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- Hawaii’s 2026 minimum wage is $16.00
- Hawaii’s tip credit has two limits
- Honolulu uses the statewide floor
- All covered hours must be paid
- Overtime generally begins after 40 hours
- Coverage and exemptions are fact-specific
- Enforcement and wage complaints
- Common questions about Hawaii minimum wage
- What is Hawaii’s minimum wage in 2026?
- When does Hawaii reach $18?
- Can a tipped worker be paid $14.75?
- Does Honolulu have a different general rate?
- Sources
Key Facts
- Hawaii state level: Hawaii’s minimum wage is $16.00 per hour beginning January 1, 2026.
- Hawaii state level: The scheduled statewide rate rises to $18.00 on January 1, 2028.
- Hawaii state level: A tip credit of up to $1.25 is allowed only when wages plus tips are at least $7.00 above the applicable minimum.
- Hawaii state level: Covered nonexempt employees generally receive time-and-a-half after 40 hours in a workweek.
- Hawaii state level: Chapter 387 contains employment exclusions and specialized overtime provisions, so coverage depends on the actual work.
- Hawaii and federal levels: When both systems cover a worker, the employer must satisfy the more protective applicable requirement.
Hawaii’s statewide minimum wage increased to $16.00 per hour on January 1, 2026. The rate applies on Oahu and the neighbor islands, including covered work in Honolulu, but coverage, tips, hours, and exemptions can change the calculation.
Hawaii’s 2026 minimum wage is $16.00
Hawaii Revised Statutes section 387-2 sets a phased schedule: $14.00 beginning in 2024, $16.00 beginning January 1, 2026, and $18.00 beginning January 1, 2028. The 2026 rate applies to work performed from January 1, 2026 through December 31, 2027.
The date of work controls. A paycheck issued in January can include December hours governed by the earlier rate.
Hawaii’s tip credit has two limits
Hawaii permits an employer to credit up to $1.25 per hour in tips against the minimum wage. That does not create an automatic $14.75 cash wage for every tipped worker.
The credit is allowed only when the employee’s wages and tips combined are at least $7.00 more than the applicable minimum. At a $16 minimum, combined wages and tips must therefore reach at least $23.00 per hour for the maximum $1.25 credit.
If the employee does not reach the required combined amount, the allowable credit shrinks or disappears. Employers need reliable tip and hour records for each affected period.
Honolulu uses the statewide floor
The Hawaii minimum-wage schedule is statewide and includes covered work in Honolulu. A contract, collective bargaining agreement, or public-works prevailing wage can require more than the general floor.
Readers can use the broader guide to wages and pay rules to understand how wage floors interact with promised pay and hours.
All covered hours must be paid
Minimum-wage compliance depends on both the rate and compensable time. Required opening, closing, training, meetings, or work performed outside a scheduled shift can affect the total.
Salary, commission, and piece-rate labels do not alone establish an exemption. Covered earnings must still satisfy the applicable floor for all hours.
Overtime generally begins after 40 hours
HRS section 387-3 generally requires one and one-half times the regular rate after 40 hours in a workweek. It also contains special calculations and limited provisions for particular seasonal processing work.
State and county public construction governed by Chapter 104 uses additional prevailing-wage and overtime rules, including overtime after eight hours a day and specified weekend and holiday work.
Coverage and exemptions are fact-specific
Chapter 387 defines employee and employer and excludes specified employment relationships. A job title or independent-contractor label does not by itself determine whether an exclusion applies.
Federal FLSA coverage is a separate inquiry. Federal law cannot prove the content of Hawaii’s $16 rate or tip-credit condition, while Hawaii law does not erase independent federal rights.
Enforcement and wage complaints
Hawaii’s Wage Standards Division accepts written complaints concerning minimum wage, overtime, unpaid wages, and illegal deductions. The division conducts a preliminary review of coverage, exemptions, and timeliness before investigation.
Records can include schedules, pay statements, time entries, tip reports, wage notices, and messages assigning off-clock work. Different wage statutes can have different filing deadlines.
Common questions about Hawaii minimum wage
What is Hawaii’s minimum wage in 2026?
It is $16.00 per hour beginning January 1, 2026.
When does Hawaii reach $18?
The statutory schedule sets $18.00 beginning January 1, 2028.
Can a tipped worker be paid $14.75?
Only if every tip-credit condition is satisfied, including combined wages and tips of at least $23.00 per hour at the 2026 rate.
Does Honolulu have a different general rate?
The $16.00 state minimum applies to covered Honolulu work; another applicable contract or prevailing-wage rule may require more.
