Delaware Minimum Wage 2026
Current year
The 2026 Delaware Minimum Wage is $15.
Effective 2026-01-01Source: State Minimum Wage Laws (DOL)Verified 2026-09-01
Compared with 2025
Every figure on this page is unchanged from 2025.
| Item | 2025 | 2026 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hourly | $15 | $15 | +$0 (+0.0%) |
Who it applies to
Employers and employees in Delaware covered by the state minimum wage law. The entry attaches no employer-size condition to the rate and carries no premium pay line, so this page states no state overtime threshold. What the entry does add is a floor: the State adopts the federal minimum wage rate by reference if the federal rate is greater than the State rate. The table does not display subminimum rates for minors, students or trainees, or any higher rate set by a local government.
What changed this year, and why
The U.S. Department of Labor's table of state minimum wage laws, updated July 1, 2026, lists Delaware's basic minimum rate as $15.00 per hour, and adds that the State adopts the federal minimum wage rate by reference if the federal rate is greater than the State rate. The entry records no dated step inside the year, and no earlier year of this record is published on this site, so this page states no year-over-year change.
Common questions
- What is the minimum wage in Delaware in 2026?
- $15.00 per hour. That is the basic minimum rate the U.S. Department of Labor lists for Delaware in its State Minimum Wage Laws table, in the version updated July 1, 2026. The entry gives a single rate per hour with no employer-size condition attached, and the figure published here is taken from that entry and from nothing else.
- Does Delaware follow the federal minimum wage?
- Only as a floor. The entry states that the State adopts the federal minimum wage rate by reference if the federal rate is greater than the State rate. So the state rate stands on its own unless the federal one rises above it, at which point the entry says the federal rate is adopted. Several other entries in the table carry a clause of this shape; most do not.
- Is Delaware's minimum wage higher than the federal minimum wage?
- Yes. The same Department of Labor table cites the current federal minimum wage in its entries for states that have no minimum wage law of their own, and Delaware's basic minimum rate stands above that amount. The entry's adoption clause bites only if the federal rate is the greater of the two, a condition the table's own figures do not show as met.
- Does Delaware have daily or weekly overtime under this table?
- The Delaware entry carries no premium pay line at all. For many states the same table records premium pay after designated hours, weekly and sometimes daily; Delaware's entry has neither, so this page states no state overtime threshold. Overtime for employers covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act is a matter of that federal act, which the table does not set out.
- Is there a separate tipped minimum wage for Delaware?
- The Department of Labor's state table lists one basic minimum rate per hour for Delaware and no separate cash wage for tipped employees, so this page does not publish one. The same table states that differential provisions are not displayed in it, naming subminimum rates for minors and students and training wages for new hires as examples of what it leaves out.
- Does the Delaware minimum wage change during 2026?
- The Department of Labor's table lists no scheduled change for Delaware. Its entry carries a single basic minimum rate with no dated step attached, and it states no annual adjustment formula, unlike the entries the department dates or indexes for some other states. A change after the table's July 1, 2026 update would not appear here until the table is republished and this record verified against it again.
- Do city or county minimum wages in Delaware override the state rate?
- The Department of Labor's table does not answer that. It notes only that some local governments set minimum wage rates higher than their respective state minimum wage, and that such differential provisions are not displayed in the table. The rate on this page is the state-level basic rate the Delaware entry gives, so a local ordinance sits outside what this source records.
- Where does the $15.00 figure on this page come from?
- From the Wage and Hour Division's State Minimum Wage Laws table at dol.gov, in the snapshot captured for this record, where the Delaware entry gives the basic minimum rate per hour as $15.00. The division notes on the same page that it tries to keep the information accurate and that individuals should consult the relevant state labor office for official information.
Every amount on this page is a published figure rather than yours. The Minimum wage pay calculator takes the number you enter and works it out against them, showing which published figure it used.
Minors, students and training wages: who may be paid less than the rate on this page
Many states allow employers to pay certain workers less than the standard minimum wage that applies to most employees. These special lower rates typically apply to minors, students, or newly hired employees who are still in a training period. Some states also completely exempt these categories of workers from minimum wage coverage. The table on this page does not display these differential provisions, so workers and employers should check their individual state's rules to determine whether a subminimum or training wage applies in a particular situation.
Some states set subminimum rates for minors and/or students or exempt them from coverage or have a training wage for new hires.
State Minimum Wage Laws (DOL)
When a city or county sets a higher minimum wage
Even when a state sets a minimum wage, a city or county within that state is free to adopt its own, higher floor. Workers who perform their jobs inside such a locality are entitled to the local rate when it exceeds the state figure, regardless of what the state table shows. This table deliberately omits those local ordinances because they change frequently and apply only within specific municipal or county boundaries. An employer operating in a metropolitan area must therefore look beyond the statewide rate to determine whether a local ordinance imposes a higher obligation. Employees who believe they are owed more than their employer is paying should research whether their city or county has enacted its own minimum wage, since that local rate - not the state rate - would control their pay.
Some local governments set minimum wage rates higher than their respective state minimum wage. Such differential provisions are not displayed in this table.
State Minimum Wage Laws (DOL)
Overtime is paid at one and one-half times the regular rate
The general rule for overtime pay on this page is that hours worked beyond the standard full-time threshold must be compensated at an elevated rate rather than the employee's usual hourly pay. A footnote to the table clarifies that the overtime premium is calculated by multiplying the employee's regular rate by one and one-half. This multiplier applies unless a state's own overtime provision specifies a different figure or a different daily or weekly threshold. Several states listed in the table set their own premium-pay thresholds (such as after a certain number of hours in a day or after a full workweek) and a few require double time after even longer stretches. Employers must therefore compare the footnote rule with any state-specific provision that appears alongside a particular state's entry to determine the correct overtime rate.
The overtime premium rate is one and one-half times the employee's regular rate, unless otherwise specified.
State Minimum Wage Laws (DOL)
Who to ask about this rate, and where to take a wage complaint
The Wage and Hour Division, an agency within the U.S. Department of Labor, publishes this table as a reference but directs readers to state authorities for definitive guidance on any particular rate. Individuals who need to confirm the current minimum wage, learn about subminimum provisions, or file a wage complaint should reach out to the labor office in their own state rather than relying solely on this page. That state office maintains the authoritative record of any recent legislative changes, local ordinances, or special exemptions that may not yet be reflected here. Contact information for each state's labor office is available through the DOL's State Labor Offices directory, which is linked from the navigation menu on this site.
The Wage and Hour Division tries to ensure that the information on this page is accurate, but individuals should consult the relevant state labor office for official information.
State Minimum Wage Laws (DOL)
State minimum wage laws that give more than the federal rate
Delaware pays $15.00 an hour, above the federal minimum, and state law also provides that the federal figure takes over should the federal one ever be the greater. Both halves matter. Today the state figure is the higher, so $15.00 is what an employer in Delaware owes and the federal rate has no practical effect. The other clause is insurance: if Congress raised the federal minimum past $15.00, Delaware would follow it up without needing to legislate. Nothing in either rule lets an employer pay the lower of the two. Where federal and state minimum wage law both apply to a job, the employee is owed the higher rate, and that is the whole of the interaction.
The State adopts the federal minimum wage rate by reference if the federal rate is greater than the State rate.
State Minimum Wage Laws (DOL)
Why the federal rate applies when the state rate is lower
Under Delaware law, the state minimum wage is currently $15.00 per hour. However, the state also adopts the federal minimum wage rate by reference whenever the federal rate exceeds Delaware's own rate. This means that if Congress raises the federal minimum wage above $15.00, Delaware employers must pay the higher federal amount automatically, without waiting for the state legislature to act. Workers in Delaware are therefore guaranteed whichever rate is higher - the state rate or the federal rate - at any given time. This safeguard ensures that Delaware employees never fall below the national floor, even if the state's own rate were somehow set lower than the federal standard.
Delaware Basic Minimum Rate (per hour): $15.00 The State adopts the federal minimum wage rate by reference if the federal rate is greater than the State rate.
State Minimum Wage Laws (DOL)
How each figure was verified
Each number below was read from a stored copy of the document named beside it, and checked to occur word for word in the quoted sentence. The digest is of that stored text.
State Minimum Wage Laws (DOL)
- Hourly
Delaware Basic Minimum Rate (per hour): $15.00