Georgia Minimum Wage 2026: $7.25 an Hour, Set by Federal Law
Georgia’s effective minimum wage is $7.25 an hour, the federal rate, for the vast majority of employers. State law technically sets a $5.15 an hour minimum, but that rate applies only to the small number of employers not covered by the federal Fair Labor Standards Act — typically businesses with fewer than six employees and no interstate commerce activity — and federal law automatically supersedes the state rate whenever it’s higher.
Georgia at a glance
| Effective rate (most employers) | $7.25 / hour (federal) |
|---|---|
| State-law rate (rarely applies) | $5.15 / hour |
| Effective | July 24, 2009 (federal rate) |
| Next scheduled change | None — tied to the federal rate |
What this means for hiring
The $5.15 figure shows up in search results and payroll software defaults often enough to cause real confusion, but it almost never applies — if the business does any interstate commerce (accepts credit cards, ships goods, uses the phone or internet commercially) it’s covered by the FLSA and owes the federal $7.25 floor. Georgia has no state tip credit rules beyond the federal standard ($2.13 cash wage, tips making up the rest to $7.25) and no city or county in the state sets its own higher minimum.
Hiring hourly workers in Georgia?
We can tell you honestly whether your job ads are priced to the current wage floor — before you spend anything.
Book a DemoPart of Boostpoint’s minimum wage by state series, covering the states where Boostpoint runs the most hiring campaigns.