Maine’s minimum wage is set to increase from $14.65 to $15.10 per hour on January 1, 2026, following a 3.1% rise in the Northeast Region's cost-of-living index from August 2024 to August 2025. New in 2026, this increase will include agricultural workers. Additionally, the tip wage for service employees increases to $7.55 per hour, and the new minimum salary for overtime exemption will be $871.16 per week. Importantly, while minimum wage for 2026 has been set at the state level, Portland’s minimum wage remains uncertain until the results of November’s ballot referendum. Here are some key details you need to know in advance of the rise.

Key Details

• Maine’s state minimum wage will increase from $14.65 to $15.10 on January 1, 2026.

Agricultural Workers

• New with passage of ‘An Act to Establish a State Minimum Hourly Wage for Agricultural Workers’ in June 2025, the minimum wage rate will also apply to agricultural workers in Maine.

Tip Wage for Service Workers

• The new minimum "tip wage” increases to $7.55 per hour in 2026.
• Employers must pay service employees a minimum of $7.55 per hour directly and at least $15.10 per hour when employer wages and tips are combined at the end of the established seven-day workweek.
• To qualify as a service employee, the amount of monthly tips required increases from $185 to $191 on January 1, 2026.

Exempt Salaried Workers

• The minimum threshold for salaried workers exempt from overtime increases to $871.16 per week (or $45,300.32 per year)....

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