2024 Illinois Tipped Minimum Wage
The 2024 Illinois Tipped Minimum Wage is $8.40.
Effective 2024-01-01Source: Your Rights Under Illinois Employment Laws (2024) (Illinois Department of Labor)Verified 2026-08-31
Compared with 2023
| Item | 2023 | 2024 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum cash wage | $7.80 | $8.40 | +$0.60 (+7.7%) |
Who it applies to
Illinois employers that pay tipped employees
What changed this year, and why
Illinois increased the minimum cash wage for tipped employees from $7.80 per hour in 2023 to $8.40 per hour, effective January 1, 2024.
Common questions
- What happens if a tipped employee's tips plus the cash wage fall short of the minimum wage?
- The employer must make up the difference so the employee receives at least the full state minimum wage.
Every amount on this page is a published figure rather than yours. The Tips needed per hour takes the number you enter and works it out against them, showing which published figure it used.
Who counts as a tipped employee
In Illinois, a tipped employee is someone in a job where tips are a regular and expected part of pay—like a server, bartender, or delivery driver—and who actually receives those tips on a recurring basis. If you work in such a position, your employer may pay you the state's lower direct cash wage of $8.40 per hour rather than the full minimum wage, counting your tips toward bringing your total hourly earnings up to at least the applicable minimum. The definition matters because it determines which workers are covered by the special wage rules for tipped positions. If your job does not customarily produce tips on a regular basis, you are not a tipped employee and your employer must pay you the full state minimum wage regardless of any occasional gratuities you might receive. Employers in Illinois must apply this standard based on the nature of your position and your actual tip-earning pattern, not on hypothetical possibilities.
Applies to tipped employees. If an employee’s tips combined with the wages from the employer do not equal the minimum wage, the employer must make up the difference.
Your Rights Under Illinois Employment Laws (2024) (Illinois Department of Labor)
What a tip credit is, and the cash wage underneath it
In Illinois, an employer that takes a tip credit must pay each tipped worker at least $8.40 per hour in direct wages. That cash wage is the floor underneath the tip credit—the amount your employer must hand you before counting any tips toward meeting the state's minimum wage. If your tips in a workweek, combined with the $8.40 hourly cash wage, fall short of the full state minimum wage, your employer must add enough to reach that minimum. The tip credit is not a bonus the employer keeps; it is a way of counting your actual tip income toward the gap between the cash wage and the minimum wage. The $8.40 figure is set by Illinois law and applies to all tipped employees in the state, regardless of whether their employer also relies on federal tip credit rules. Employers in Illinois must ensure that the cash wage plus tips always equals or exceeds the state minimum wage for each hour worked.
$8.40 PER HOUR Applies to tipped employees. If an employee’s tips combined with the wages from the employer do not equal the minimum wage, the employer must make up the difference.
Your Rights Under Illinois Employment Laws (2024) (Illinois Department of Labor)
When the tips do not get you to the minimum wage
In Illinois, when you are a tipped employee and your tips in a pay period do not bring your total hourly pay up to the state minimum wage, your employer must make up the difference. This means that even if business is slow or customer traffic is light, you are still guaranteed to receive at least the full state minimum wage for every hour you work. The cash wage your employer pays you directly is $8.40 per hour, and the gap between that amount and the full minimum wage is supposed to be filled by your tips. But if your tips fall short of covering that gap in a particular pay period, the employer cannot simply accept the shortfall. Instead, the employer is legally required to add enough money to your paycheck so that your combined cash wage and tips reach the full state minimum wage. This rule protects tipped workers in Illinois from losing income during slow periods and ensures that the tip credit system does not result in sub-minimum pay.
Applies to tipped employees. If an employee’s tips combined with the wages from the employer do not equal the minimum wage, the employer must make up the difference.
Your Rights Under Illinois Employment Laws (2024) (Illinois Department of Labor)
Doing two jobs for one employer
In Illinois, when an employee works in two different roles for the same employer—one as a tipped position and one as a non-tipped position—the employee is considered a tipped employee only with respect to the time spent in the tipped role. For example, if a worker spends part of their shift serving customers and part doing non-tipped duties like cleaning or stocking, the employer can only apply the tip credit and pay the $8.40 cash wage for hours spent in the tipped activity. For hours spent in the non-tipped role, the employer must pay the full state minimum wage. This dual-jobs rule prevents employers from applying the lower tipped wage to all of an employee's hours when some of those hours involve work that does not generate tips. Employers in Illinois must track time spent in each role and apply the appropriate wage rate to each.
$8.40 PER HOUR Applies to tipped employees. If an employee’s tips combined with the wages from the employer do not equal the minimum wage, the employer must make up the difference.
Your Rights Under Illinois Employment Laws (2024) (Illinois Department of Labor)
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.
Your Rights Under Illinois Employment Laws (2024) (Illinois Department of Labor)
- Minimum cash wage
$8.40 PER HOUR Applies to tipped employees. If an employee’s tips combined with the wages from the employer do not equal the minimum wage, the employer must make up the difference.
Other years
Every Illinois Tipped Minimum Wage year · Tipped Minimum Wage in every state