Palo Alto minimum wage 2026
The minimum wage in Palo Alto is $18.70 an hour in 2026, $1.80 above the California rate of $16.90. It rises to $19.25 on January 1, 2027. Palo Alto's ordinance is enforced by a neighbor: the City of San Jose Office of Equality Assurance handles complaints under contract. The rate follows Bay Area inflation, with yearly increases capped at 5%, and it applies only to hours worked inside Palo Alto.
Contents10 sections
At a glance
| Minimum wage now | $18.70 an hour, since January 1, 20261 |
|---|---|
| Next change | $19.25 on January 1, 2027 (announced)1 |
| Tipped employees | $18.70, the full minimum wage before tips1 |
| Full-time pay | $748 a week, $38,896 a year at 40 hours a week before taxes · calculate for your hours |
| Enforced by | City of San Jose Office of Equality Assurance, (408) 535-8430 |
What to know about the Palo Alto minimum wage
Palo Alto's Local Minimum Wage Ordinance took effect January 1, 2016. Since January 1, 2020 the rate has moved each January with the Bay Area Consumer Price Index published by the U.S. Department of Labor, and no single increase may exceed 5%.1
The city does not run its own investigations. It contracts with the City of San Jose Office of Equality Assurance, so complaints go to the San Jose compliance officer at (408) 535-8430 or [email protected], while Palo Alto keeps a local contact at (650) 329-2671.1 The city can impose daily fines of $50 or seek a court order, and employees can bring their own civil action for back pay plus $50 daily penalties.1
Coverage depends on hours in the city: anyone who works two or more hours a week in Palo Alto is covered for those hours, regardless of residency or immigration status, and residential care facilities are included.1 Employers must post the official Palo Alto Wage Bulletin, available in English and Spanish, and keep payroll records for four years. Tips and fringe benefits cannot be credited toward the rate.1
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 Palo Alto, that is the local rate, but some jobs have a higher statewide minimum (see below the table).
| Minimum wage | Next change | Per hour now |
|---|---|---|
| Palo Alto | $19.25 on January 1, 2027 | $18.70 |
| 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 Palo Alto 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 | $18.70 an hour1 |
The city states that neither tips nor fringe benefits can be credited toward the Palo Alto minimum wage.
How the rate changes
The rate changes each January 1 by the Bay Area Consumer Price Index published by the U.S. Department of Labor. Since 2020 the yearly increase cannot exceed 5%.
Rate history
Who is covered
Anyone who works at least two hours in a week in Palo Alto is covered, full-time or part-time and at any age, for the hours worked in the city. Residential care facilities are included. The employer's parents, spouse, children and domestic partner are excluded, and the ordinance can be waived only in a bona fide collective bargaining agreement.
- The ordinance took effect January 1, 2016.
- Employers must post the city notice and keep payroll records for four years. The city can impose fines of $50 a day.
- Complaints go to the San Jose office at [email protected]. Palo Alto's own compliance contact is [email protected] or (650) 329-2671.
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
- 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
- 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 | City of San Jose Office of Equality Assurance |
|---|---|
| Phone | (408) 535-8430 |
| The law | Palo Alto Municipal Code - Minimum Wage Ordinance |
| Federal | U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division, 1-866-487-9243 |
Sources
- 1 City of Palo Alto, Minimum Wage Checked Oct 9, 2026 · Back to text ↑
- 2 City of Palo Alto, Minimum Wage Rate Change Effective January 1, 2023 Checked Oct 9, 2026 · Back to text ↑
- 3 City of Palo Alto, Palo Alto Minimum Wage Official Notice 2024 Checked Oct 9, 2026 · Back to text ↑
- 4 City of Palo Alto, Palo Alto Minimum Wage Official Notice 2025 Checked Oct 9, 2026 · Back to text ↑
Is a rate wrong or out of date? Report an error