Seattle, WA Employment Preemption: Minimum Wage Preemption (2026)
Key Facts
- 2026 minimum wage
- $21.30
- 2027 minimum wage
- $22.14, starting January 1, 2027
- Ordinance in effect since
- April 1, 2015
- Annual adjustment
- Every January 1, tied to the Seattle-area CPI-W
- Employer size
- Same rate for all employers since January 1, 2025
- Tips and medical plan credit
- Small employers can no longer count them toward the wage
- Enforcing office
- Office of Labor Standards, (206) 256-5297
Summary
Seattle sets its own minimum wage under Seattle Municipal Code 14.19, and the 2026 rate is $21.30 for every employer, whatever the size of its schedule. The rate rises on January 1 of each year and moves to $22.14 on January 1, 2027. The Office of Labor Standards administers the ordinance, which has been in effect since April 1, 2015.
Seattle's Minimum Wage Ordinance went into effect on April 1, 2015. The Minimum Wage Ordinance sets the minimum wage for employees working within city limits. The minimum wage increases every year on January 1. ... Starting January 1, 2025, all employers, regardless of schedule size, will be required to pay the same minimum wage. Small employers will no longer be able to count tip and/or payments toward an employee's medical benefit plan toward an employee's minimum compensation requirements under Seattle's Minimum Wage Ordinance. The minimum wage rates for the 2026 and 2027 calendar years are set forth in the table below. ... 2026 Minimum Wage $21.30 ... 2027 Minimum Wage $22.14 ... OLS announces the upcoming year's minimum wage increase by the Fall of each year. The minimum wage will increase to reflect the rate of inflation, based on the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue Area Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W).
Full Breakdown
The Minimum Wage Ordinance, codified at SMC 14.19 with implementing rules in SHRR Chapter 90, went into effect on April 1, 2015. It sets the minimum wage for employees working within city limits, so the rate attaches to work performed inside Seattle.
The rate is $21.30 for calendar year 2026. The city has already published the 2027 rate, $22.14, which takes over on January 1, 2027. Both figures appear in one table on the Office of Labor Standards (OLS) minimum wage page. Because the ordinance raises the wage every year on January 1, no posted number stays current for more than one calendar year.
One rule changed on January 1, 2025. Starting that date, all employers, regardless of schedule size, pay the same minimum wage. Small employers can no longer count tips, or payments toward an employee's medical benefit plan, toward the minimum compensation the ordinance requires. The full wage has to be paid as wages, not assembled from tip income or health plan contributions.
OLS announces the upcoming year's increase by the fall of each year. The increase follows inflation, measured by the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue Area Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W). That leaves employers the stretch between the fall announcement and January 1 to update payroll.
Other cities and places outside Seattle have their own minimum wage, and the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries lists them in one place under Local Minimum Wage Rates. For a business or job site in King County where the city line is unclear, the Minimum Wage Lookup map takes an address and returns the correct rate for that location. The OLS page states that other minimum wage laws do not impact the minimum wage in the City of Seattle.
OLS is at 810 3rd Avenue, Suite 375, Seattle, WA 98104-1627, phone (206) 256-5297, email LaborStandards@seattle.gov. Reception is open weekdays 9:00am-4:00pm, and TTY users dial 7-1-1. OLS also publishes a 2026 Minimum Wage Fact Sheet and a Minimum Wage Q & A.
Violations & Fines
OLS enforces Seattle's labor standards ordinances, including the minimum wage, and the Labor Standards page lists File a Complaint among its resources. Paying below $21.30 in 2026 fails the ordinance, and so does a small employer counting tips or medical plan payments toward the wage. Remedy and penalty terms sit in SMC 14.19 and SHRR Chapter 90, which OLS applies; the minimum wage page itself lists no dollar penalties.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the minimum wage in Seattle in 2026?
Do small employers in Seattle pay a lower minimum wage?
How does Seattle decide each year's increase?
How do I find the right minimum wage for a King County address?
Who handles minimum wage questions and complaints in Seattle?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Seattle
Compare Seattle to another location·View the Washington employment preemption overview
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