Tennessee Minimum Wage 2026: $7.25, With No State Minimum Wage Law
Tennessee’s minimum wage is $7.25 an hour, because Tennessee has no state minimum wage law and employers covered by the federal Fair Labor Standards Act pay the federal rate, unchanged since July 24, 2009. Tipped employees can be paid $2.13 an hour in cash if tips bring them to $7.25. State law preempts local wage mandates on private employers, so $7.25 applies everywhere in Tennessee, including Nashville and Memphis.
Tennessee at a glance
| Current rate | $7.25 / hour (federal) |
|---|---|
| Effective | July 24, 2009 (federal rate) |
| State minimum wage law | None |
| Tipped cash wage | $2.13 / hour ($5.12 tip credit) |
| Next scheduled change | None scheduled; follows the federal rate |
| Local rates | None; local wage mandates preempted by T.C.A. 50-2-112 |
| Youth rate | $4.25 / hour for under-20s’ first 90 days (federal) |
Why Tennessee uses the federal rate
Tennessee has no state minimum wage law. The U.S. Department of Labor’s state minimum wage table lists Tennessee as having “no state minimum wage law” and notes that employers subject to the Fair Labor Standards Act must pay the federal minimum of $7.25 an hour. That rate took effect on July 24, 2009, and has not changed since. Tennessee’s floor moves only if Congress raises the federal minimum or the General Assembly passes a state minimum wage.
Cities and counties cannot set their own. T.C.A. 50-2-112 preempts all wage and employment benefit mandates imposed on private employers by a local government, bars local governments from requiring private employers to pay more than the federal or state minimum as a condition of doing business, and stops them from using contracts to control a vendor’s wages. A city may still set pay for its own employees. So the floor is the same $7.25 in Nashville, Memphis, Knoxville, Chattanooga and every rural county.
Who the federal minimum covers
Because the only minimum wage in Tennessee is federal, coverage follows the FLSA. Most employers are covered as an enterprise (generally $500,000 or more in annual business, or any hospital, school or public agency), and individual employees are covered when their work involves interstate commerce, which reaches most employees who handle out-of-state goods, calls or payments. In practice, few employers hiring through online job ads fall outside it. If you are unsure, check with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division.
Tipped employees
Tipped employees in Tennessee follow the federal rule. An employer can pay a cash wage of $2.13 an hour and take a tip credit of up to $5.12, as long as tips bring the employee to at least $7.25 for every hour worked (U.S. DOL tipped table). The employee must customarily and regularly receive more than $30 a month in tips, the employer must tell tipped employees about the tip credit in advance, and the employer makes up any shortfall. The details are in the Department of Labor’s Fact Sheet 15.
One Tennessee rule is specific to tipped staff. Employees principally employed serving food or beverages who receive and report tips may, at the employer’s discretion, waive the state’s 30-minute unpaid break for shifts of six hours or more, following the written consent procedure in T.C.A. 50-2-103(h). The waiver does not apply to employees under 18.
Exceptions
- Youth minimum wage. Federal law allows $4.25 an hour for employees under 20 during their first 90 consecutive calendar days, if no other employee is displaced (Fact Sheet 32).
- Exempt employees. Bona fide executive, administrative and professional employees paid on a salary basis, outside salespeople and other federal categories are exempt from the minimum wage under federal tests.
- Full-time students and workers with disabilities. Subminimum wages require a certificate from the U.S. Department of Labor.
Tennessee adds no training, small-business or agricultural rate of its own.
What this means for hiring
$7.25 is the legal floor, and very few Tennessee employers hiring warehouse, manufacturing, healthcare or hospitality staff can fill shifts there. The rate you need is set by the local market, and candidates compare posted wages side by side. Tennessee does not require pay in job ads, but putting the wage in the first line of an hourly ad is usually what gets it read. To see what a Tennessee hire costs at the wage you actually pay, including payroll taxes and benefits, use our employee cost calculator. The state’s break, final pay, E-Verify and minor labor rules are on our Tennessee labor laws guide.
Frequently asked questions
What is the minimum wage in Tennessee in 2026?
$7.25 an hour, the federal minimum wage. Tennessee has no state minimum wage law, so employers covered by the federal Fair Labor Standards Act pay the federal rate, which has been $7.25 since July 24, 2009. Tipped employees can be paid a $2.13 cash wage if tips bring them to $7.25 an hour.
Is Tennessee raising its minimum wage?
No increase is scheduled. Tennessee’s floor only moves if Congress raises the federal minimum wage or the General Assembly enacts a state minimum wage, and neither has happened as of September 24, 2026. Cities and counties cannot set a higher rate for private employers under T.C.A. 50-2-112. Plan around $7.25, or $2.13 plus tips for tipped staff.
What is the tipped minimum wage in Tennessee?
$2.13 an hour in cash, under federal law. The employer can count up to $5.12 an hour of tips toward the $7.25 minimum, but only if tips actually bring the employee to at least $7.25 for every hour worked, and the employee has been told about the tip credit in advance. If tips fall short in a workweek, the employer pays the difference.
Can Nashville or Memphis set a higher minimum wage?
Not for private employers. T.C.A. 50-2-112 preempts local wage and employment benefit mandates on private employers and bars cities and counties from requiring private employers to pay more than the federal or state minimum wage. Metro Nashville and Memphis can set pay for their own employees, but private businesses follow the statewide $7.25 floor.
Does Tennessee have a youth or training minimum wage?
Not a state one. Federal law allows a youth minimum wage of $4.25 an hour for employees under 20 during their first 90 consecutive calendar days on the job, as long as other employees are not displaced. Tennessee’s child labor law still applies to minors: records and proof of age on file, hours limits, and a 30-minute break when scheduled for six consecutive hours.
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