Missouri Minimum Wage: Rate, Tipped Wage, and Local Rules

As of 2026, Missouri's state minimum wage is $15.00 per hour for most private-sector employees, the result of Proposition A, which Missouri voters approved in November 2024. That measure raised the wage to $13.75 on January 1, 2025, and to $15.00 on January 1, 2026, and it directs the rate to be adjusted each year afterward based on changes in the Consumer Price Index. Because this figure is well above the federal minimum, Missouri workers are entitled to the higher state rate. The federal minimum wage under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) has been frozen at $7.25 per hour since 2009, so the gap between Missouri's floor and the federal baseline is substantial. Rates that index to inflation change every January, so always confirm the current number with the Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations before relying on it.

How Missouri's minimum wage works

Missouri's minimum wage law is found in Chapter 290 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri. The voter-approved increases in 2018 (Proposition B) and again in 2024 (Proposition A) rewrote the rate schedule and added an annual cost-of-living adjustment. Under that mechanism, the Director of the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations recalculates the wage each year using the percentage change in the federal Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W). The new rate takes effect on January 1. This is why a number that is correct in one year may be outdated the next, and why the state publishes an official poster and rate notice annually.

When state and federal minimum wage laws both apply to a worker, the employer must pay whichever rate is higher. For nearly all Missouri employees that means the state rate governs. The FLSA's $7.25 still matters as a backstop and for certain federally regulated situations, but in practical terms Missouri's higher figure controls most paychecks in the state.

Tipped employees and the tip credit

Missouri allows employers to take a tip credit for employees who customarily and regularly receive tips, such as servers and bartenders. Under Missouri law, a tipped employee must be paid a cash wage of at least 50 percent of the full minimum wage, and the employee's tips must make up the rest so that total earnings equal or exceed the full minimum wage for every hour worked. Because the cash-wage floor is tied to half of the state rate, it moves whenever the minimum wage moves. As of 2026, with the minimum wage at $15.00, the required tipped cash wage is $7.50 per hour.

The critical protection is the make-whole rule: if an employee's direct cash wage plus tips does not reach the full minimum wage for a given workweek, the employer must pay the difference. A tipped worker should never end up below the full minimum once tips are counted. Missouri's tip-credit structure is more generous to workers than the federal FLSA, which permits a cash wage as low as $2.13 per hour for tipped employees. Missouri's 50-percent rule produces a far higher cash floor.

Common tip-credit problems

• Tip pooling and skimming. Tips belong to the employees who earn them. Managers and owners generally may not keep employees' tips, and mandatory tip pools must be limited to employees who customarily receive tips.
• Falling below minimum on slow shifts. If a slow week leaves a server short, the employer must top up the wage to the full minimum.
• Excessive non-tipped duties. When tipped staff spend large blocks of time on non-tip-producing work, disputes can arise over whether the tip credit was properly applied.

Who is and isn't covered

Missouri's minimum wage law contains several exemptions and special categories. Notable points include:

• Retail and service businesses with annual gross sales below a statutory threshold are exempt from the state minimum wage, though they may still be covered by the federal FLSA.
• Government employers. Proposition A's wage increases apply to private-sector employees; public employers are treated separately under the statute.
• Specific job categories such as certain agricultural workers, some seasonal and amusement or recreational employees, and learners or workers covered by special certificates may be subject to different rules.
• Executive, administrative, and professional employees who meet the salary and duties tests are exempt from minimum wage and overtime, as under the FLSA.

Because these categories are technical, a worker who is unsure whether an exemption applies should ask the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations or consult an employment attorney rather than assume the exemption is valid.

No higher local minimum wage

One feature that sets Missouri apart from many states is that cities and counties cannot set their own higher minimum wage. Missouri has a statewide preemption law that bars local governments from establishing a minimum wage above the state rate. St. Louis and Kansas City both attempted to enact local minimum wages in the 2010s, but those local ordinances were ultimately blocked by state preemption and litigation. As a result, the same statewide figure applies in St. Louis, Kansas City, Springfield, Columbia, and every other Missouri community. Workers should not expect a separate, higher city rate the way employees in some other states do.

How to enforce your rights

If you believe you have been paid less than the Missouri minimum wage, or that your employer improperly applied the tip credit, you have options:

• File a complaint with the state. The Division of Labor Standards within the Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations enforces the state minimum wage law and accepts wage complaints.
• File a federal complaint. The U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division enforces the FLSA and can address tip and overtime violations.
• Bring a private lawsuit. Missouri law allows employees to sue for unpaid wages. Successful claims can recover the unpaid amount plus additional damages and attorney's fees, and the law prohibits retaliation against workers who assert their wage rights.

Keep your own records: pay stubs, schedules, timesheets, and notes on tips received. Documentation makes a wage claim far easier to prove.

Where to confirm the current rate

Because Missouri's minimum wage is adjusted for inflation every January, the single most reliable source is the Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, specifically its Division of Labor Standards, which publishes the official minimum wage rate, the required tipped cash wage, and the mandatory workplace poster each year. For federal questions, the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division is the authoritative source. Before acting on any figure in this article, verify the current-year rate with the state agency, since indexed numbers change annually.

Official Missouri Sources

This page is based on Missouri employment law. Rules and figures change — verify the current details directly with the official Missouri sources below. This is general legal information, not legal advice.

• Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations — official Missouri agency.
• File a Wage Complaint (Division of Labor Standards)
• Missouri Revised Statutes Chapter 290 — Wages, Hours and Dismissal Rights

Federal law and local ordinances may also apply. Federal laws like the Fair Labor Standards Act set a national floor, and your city or county may add protections (such as a higher local minimum wage or paid sick leave). Check both alongside Missouri state law.