Maine minimum wage 2027.

The Maine minimum wage in 2027

Maine's minimum wage increases from $15.10 to $15.70 an hour on January 1, 2027. The Maine Department of Labor announced the change on September 18, 2026, based on federal Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

What changed from 2026

The state minimum rises 60 cents, from $15.10 to $15.70. The tip wage, which Maine calls the service employee minimum wage, rises from $7.55 to $7.85, and the monthly tip amount needed to qualify as a service employee rises from $191 to $199. The weekly salary an employer must pay to exempt a worker from overtime becomes $905.79 on January 1, 2027, which is $47,101.08 a year.

Service employees and the overtime salary floor

A service employee must receive a direct cash wage of at least $7.85 an hour from the employer, and the employer must be able to show that cash wage plus tips equals at least the $15.70 minimum when combined at the end of the week. The overtime exemption salary must exceed 3,000 times the state minimum wage or the annualized rate set by the U.S. Department of Labor, whichever is higher; the figure for 2027 is $905.79 a week. The department stresses that salary is only one factor: an employee's duties must also be considered.

How the rate is set

Maine law, Title 26, chapter 7, section 664, requires the minimum wage to be adjusted every year for the cost-of-living index (CPI-W) for the Northeast Region, a rule Maine voters added by referendum in 2016. Between August 2025 and August 2026 the CPI-W rose 4.1 percent. The department also notes that agricultural workers are entitled to the state minimum wage after the Legislature passed and the Governor signed a 2025 act setting one.

Worked example (2027)

A full-time worker at the Maine 2027 minimum of $15.70 an hour, 40 hours a week, earns $628.00 a week, $1,256.00 every two weeks, $2,721.33 a month and $32,656.00 a year (2,080 hours) before tax. At the 2026 rate of $15.10 the same schedule paid $31,408.00 a year, so the 2027 rate adds $1,248.00. For a tipped worker the direct cash wage is $7.85. With 30 hours a week and tips averaging $4.00 an hour, pay is $11.85 an hour against a $15.70 minimum, so the employer owes a top-up of $3.85 an hour, $115.50 for the week. Part-time at 25 hours a week is $392.50 a week and $20,410.00 a year.

Method

The converter multiplies the hourly rate by your hours per week for weekly pay, doubles it for two weeks, multiplies by 52 weeks (2,080 hours at 40 a week) for annual pay and divides the annual figure by 12 for a month. It is gross pay before tax. The tipped-worker check adds the $7.85 cash wage and your average tips per hour and compares the total with the $15.70 minimum. If the total falls short, the shortfall times your hours is the top-up the employer owes for the week. Figures were read from the sources below on November 9, 2026.

What this does not cover

• Overtime, which is a separate rule, and unpaid time off.
• Local minimum wages that are higher than the state rate. Check the city or county where the work is done.
• Special rates for students, trainees, small employers or other exemptions not named on this page.
• Taxes and deductions: Maine pay here is gross pay before tax.

Figures read from the sources below on November 9, 2026. Last updated November 9, 2026.

Sources

• Maine Department of Labor news release: Maine's minimum wage to increase to $15.70 per hour in 2027 (September 18, 2026) (retrieved November 9, 2026)