Nebraska Minimum Wage 2026: $15.00, Then Up 1.75% Every January

Nebraska’s minimum wage is $15.00 an hour, effective January 1, 2026. Under LB258, passed in 2026, it rises by a fixed 1.75% every January 1 starting in 2027, replacing the inflation formula voters approved in 2022; the Nebraska Department of Labor must publish the 2027 rate by October 15, 2026. Tipped employees can be paid $2.13 an hour in cash if tips bring them to the full minimum. LB258 also created a $13.50 youth wage for 14- and 15-year-olds and a $13.50 training wage for some 16- to 19-year-olds.

Nebraska at a glance

How the Nebraska minimum wage is set

Voters set the current path in November 2022 with Initiative 433, which raised the wage $1.50 a year from $9.00 to $15.00 on January 1, 2026 and then tied later increases to the cost of living. In 2026 the Legislature changed the second half. Under LB258, Neb. Rev. Stat. 48-1203 now says the $15.00 rate “shall be increased on January 1, 2027, and on January 1 of successive years, by one and three-quarters percent.” The same section requires the Nebraska Department of Labor to calculate and publish the next rate no later than October 15 each year, starting October 15, 2026.

Nebraska minimum wage 2027

Applying 1.75% to $15.00 gives $15.2625 ($15.00 × 1.0175). The Nebraska Examiner reported the 2027 rate as $15.26 on September 23, 2026, and compared it with the $15.55 the voter-approved inflation formula would have produced. As of September 24, 2026 NDOL had not yet published the official figure, so treat $15.26 as the expected rate and confirm it on the NDOL labor standards page once it is posted.

Tipped employees

Employers may pay tipped employees $2.13 an hour plus all gratuities, provided the cash wage and tips together reach the applicable minimum wage. With the minimum at $15.00, that means tips have to cover up to $12.87 an hour ($15.00 minus $2.13). If they fall short in a pay period, the employer makes up the difference. The $2.13 cash wage is fixed in the statute and did not change with LB258, so the tip credit grows each time the minimum rises.

Youth and training wages

LB258 added two lower rates for young workers:

• Youth minimum wage: $13.50 an hour for employees who are at least 14 but younger than 16 and are not emancipated minors. It increases 1.5% on January 1, 2030 and every fifth year after that (48-1203).
• Training wage: $13.50 an hour through December 31, 2026 for employees aged 16 to 19 who are not seasonal or migrant workers or emancipated minors, for up to 90 days from hire, plus another 90 days if the employee is in approved on-the-job training. It rises 1.5% each January 1 from 2027, rounded to the nearest cent. No more than one-fourth of an employer's total hours paid may be at the training rate, and it cannot be used to cut other employees' hours or replace a terminated worker (48-1203.01).

We found no Nebraska city or county with its own minimum wage, so these state rates apply in Omaha, Lincoln and everywhere else.

What this means for hiring

Nebraska's rate now moves every January on a fixed formula, which makes it predictable: budget for roughly 1.75% a year on your lowest-paid roles and on any pay bands pegged to them. The bigger hiring question is usually the market, not the floor, so quote the actual rate you pay in the first line of every job ad and update it each January. To see what a Nebraska hire costs once payroll taxes and benefits are added, use our employee cost calculator. For breaks, overtime, paid sick time and new-hire paperwork, see Nebraska labor laws for employers.

This page is general information, not legal advice. Check the Nebraska Department of Labor for the current rate before you set pay.

Frequently asked questions

Part of Boostpoint’s minimum wage by state series.