Illinois minimum wage 2026
The minimum wage in Illinois is $15.00 an hour in 2026. Illinois reached $15.00 through a 2019 law, Public Act 101-0001, that added $1 a year until the seventh and final step on January 1, 2025. The law has no inflation index, so any further increase needs a new act of the General Assembly.
Contents12 sections
At a glance
| Minimum wage now | $15.00 an hour, since January 1, 2025216 |
|---|---|
| Next change | No increase is scheduled: the January 1, 2025 raise was the last step of the 2019 law. |
| Tipped employees | $9.00 cash wage, tip credit up to $6.001739 |
| Overtime | 1.5 times the regular rate after 40 hours a week16 · details |
| Full-time pay | $600 a week, $31,200 a year at 40 hours a week before taxes · calculate for your hours |
| Enforced by | Illinois Department of Labor, Fair Labor Standards Division, (312) 793-2804 |
What to know about the Illinois minimum wage
The $15.00 figure is the end of a staircase built by Public Act 101-0001, the 2019 law that raised the Illinois wage by $1 each January. The final steps took it from $12.00 in 2022 to $13.00, then $14.00, then $15.00 on January 1, 2025.2 Because the law has no inflation clause, the rate has stayed put since, and further increases depend on the General Assembly; bills that would add indexing have been introduced but not enacted.
Teenagers are the group whose pay depends most on the fine print. A worker under 18 may be paid $13.00 in 2026, but the lower rate lasts only until that worker has put in 650 hours in the calendar year; after that the employer owes the adult rate for the rest of the year.9 Employers may also pay a new adult hire up to 50 cents less for the first 90 days, an option that is closed for day and temporary laborers. Tipped staff receive at least 60% of the minimum wage in cash, $9.00 in 2026.1
The Illinois Department of Labor's Fair Labor Standards Division handles unpaid-wage claims, which can be filed online or on printed forms available in English, Spanish and Polish, and it requires employers to display the state's workplace posters.1 The same office licenses lower rates for learners and workers with disabilities, a practice that ends for workers with disabilities on December 31, 2029. Chicago and Cook County workers should check their local rate, which is higher than the state's.
All 2026 rates
Adults get $15.00 in 2026. Workers under 18, new adult employees in their first 90 days and tipped employees may be paid less, under the rules below.
| Rate | Applies to | Per hour |
|---|---|---|
| Adults | Workers 18 and older, and workers under 18 after 650 hours of work in the calendar year | $15.00216 |
| Tipped cash wage | Employees who receive tips, when the employer takes the 40% tip credit | $9.00217 |
| Workers under 18 | Applies while the worker has worked fewer than 650 hours in the calendar year. After 650 hours, the adult rate applies for the rest of that year. | $13.00129 |
| New adult employees, first 90 days | Employers may pay up to 50 cents an hour below the adult rate during the first 90 consecutive calendar days of employment. This does not apply to day or temporary laborers, or to occasional or irregular jobs lasting 90 days or less. | See rule9 |
| Learners and workers with disabilities | Employers may obtain a license from the Illinois Department of Labor to pay a reduced rate, set license by license. The department will stop issuing and recognizing these licenses for workers with disabilities on December 31, 2029. | See rule1 |
Tipped employees
| Tip credit | Allowed |
|---|---|
| Minimum cash wage | $9.00 an hour1739 |
| Maximum tip credit | $6.00 an hour |
Employers may pay tipped employees 60% of the minimum wage, $9.00 an hour in 2026, and count tips toward the remaining $6.00.
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.
Overtime and salaried staff
| Weekly overtime | After 40 hours in a workweek, at 1.5 times the regular rate16 |
|---|---|
| Daily overtime | None in state law |
| Exempt salary | The federal level, $684 a week ($35,568 a year) |
Time and a half after 40 hours a week under the Illinois Minimum Wage Law, which covers employers of four or more employees, not counting the employer's family members.
Overtime at the minimum wage of $15.00 is $22.50 an hour. Salaried managers, administrators and professionals are exempt from overtime only if they meet the duties tests and are paid at least the exempt salary. See overtime rules in every state or calculate pay with overtime.
How the rate changes
The 2019 law raised the wage by $1 each year and stopped at $15.00 on January 1, 2025. Illinois does not adjust its minimum wage for inflation, so any further increase needs new legislation.
Indexed to inflation: no. Not indexed; the scheduled increases ended with $15.00 on January 1, 2025.1
Rate history
Who is covered
The Illinois Minimum Wage Law covers employers with four or more employees, not counting the employer's own family members. Covered employees earn overtime at one and a half times their regular rate after 40 hours in a week.
- Chicago and Cook County set their own, higher minimum wages. The Illinois Department of Labor directs Chicago workers to the city's rate.
- The Paid Leave for All Workers Act gives most Illinois workers outside Chicago and Cook County paid leave.
Local rates in Illinois
Illinois law does not bar local minimum wages. Home-rule units under Article VII, section 6 of the Illinois Constitution, including Chicago and Cook County, have adopted higher rates.
Places with their own rate
- Chicago$17.05
- Cook County$15.40
Each local page lists that place's tiers, next change and who is covered.
Largest cities in Illinois
- ChicagoLocal $17.05
Cities of Illinois among the 50 most populous in the US (U.S. Census Bureau, Vintage 2025 estimates for July 1, 2025). “Local” marks a city with its own minimum wage, “Regional” a state wage region, and “Federal rate” a city where the federal $7.25 is the rate that applies.
Neighboring states
If you live near a state line, the rate that applies is the one where you do the work, not where you live or where the employer is based.
| State | Per hour now |
|---|---|
| Missouri | $15.00 |
| Iowa | $7.25 |
| Indiana | $7.25 |
| Kentucky | $7.25 |
| Wisconsin | $7.25 |
Compare every state on the ranked list and map.
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 | Illinois Department of Labor, Fair Labor Standards Division |
|---|---|
| Phone | (312) 793-2804 |
| The law | Illinois Minimum Wage Law, 820 ILCS 105; 820 ILCS 105/4 (rates) |
| Federal | U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division, 1-866-487-9243 |
Sources
- 1 Illinois Department of Labor, Minimum Wage Law Checked Oct 9, 2026 · Back to text ↑
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- 6 U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division, State Minimum Wage Laws Checked Oct 9, 2026 · Back to text ↑
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- 9 Illinois General Assembly, 820 ILCS 105/4 (Minimum Wage Law, Sec. 4) Checked Oct 9, 2026 · Back to text ↑
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