How we calculate

Every number on this site is computed, not copied. The inputs come from the published sources listed on each page, and the arithmetic is the same code that runs in your browser, in the pre-rendered tables, and in this project's tests — so the three cannot disagree.

What varies, and why it earns a page

Minimum wage is one of the few figures that genuinely differs in EVERY state and changes most years: 22 distinct base rates from $7.25 to $17.13, and 35 distinct tipped-wage rates from $2.13 to full parity. Tipped treatment is a structural fork, not a rate tweak — some states allow a tip credit against a much lower cash wage, others require the full minimum before tips, which changes the calculation itself.

Structural classifications used here

• At the federal floor ($7.25)
• No tip credit — full minimum before tips
• Above the federal floor

Why some states share a page

16 pages cover this topic, with 34 states folded into the page that gives the identical answer. A jurisdiction earns its own URL only when its rules or numbers change the answer. Where two would produce the same page, they are covered together and the spare URL redirects into it. Publishing near-identical pages is worse for the reader and is a search-quality violation, so this site is built so it cannot happen: the build compares every page against its siblings on two independent similarity metrics and fails if any pair converges.

Limitations, stated plainly

These are estimates for general information, not advice. Local jurisdictions add rules a state-level model cannot capture, and statutes change. Verify with the relevant agency before acting on a number.