Los Angeles County (unincorporated areas) minimum wage 2026
The minimum wage in Los Angeles County (unincorporated areas) is $18.47 an hour in 2026, $1.57 above the California rate of $16.90. This rate applies only in unincorporated Los Angeles County, the communities outside any city's limits. It rises each July 1 with Los Angeles-area inflation, and the figure is usually announced in late December.
Contents10 sections
At a glance
| Minimum wage now | $18.47 an hour, since July 1, 202621 |
|---|---|
| Next change | The July 1, 2027 rate will be based on November 2026 inflation and is usually announced in December. |
| Tipped employees | $18.47, the full minimum wage before tips2 |
| Full-time pay | $739 a week, $38,418 a year at 40 hours a week before taxes · calculate for your hours |
| Enforced by | Los Angeles County Department of Consumer and Business Affairs, (800) 593-8222 |
What to know about the Los Angeles County (unincorporated areas) minimum wage
The first question for this rate is where the work takes place. The county minimum applies only in unincorporated areas, the parts of the county outside any city; inside an incorporated city, that city's own rate or the state rate applies instead.2 The Registrar-Recorder's precinct map lookup and a location guide from the Department of Consumer and Business Affairs show whether a given address is unincorporated.
The Board of Supervisors' Minimum Wage Ordinance dates from 2015 and set scheduled increases from July 2017 to July 2021.1 A separate, slower schedule for employers with 25 or fewer workers ended when both groups reached $15.00 on July 1, 2021. Since 2022 County Code Section 8.100.040 has tied the yearly increase to the November CPI-W for the Los Angeles area. The Chief Executive Officer's notice for fiscal year 2026-27 set a 3.7% increase, from $17.81 to $18.47 on July 1, 2026, after a 3.1% increase in 2025.1
The department's Office of Labor Equity enforces the ordinance. Employers must post the county notice and a supplemental posting, or hand copies to workers with no fixed workplace, and keep payroll records for four years. Workers can file complaints through the online portal or at [email protected].21
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 Los Angeles County (unincorporated areas), that is the local rate, but some jobs have a higher statewide minimum (see below the table).
| Minimum wage | Next change | Per hour now |
|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles County (unincorporated areas) | Due July 1, 2027, amount not announced | $18.47 |
| 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 Los Angeles County (unincorporated areas) 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 | $18.47 an hour2 |
California law bars tip credits, so tipped workers get the full county rate before tips.
How the rate changes
Under County Code Section 8.100.040 the rate changes every July 1. The County Chief Executive Officer sets the increase from the November CPI-W (Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers) for the Los Angeles area and usually announces it in late December; the July 1, 2026 increase was 3.7%.
Rate history
Who is covered
Anyone who works at least two hours in a week in unincorporated Los Angeles County must be paid the county rate for that time, whatever their residence, employment status or the location of the employer's headquarters. The county rate does not apply inside incorporated cities. Some workers are exempt; the Department of Consumer and Business Affairs decides exemptions case by case.
- To check whether a work address is unincorporated, use the County Registrar-Recorder's precinct map lookup or the department's location guide.
- Employers must post the county notice and supplemental posting, or give copies to workers with no fixed workplace, and keep payroll records for four years.
- The department also enforces county hotel worker protections, fair chance hiring and anti-retaliation rules in unincorporated areas; none of these sets a separate general minimum wage.
- Complaints can be filed through the department's online wage complaint portal, by email to [email protected] or by phone at (800) 593-8222.
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
- 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
- Foster City$17.85
- 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 | Los Angeles County Department of Consumer and Business Affairs |
|---|---|
| Phone | (800) 593-8222 |
| The law | Los Angeles County Code Chapter 8.100 (Minimum Wage Ordinance), Section 8.100.040 |
| Federal | U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division, 1-866-487-9243 |
Sources
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