Colorado Minimum Wage: 2026 State and Local Rates

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Colorado minimum wage law does not produce a single rate for every hour worked anywhere in the state. The statewide rate supplies the starting point, but local wage ordinances can require more, tipped work has its own cash-wage calculation, and some jobs fall within exemptions or specialized rules. The rate that matters therefore depends on the year, where the work is physically performed, and whether the worker and employer are covered.

Colorado’s minimum wage is $15.16 in 2026

The general Colorado minimum wage is $15.16 per hour for 2026. Colorado adjusts the rate annually, so an older pay stub, poster, or online article may show a figure that no longer applies.

For covered employees, the minimum operates as an hourly floor even when the employer uses another pay method. Salary, commission, piece-rate, and other nonhourly arrangements still must produce at least the applicable minimum wage for all covered time worked.

This rule is distinct from overtime, paid-time, and break requirements. Colorado’s wage-and-hour system addresses those subjects separately, and a payment that satisfies minimum wage does not by itself establish compliance with every other pay rule. A broader explanation of wage-and-hour rules on work breaks can help distinguish these overlapping obligations.

Local minimum wages can be higher

Colorado law permits cities, towns, cities and counties, and counties to establish local minimum wages for qualifying work performed within their geographic boundaries. A local rate may exceed both the Colorado statewide rate and the federal minimum wage.

The Colorado Department of Labor and Employment lists four local systems for 2026:

• Denver: $19.29 per hour, or $16.27 with the standard tip credit.
• Edgewater: $18.17 per hour, with a $13.50 tipped cash wage under Edgewater’s 2026 tip-offset rule.
• City of Boulder: $16.82 per hour, or $13.80 with the standard tip credit.
• Unincorporated Boulder County: $16.82 per hour, or $13.80 with the standard tip credit.

These geographic labels matter. The Boulder County rate applies in unincorporated parts of the county, while the City of Boulder has its own ordinance. Work elsewhere in Colorado generally remains subject to the statewide figure unless another applicable local rule sets a higher rate.

Colorado’s local-wage statute focuses on work performed within the local jurisdiction. It also excludes time spent solely passing through a locality from a point outside it to another point outside it when there is no employment-related or commercial stop. This prevents ordinary transit from automatically converting every trip into locally covered work.

Tipped employees have a higher cash-wage floor than federal law

Colorado permits a limited tip credit for covered employees who regularly receive tips. In 2026, the statewide calculation generally allows an employer to pay a cash wage of $12.14 per hour and count up to $3.02 per hour in qualifying tips toward the $15.16 minimum.

The credit is not a license to cap total pay at the cash-wage amount. The employee’s cash wage plus qualifying tips must reach the full applicable minimum, and a higher local rule can change the numbers. Denver’s standard tipped cash wage is $16.27 in 2026, for example, while Edgewater uses a $13.50 tipped cash wage under its local 2026 offset.

A mandatory service charge is not necessarily a tip. Colorado’s poster distinguishes tips from service charges when describing the tip credit, so the label on a customer bill and the way money is distributed can affect whether an amount counts toward the credit.

Coverage depends on the work, not only the worker’s label

Colorado’s minimum-wage rules cover many employees, but they contain exemptions and specialized provisions. Executive, administrative, and professional employees can be exempt only when the applicable duties and pay requirements are satisfied. Certain agricultural, sales, computer, transportation, health, ski-industry, and other roles also may be subject to full or partial exceptions.

A job title alone does not establish an exemption. The governing rule examines the actual requirements of the exemption, and some categories include a salary or compensation threshold that changes over time.

The distinction between an employee and a genuine independent contractor also matters. Calling someone an independent contractor in an agreement does not by itself settle coverage when the practical working relationship shows employee status. Colorado’s labor division recognizes that a person seeking unpaid wages may raise misclassification as part of the coverage question.

Time worked is broader than scheduled shift time

Minimum wage is measured against compensable time, not merely the hours printed on a schedule. Colorado’s 2026 poster identifies required setup or cleanup, checking in or out, required security screening, receiving work information, waiting for tasks while on duty, and some employer-benefit travel as examples of time that may have to be paid.

Normal commuting and genuinely off-duty time on the premises are treated differently. The distinction turns on whether the time meets Colorado’s definition of work, including whether the employee is performing duties or is required to remain available for the employer’s benefit.

This is why an hourly rate above $15.16 does not always end the analysis. If compensable minutes are left out of the pay calculation, the effective hourly pay for all time worked can fall below the required minimum.

Federal law supplies another layer

The federal Fair Labor Standards Act establishes a national minimum wage for covered employment. When the FLSA and Colorado law both apply, federal guidance requires the higher standard to control. Because Colorado’s 2026 statewide rate is higher than the general federal rate, Colorado ordinarily supplies the more protective wage floor for jointly covered work in the state.

Federal and Colorado exemptions do not always match. A worker can be exempt under one system yet covered by the other, so the two coverage analyses remain separate. Local ordinances add a third layer for work performed in covered Colorado jurisdictions.

How the rate fits into a pay calculation

Consider a simplified example involving a nonexempt employee paid a weekly salary. Dividing the salary by the number of covered hours provides a starting hourly figure, but the calculation also must account for all compensable time and any overtime premium that applies. Describing the payment as a salary does not erase the hourly minimum.

A second example involves an employee who works at locations in Denver and elsewhere in Colorado during the same pay period. The local-wage question follows the hours worked within the covered locality rather than the employer’s mailing address alone. Accurate time and location records become important when more than one geographic rate applies.

These examples illustrate the structure rather than decide any individual pay dispute. Exemptions, collective bargaining provisions, industry rules, and the precise location and timing of work can change the calculation.

Colorado provides administrative and court enforcement routes

The Colorado Division of Labor Standards and Statistics may investigate qualifying complaints involving minimum wage, unpaid work time, overtime, and improper tip practices. Its administrative wage-claim authority generally covers claims of $7,500 or less and includes stated limits involving where the work occurred, the age of the claim, pending court cases, and particular categories of worker.

Colorado’s poster also identifies court proceedings as an enforcement route and prohibits retaliation or interference with protected wage rights. The available procedure, deadline, and remedy depend on the governing law and the facts rather than on the wage rate alone.

Frequently asked questions

What is the Colorado minimum wage right now?

Colorado’s statewide minimum wage is $15.16 per hour for 2026. A higher local rate applies when covered work is performed in a Colorado locality with its own minimum-wage ordinance.

What is Colorado’s tipped minimum wage in 2026?

The statewide cash-wage floor is generally $12.14 per hour when an employer validly applies the maximum $3.02 tip credit. Local tipped rates may be higher, and tips must bring total pay to the full applicable minimum.

Does Denver use the Colorado statewide rate?

Denver has a higher local rate. Its 2026 minimum is $19.29 per hour, with a standard tipped cash wage of $16.27.

Can a salaried employee receive less than minimum wage?

A covered salaried employee still must receive at least the applicable minimum wage for all covered hours. A valid exemption can change that result, but the salary label alone does not create one.

Does the federal minimum replace Colorado’s rate?

No. When both systems cover the work, the higher applicable standard governs. Colorado and local law can require more than the federal floor.

Sources

• Colorado Department of Labor and Employment annual state and local minimum-wage table
• 2026 Colorado Overtime and Minimum Pay Standards poster
• Colorado INFO #1 on the 2026 COMPS and PAY CALC Orders
• Colorado current labor rules and orders
• Colorado Revised Statutes section 29-1-1401 on local minimum-wage authority
• Colorado House Bill 19-1210 enrolled act on local minimum wages
• U.S. Department of Labor overview of the Fair Labor Standards Act
• Colorado Division of Labor Standards and Statistics authority and coverage