2026 Rhode Island Minimum Wage

Who it applies to

Employers and employees in Rhode Island covered by the state minimum wage law. The Department of Labor's table gives Rhode Island's basic minimum rate with no employer-size condition attached, unlike its entries for several other states. The same entry records premium pay after designated hours on a weekly basis, and adds that time and one-half premium pay for work on Sundays and holidays in retail and certain other businesses is required under two laws that are separate from the minimum wage law. 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 Rhode Island's basic minimum rate as $16.00 per hour. The Rhode Island entry states no dated step later in the year and no formula for recalculating the rate, and no earlier year of this record is published here, so this page states no year-over-year change.

Common questions

What is the minimum wage in Rhode Island in 2026?

It is $16.00 per hour. That is the basic minimum rate the U.S. Department of Labor lists for Rhode Island in its State Minimum Wage Laws table, in the version updated July 1, 2026. The figure published here is read from that entry and from nothing else, so it reflects the state rate as the department recorded it on that date.

Does the Rhode Island minimum wage change again during 2026?

The Department of Labor's table lists no scheduled change for Rhode Island. Its entry carries a single basic minimum rate with no dated step and no adjustment formula attached, unlike the entries the department marks that way for some other states. A change taking effect after the table's July 1, 2026 update would not appear here until the department republishes the table and this record is verified against it again.

Which employers have to pay the Rhode Island minimum wage?

The table's Rhode Island entry states a basic minimum rate and attaches no employer-size condition to it. For several other states the same table opens the entry with a coverage line limiting the rate to employers above a stated headcount; Rhode Island's entry carries no such line, and it does not defer coverage to the federal Fair Labor Standards Act as some entries do.

Does Rhode Island require overtime pay after a set number of hours?

The entry records premium pay after designated hours and states a weekly hour threshold, with no daily threshold beside it. The table's own footnote says the overtime premium rate is time and one-half the employee's regular rate unless otherwise specified. The hour count stays in the department's table; this page publishes the verified hourly rate and does not restate the threshold.

Is premium pay required for Sunday and holiday work in Rhode Island?

The Rhode Island entry states that time and one-half premium pay for work on Sundays and holidays in retail and certain other businesses is required under two laws that are separate from the minimum wage law. That sentence is the whole of what the Department of Labor's minimum wage table records on the point. Because those laws sit outside the minimum wage law, the table does not set out which businesses they reach.

Is there a separate tipped minimum wage in Rhode Island?

The Department of Labor's state table lists one basic minimum rate per hour for Rhode Island and no separate cash wage for tipped employees, so this page does not publish one. The same table states plainly that differential provisions are not displayed in it, naming subminimum rates for minors and students and training wages for new hires as its examples.

Is the Rhode Island minimum wage adjusted for inflation each year?

The table states an annual adjustment formula inside the entry itself for several jurisdictions. The Rhode Island entry contains no such statement. This page therefore publishes the rate the table listed as of July 1, 2026 and makes no claim about whether, how or when the rate is recalculated, because the source document does not say.

Where does the $16.00 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 Rhode Island entry gives the basic minimum rate per hour as $16.00. The division notes on the same page that it tries to ensure the information is 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.