Illinois Minimum Wage 2026: $15.00 Statewide, Higher in Chicago and Cook County
Illinois’s statewide minimum wage is $15.00 an hour, effective since January 1, 2025, with no further statewide increase currently scheduled. Chicago and Cook County both set their own higher local minimums and adjust them every July 1st — so an employer in either jurisdiction is paying above the statewide number, not at it.
Illinois at a glance
| Current rate | $15.00 / hour (statewide) |
|---|---|
| Effective | January 1, 2025 |
| Tipped cash wage | $9.00 / hour (60% of full minimum) |
| Next scheduled change | None statewide — Chicago & Cook County adjust every July 1 |
Chicago and Cook County run higher
| Location | Regular rate | Tipped rate |
|---|---|---|
| Chicago (4+ employees) | $17.05 | $12.96 |
| Cook County | $15.40 | $9.25 |
Both jurisdictions adjust annually via CPI, capped at 2.5% a year, and Chicago is phasing out its tip credit entirely by 2028 — the gap between Chicago’s tipped and regular rate is narrower than the statewide gap for exactly that reason.
What this means for hiring
If the role is physically in Chicago or Cook County, the local rate applies, not the $15.00 statewide figure — and Chicago’s shrinking tip credit means a tipped role there needs a higher cash wage each year even if the full minimum doesn’t change. Outside those two jurisdictions, $15.00 is the number, and there’s no other Illinois city currently running its own higher minimum.
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Book a DemoPart of Boostpoint’s minimum wage by state series, covering the 16 states where Boostpoint runs the most hiring campaigns.