Saint Paul minimum wage 2026
The minimum wage in Saint Paul is $16.37 an hour in 2026 (Macro businesses and the City), $4.96 above the Minnesota rate of $11.41. It rises to $17.02 on January 1, 2027. Saint Paul's 2018 ordinance sets four rates by business size, counting all employees, not only those in the city. Macro and large businesses change rates each January 1, small and micro businesses each July 1, and micro businesses (five or fewer employees) reach $15.00 on July 1, 2027.
Contents11 sections
At a glance
| Minimum wage now | $16.37 an hour (Macro businesses and the City), since January 1, 202613 |
|---|---|
| Next change | $17.02 on January 1, 2027 (announced)2 |
| Tipped employees | $16.37, the full minimum wage before tips1 |
| Full-time pay | $655 a week, $34,050 a year at 40 hours a week before taxes · calculate for your hours |
| Enforced by | Saint Paul Department of Human Rights & Equal Economic Opportunity, 651-266-8966 |
What to know about the Saint Paul minimum wage
Saint Paul's Minimum Wage Ordinance, signed in 2018, did not raise every employer to $15.00 at once. It set four phase-ins, by business size. The largest employers and the City itself reached $15.00 on July 1, 2022; businesses with 101 to 10,000 employees followed on July 1, 2023, and those with 6 to 100 on July 1, 2025. Micro businesses with five or fewer employees get there last, on July 1, 2027.1
Once a group reaches its target, its rate is indexed to the inflation percentage Minnesota's Department of Labor and Industry calculates for the state wage.1 The groups also keep different calendars: macro and large rates change on January 1, small and micro rates on July 1. The result is that small businesses match the large-business rate only six months later, $16.37 from July 1, 2026 and $17.02 from July 1, 2027, while large businesses reach $17.02 on January 1, 2027.32
Size depends on all employees, not just those in Saint Paul, so a five-person shop that belongs to a larger business is not a micro business. Workers aged 14 to 17 may be paid 85% of the small-business rate, $13.95 from July 1, 2026, for their first 90 days. Tips and health benefit payments never count toward the wage.1
The Labor Standards Division of the Department of Human Rights and Equal Economic Opportunity enforces the ordinance and the city's sick and safe time and wage theft rules, which share one required workplace poster.1
All 2026 rates
Business size decides the rate. Macro businesses (more than 10,000 employees, plus the City of Saint Paul) and large businesses (101 to 10,000) pay $16.37 from January 1, 2026 and $17.02 from January 1, 2027. Small businesses (6 to 100) pay $16.37 from July 1, 2026 and $17.02 from July 1, 2027, six months behind. Micro businesses (5 or fewer) pay $14.25 from July 1, 2026 and $15.00 from July 1, 2027.
Size counts every employee, including those outside Saint Paul, usually by the average weekly headcount in the prior calendar year. Restaurants with fewer than 10 locations have a special counting rule, and related businesses run as one enterprise count as one employer.
| Rate | Applies to | Per hour |
|---|---|---|
| Macro businesses and the City | More than 10,000 employees, and the City of Saint Paul as employer$17.02 from January 1, 20272 | $16.3713 |
| Large businesses | 101 to 10,000 employees$17.02 from January 1, 20272 | $16.3713 |
| Small businesses | 6 to 100 employees$17.02 from July 1, 20272 | $16.3713 |
| Micro businesses | 5 or fewer employees$15.00 from July 1, 202721 | $14.2513 |
| Youth workers aged 14 to 17, first 90 days | From July 1, 2026, at least 85% of the small-business rate, rounded up to the nearest nickel, for 90 consecutive days from hire; the full applicable rate after that or from the worker's 18th birthday | $13.951 |
| Workers under 20 in city-approved youth training or apprenticeship programs | At least 85% of the small-business rate, rounded up to the nearest nickel | See rule1 |
Compared with Minnesota
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 Saint Paul, that is the local rate.
| Minimum wage | Next change | Per hour now |
|---|---|---|
| Saint Paul | $17.02 on January 1, 2027 | $16.37 |
| Minnesota (state) | $11.87 on January 1, 2027 | $11.41 |
| Federal | None scheduled | $7.25 |
Tipped employees
| Tip credit | Not allowed: tips are on top of the full minimum wage |
|---|---|
| Minimum cash wage | $16.37 an hour1 |
Tips and employer payments toward medical benefits do not count as wages, so tipped workers are owed the full rate for their employer's size before tips.
How the rate changes
Once each size group reached its phase-in target, its rate rises every year by the inflation percentage calculated by the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry under Minnesota Statutes section 177.24, rounded to the nearest cent. Macro and large rates change on January 1, small and micro rates on July 1; micro businesses are indexed after reaching $15.00 on July 1, 2027.
The city announced the 2027 rates in advance: $17.02 for macro and large businesses from January 1, 2027; small businesses stay at $16.37 until June 30, 2027 and micro businesses at $14.25, before rising to $17.02 and $15.00 on July 1, 2027.
Rate history
Who is covered
All hours worked within Saint Paul city limits by full-time, part-time and temporary employees, regardless of immigration status. Independent contractors are not covered.
- The Minimum Wage Ordinance was signed in 2018. Macro businesses and the City reached $15.00 on July 1, 2022, large businesses on July 1, 2023 and small businesses on July 1, 2025; micro businesses reach $15.00 on July 1, 2027.
- Employers must post the city's Earned Sick and Safe Time, Minimum Wage and Wage Theft poster, digitally for remote staff, and include the information in employee handbooks.
- The Labor Standards Division of the Department of Human Rights and Equal Economic Opportunity is in Office 280 of City Hall, 15 W. Kellogg Blvd., and can be reached at 651-266-8966 or [email protected].
Other local rates in Minnesota
- Minneapolis$16.37
Everywhere else in Minnesota, 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 | Saint Paul Department of Human Rights & Equal Economic Opportunity |
|---|---|
| Phone | 651-266-8966 |
| The law | Saint Paul Legislative Code Chapter 233, Minimum Wage Ordinance (2018), and HREEO administrative rules |
| Federal | U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division, 1-866-487-9243 |
Sources
- 1
- 2 City of Saint Paul, Announcing City of Saint Paul Minimum Wage Rates for 2027 Checked Oct 9, 2026 · Back to text ↑
- 3
- 4 City of Saint Paul, Saint Paul 2025 Minimum Wage Increases Checked Oct 9, 2026 · Back to text ↑
- 5 City of Saint Paul, Updates: Minimum wage increases take effect July 1, 2024 Checked Oct 9, 2026
- 6 City of Saint Paul, HREEO releases 2023 minimum wage rate Checked Oct 9, 2026 · Back to text ↑
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