The federally mandated minimum wage in the United States is 7.25 U.S. dollars per hour, although the minimum wage varies from state to state. As of January 1, 2024, the District of Columbia had the highest minimum wage in the U.S., at 17 U.S. dollars per hour. This was followed by Washington, which had 16.28 U.S. dollars per hour as the state minimum wage.

Minimum wage workers

Minimum wage jobs are traditionally seen as “starter jobs” in the U.S., or first jobs for teenagers and young adults, and the number of people working minimum wage jobs has decreased from almost four million in 1979 to about 247,000 in 2020. However, the number of workers earning less than minimum wage in 2020 was significantly higher, at about 865,000.

Minimum wage jobs

Minimum wage jobs are primarily found in food preparation and serving occupations, as well as sales jobs (primarily in retail). Because the minimum wage has not kept up with inflation, nor has it been increased since 2009, it is becoming harder and harder live off of a minimum wage wage job, and for those workers to afford essential things like rent.

Graph and download economic data for Federal Minimum Wage Rate under the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act (STTMINWGFG) from 1968 to 2025 about minimum wage, federal, wages, labor, rate, and USA.

This statistic shows the real hourly minimum wage in the United States from 2001 to 2022 (in PPP U.S. dollars). In the United States in 2022, the real minimum wage was 7.3 U.S. dollars per hour.

Graph and download economic data for Wage and Salary Workers Paid at Prevailing Federal Minimum Wage: 16 Years and Over: College Graduates: Bachelor's Degree and Higher (BDAHC7) from 2002 to 2023 about paid, minimum wage, tertiary schooling, salaries, workers, 16 years +, education, federal, wages, and USA.

When adjusted for inflation, the 2024 federal minimum wage in the United States is over 40 percent lower than the minimum wage in 1970. Although the real dollar minimum wage in 1970 was only 1.60 U.S. dollars, when expressed in nominal 2024 dollars this increases to 13.05 U.S. dollars. This is a significant difference from the federal minimum wage in 2024 of 7.25 U.S. dollars.

Minimum Wages in the United States remained unchanged at 7.25 USD/Hour in 2025 from 7.25 USD/Hour in 2024. This dataset provides - United States Minimum Wages- actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

Graph and download economic data for Total Wage and Salary Workers Paid at or Below Prevailing Federal Minimum Wage: 16 Years and Over (T16OC9) from 1979 to 2023 about paid, minimum wage, salaries, workers, 16 years +, federal, wages, and USA.

In 1979, about 3.99 million workers were paid hourly rates at the official minimum wage. In 2023, about 81,000 workers were paid hourly rates at the prevailing minimum wage. The prevailing Federal minimum wage was 7.25 U.S. dollars per hour in 2023.

In 2023, 1.1 percent of workers in the United States were paid hourly rates at or below the official minimum wage. This is a decrease from the previous year, when 1.3 percent of workers were paid at or below the official minimum wage.

Graph and download economic data for Employed: Paid at prevailing federal minimum wage: Wage and salary workers: Production occupations: 16 years and over (LEU0204850700A) from 2000 to 2024 about paid, occupation, minimum wage, salaries, workers, 16 years +, federal, wages, production, employment, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for Federal Minimum Hourly Wage for Nonfarm Workers for the United States (FEDMINNFRWG) from Oct 1938 to Feb 2025 about per hour, minimum wage, nonfarm, workers, hours, federal, wages, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for Wage and Salary Workers Paid at Prevailing Federal Minimum Wage: 16 Years and Over: Less than a High School Diploma (LHSDC3) from 2002 to 2023 about paid, secondary schooling, secondary, minimum wage, salaries, workers, 16 years +, education, federal, wages, and USA.

In December 2024, inflation amounted to 2.9 percent, while wages grew by 4.2 percent. The inflation rate has not exceeded the rate of wage growth since January 2023. Inflation in 2022 The high rates of inflation in 2022 meant that the real terms value of American wages took a hit. Many Americans report feelings of concern over the economy and a worsening of their financial situation. The inflation situation in the United States is one that was experienced globally in 2022, mainly due to COVID-19 related supply chain constraints and disruption due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The monthly inflation rate for the U.S. reached a 40-year high in June 2022 at 9.1 percent, and annual inflation for 2022 reached eight percent. Without appropriate wage increases, Americans will continue to see a decline in their purchasing power. Wages in the U.S. Despite the level of wage growth reaching 6.7 percent in the summer of 2022, it has not been enough to curb the impact of even higher inflation rates. The federally mandated minimum wage in the United States has not increased since 2009, meaning that individuals working minimum wage jobs have taken a real terms pay cut for the last twelve years. There are discrepancies between states - the minimum wage in California can be as high as 15.50 U.S. dollars per hour, while a business in Oklahoma may be as low as two U.S. dollars per hour. However, even the higher wage rates in states like California and Washington may be lacking - one analysis found that if minimum wage had kept up with productivity, the minimum hourly wage in the U.S. should have been 22.88 dollars per hour in 2021. Additionally, the impact of decreased purchasing power due to inflation will impact different parts of society in different ways with stark contrast in average wages due to both gender and race.

Graph and download economic data for Wage and Salary Workers Paid at Prevailing Federal Minimum Wage: 16 Years and Over: Academic Program (ACPRC3) from 2002 to 2023 about paid, minimum wage, salaries, workers, 16 years +, federal, wages, and USA.

Albania Average Monthly Wage: Annual: Official Minimum data was reported at 38,500.000 ALL in 2023. This records an increase from the previous number of 32,000.000 ALL for 2022. Albania Average Monthly Wage: Annual: Official Minimum data is updated yearly, averaging 15,500.000 ALL from Dec 1992 (Median) to 2023, with 32 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 38,500.000 ALL in 2023 and a record low of 840.000 ALL in 1992. Albania Average Monthly Wage: Annual: Official Minimum data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Institute of Statistics. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Albania – Table AL.G030: Average Monthly Wage: by Sector.

In 2022, France had the highest real minimum wage at 13.8 U.S. dollars an hour out all of the OECD countries, once adjusted for purchasing power parity. Australia and and Luxembourg followed behind at 13.6 dollars per hour. On the other hand, the minimum wage in Malta was only 1.5 dollars per hour.

Graph and download economic data for Employed: Paid total at or below prevailing federal minimum wage: Private wage and salary workers: Accommodation and food services industries: 16 years and over (LEU0204861200A) from 2000 to 2024 about paid, accommodation, minimum wage, salaries, workers, 16 years +, federal, food, wages, services, private, employment, industry, and USA.

The median hourly earnings for full-time employees in the United Kingdom was 18.72 British pounds in 2024, compared with 17.48 pounds in the previous year. At the start of this provided time period, in 1997, the average hourly wage in the UK was 7.92 pounds per hour, rising to more than ten pounds per hour by 2003, and above 15 pounds per hour by 2020. Minimum and living wage in the UK In the United Kingdom, employers are expected to pay their employees a minimum wage that is determined by how old they are. Under 18s for example, had a minimum wage of 5.28 British pounds in 2023, with the figure increasing to 7.49 pounds those aged 18 to 20, 10.18 for 21 to 22 year old's, and 10.42 for those aged 23 and over. There is also a voluntarily paid living Wage that employers can choose to pay their workers. For the 2023/24 financial year this was twelve pounds an hour, rising to 13.15 pounds an hour for workers based in London. Icelandic the highest earners in Europe Iceland had the highest average annual wage in the Europe in 2022 at around 79,500 U.S dollars. This was followed by Luxembourg at 78,300 dollars, Switzerland at 72,990 and Belgium at 64,850 dollars. The United Kingdom’s average annual wage amounted to around 53,985 U.S dollars in the same year. In this year, the country with the lowest annual salary in Europe was Greece, at 25,980 pounds per year.

As one of the biggest sports leagues in America with TV viewers reaching into the millions, Major League Baseball can afford to pay its players handsomely. The average salary for a player in the MLB stood at 4.98 million U.S. dollars in 2024. This marks a twofold increase on the average salary in 2005. Highs and lows of MLB salaries While the stars of every MLB team take home millions every year, there is still a minimum player salary in place to ensure that all players are compensated for their efforts. The 2024 MLB minimum player salary was set at 740 thousand U.S. dollars, a significant increase on the minimum of 300 thousand U.S. dollars in 2003. The league’s top earners The highest earner in the MLB in 2024 was the starting pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Shohei Ohtani. The three-time All-Star took home an annual base salary of 70 million U.S. dollars in the 2024 season. Due to their prominent role on the team, it is unsurprising that a majority of the top earners in the MLB were pitchers.  

Graph and download economic data for Employed: Paid below prevailing federal minimum wage: Wage and salary workers: Transportation and material moving occupations: 16 years and over (LEU0204843900A) from 2000 to 2024 about paid, occupation, materials, minimum wage, salaries, workers, transportation, 16 years +, federal, wages, employment, and USA.