Richmond minimum wage 2026
The minimum wage in Richmond is $19.18 an hour in 2026, $2.28 above the California rate of $16.90. It rises to $19.61 on January 1, 2027. Richmond has applied one rate to every employer since a July 2017 amendment removed its small-business and nonprofit exemptions. The rate is indexed to Bay Area inflation, and the ordinance asks for each new figure by October 1.
Contents10 sections
At a glance
| Minimum wage now | $19.18 an hour, since January 1, 202612 |
|---|---|
| Next change | $19.61 on January 1, 2027 (announced)15 |
| Tipped employees | $19.18, the full minimum wage before tips4 |
| Full-time pay | $767 a week, $39,894 a year at 40 hours a week before taxes · calculate for your hours |
| Enforced by | City of Richmond Employment and Training Department, (510) 307-8011 |
What to know about the Richmond minimum wage
Richmond created its minimum wage in Ordinance 11-14 N.S. and rewrote it in Ordinance 15-17 N.S.; the law is Municipal Code Chapter 7.108.4 The rate started at $11.52 on January 1, 2016, rose to $12.30 in 2017 and $13.41 in 2018, and reached $15.00 on January 1, 2019.1 Since the July 2017 amendment, small businesses and nonprofits have had no exemption.
Annual increases follow the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) for San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose. The rate went from $17.77 in 2025 to $19.18 on January 1, 2026, a much larger step than in earlier years; the city's official notice confirms the $19.18 figure.2 The ordinance asks for each new rate by October 1 and for the bulletin and posting notice by December 1.1
One provision is unusual. An employer that pays at least $1.50 an hour per employee toward a qualifying medical plan may pay $1.50 less than the city rate, under department guidelines.4 The city's recent notices do not mention this option.
The Employment and Training Department (RichmondWORKS) runs the program from 330 25th Street, Richmond, and takes questions at 510-307-8011.1 Employers must post the annual city notice in a conspicuous place and keep payroll records for four years. Participants in the city's YouthWORKS summer program are outside the ordinance.
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 Richmond, that is the local rate, but some jobs have a higher statewide minimum (see below the table).
| Minimum wage | Next change | Per hour now |
|---|---|---|
| Richmond | $19.61 on January 1, 2027 | $19.18 |
| 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 Richmond 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 | $19.18 an hour4 |
Richmond's ordinance has no tip credit and state law bars one, so tips are paid on top of the full rate.
How the rate changes
Each January 1 the rate rises by the previous year's change in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) for San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose. The ordinance calls for the new rate to be announced by October 1, with the city bulletin and posting notice due by December 1.
Rate history
Who is covered
Adults and minors who work at least two hours in a calendar week in Richmond and are entitled to the state minimum wage are covered, including Welfare-to-Work participants. Workers exempt under state law, such as learners, and participants in the city's YouthWORKS summer program are excluded.
- A collective bargaining agreement can waive the ordinance only if it says so clearly.
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
- 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
- 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 Richmond Employment and Training Department |
|---|---|
| Phone | (510) 307-8011 |
| The law | Richmond Municipal Code Chapter 7.108 (Minimum Wage Ordinance); Ordinance 11-14 N.S., amended by Ordinance 15-17 N.S. |
| Federal | U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division, 1-866-487-9243 |
Sources
- 1 City of Richmond, Richmond's Minimum Wage Ordinance Checked Oct 9, 2026 · Back to text ↑
- 2
- 3
- 4 City of Richmond, Ordinance No. 15-17 N.S. amending Chapter 7.108 Checked Oct 9, 2026 · Back to text ↑
- 5 City of Richmond, Official Notice, Richmond Minimum Wage effective January 1, 2027 Checked Oct 28, 2026 · Back to text ↑
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