Los Angeles minimum wage

$18.42 an hour since July 1, 2026. That's $1.52 above the California rate of $16.90.

Who it covers: All employers, for employees who perform at least two hours of work in a particular week within Los Angeles city limits and who are entitled to the California minimum wage. Hotel and airport workers have higher rates (see variants).

From	Hourly rate	Tipped cash wage	Official source
July 1, 2025	$17.87	$17.87 (no tip credit)	wagesla.lacity.gov checked 2026-10-26
July 1, 2026	$18.42	$18.42 (no tip credit)	wagesla.lacity.gov checked 2026-10-26

Other rates in Los Angeles

Who	Now	Next change	Source
Hotel workers (Citywide Hotel Worker Minimum Wage Ordinance) Workers whose primary place of employment is a hotel in the city with 60 or more guest rooms, or a hotel with 50 or more guest rooms in the Airport Hospitality Enhancement Zone, employed by the hotel or by a contractor providing services at the hotel. The rate is the cash wage when the employer provides health benefits. On top of it, hotel employers owe a health benefit payment of $4.25 an hour from July 1, 2026 and $6.00 from July 1, 2027 (from July 1, 2028 it equals the airport health benefit rate); if they don't provide health benefits, the payment is added to wages ($29.25 an hour total from July 1, 2026). Health benefits are not owed on overtime hours. A collective bargaining agreement can supersede the ordinance. From July 1, 2030 the wage rises each July 1 by the Los Angeles CPI-W.	$25.00	$25.50 from July 1, 2027	wagesla.lacity.gov checked 2026-10-26

Changes not announced yet

July 1, 2027: General minimum wage: annual increase by the Los Angeles CPI-W. The Office of Wage Standards announces the new rate on February 1 each year. (Hotel and airport amounts for 2027 to 2030 are already fixed by ordinance; see variants.) (wagesla.lacity.gov)
July 1, 2028: Airport health benefit payment: $8.35 adjusted by the state's Large Group Aggregate Rates report, to be announced around April 1, 2028. From that date the hotel health benefit payment equals the airport rate. (wagesla.lacity.gov)
July 1, 2028: Hotel workers: Ordinance 188944 sets further steps from July 1, 2028 (the city's wage chart lists $28.50 from that date). We add each step once it's confirmed. (wagesla.lacity.gov)

We add the amount as soon as it's published. The API returns these under pending_changes.

Good to know

Legal status of the 2025 'Olympic wage' ordinance (Ordinance 188610, hotel and airport wages): a referendum petition filed June 27, 2025 suspended it. The City Clerk issued a Certification of Insufficiency on September 8, 2025, so the ordinance took effect that day and the referendum is over. That is why the $22.50 rate took effect September 8, 2025 rather than July 1, 2025 (City Clerk petition status page: https://clerk.lacity.gov/elections/petition-and-measure-info/petition-status; City Clerk's notice: https://bca.lacity.gov/sites/default/files/Uploads/contracting/LWO%202025/LWO%20Amendments%209.8.25.pdf).
Ordinance 188944 (Council File 25-1466, passed May 26, 2026, effective June 29, 2026) slowed the later steps: $25.50 on July 1, 2027 (was $27.50) and $28.50 on July 1, 2028 (was $30.00), plus $29.00 on July 1, 2029 and $30.00 on January 1, 2030. It also set the hotel health benefit at $4.25 an hour from July 1, 2026 and $6.00 from July 1, 2027. The Office of Wage Standards' April 1, 2026 memo ($8.15 health benefit, $33.15 total) no longer applies.
Two citizen initiative petitions to raise the citywide minimum wage are circulating: one approved for circulation December 10, 2025 (it would set $25.00 an hour on voter approval) and one approved January 21, 2026. Neither had been filed as of the City Clerk's petition status page, and no minimum wage measure is on the November 3, 2026 city ballot.
General rate adjusts every July 1. Non-profit transitional employers can apply for an exemption from the general rate.
California's separate fast food and health care minimum wages still apply where they are higher.
LAX airport workers are covered by the City's Living Wage Ordinance, with its own rates: https://bca.lacity.gov/sites/default/files/basic_page/living-wage-rates-chart-for-airport-employees-rev-05.2026_0.pdf

Get an email when the Los Angeles minimum wage changes

One email when a new rate is announced, and a reminder a week before it takes effect. Free, and you can stop it in one click.

Does the Los Angeles rate apply at an address?

Live API, free for 50 lookups a day without an account. US street addresses.

Get the Los Angeles rate by API

One call returns the federal, state, county and city rates that apply at an address, the one that governs, the tipped cash wage and the next change, each with its official source.

curl "https://bankday.dev/v1/minimum-wage?state=CA&city=Los%20Angeles" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $BANKDAY_KEY"

API docs · Pricing · State rates are free. City and county rates by name start on the Developer plan, address lookups on the Business plan.

Questions

What is the minimum wage in Los Angeles in 2027?

The 2027 rate isn't announced yet (General minimum wage: annual increase by the Los Angeles CPI-W. The Office of Wage Standards announces the new rate on February 1 each year. (Hotel and airport amounts for 2027 to 2030 are already fixed by ordinance; see variants.)). Until then it's $18.42 an hour.

Who does the Los Angeles minimum wage cover?

All employers, for employees who perform at least two hours of work in a particular week within Los Angeles city limits and who are entitled to the California minimum wage. Hotel and airport workers have higher rates (see variants).

Rates come from the official sources linked on this page, checked on the dates shown. This is data, not legal advice: confirm with the official source before relying on it. Found a mistake? Email hello@bankday.dev.