14.00 in 2024 and $14.75 in 2025, but the state's $15.00 minimum, in effect for all employers from January 1, 2024, overrode both.
- Howard County Government moved its own workers ahead of the schedule: $15.00 from July 1, 2022 and $16.00 from July 1, 2024.
- Complaints go to the Maryland Department of Labor's Employment Standards Service in Hunt Valley (410-767-2357), which enforces the county law.
- Employers must physically post the state's Howard County minimum wage poster, which lists overtime at $24.00 an hour for workers paid the $16.00 rate in effect since July 1, 2026.
Other local rates in Maryland
- Montgomery County$18.00
- Prince George's County$15.30
Everywhere else in Maryland, 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 | Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Labor and Industry - Employment Standards Service |
|---|---|
| Phone | 410-767-2357 |
| The law | Howard County Council Bill No. 82-2021 (signed 2021-12-13); Howard County Code Title 12, Subtitle 22 (Minimum Wage) |
| Federal | U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division, 1-866-487-9243 |
Sources
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
Is a rate wrong or out of date? Report an error