The minimum wage in Georgia is $7.25 an hour for almost every worker as of October 2026, because that's the federal rate and it overrides the state's lower figure. Georgia's own law sets $5.15 an hour, but it only covers employers of 6 or more employees whose work isn't already covered by the federal Fair Labor Standards Act.
I've checked this against the U.S. Department of Labor's state and tipped wage tables and the Georgia Department of Labor's employment laws page in October 2026. The odd part is that Georgia's own labor department doesn't publish a state rate page at all. Its laws page sends employers straight to the federal Fair Labor Standards Act guidance for minimum wage and overtime.
The two Georgia rates side by side
| Rate | Hourly amount (as of October 2026) | Who it applies to |
|---|---|---|
| Federal minimum wage | $7.25 | Employers covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act, which is most of them |
| Georgia state minimum wage | $5.15 | Employers of 6 or more employees, only where the federal law doesn't apply |
| Tipped cash wage (federal rule) | $2.13 | Tipped staff, as long as tips bring them up to $7.25 |
The U.S. Department of Labor puts it plainly: Georgia's law excludes any employment that's subject to the Fair Labor Standards Act when the federal rate is higher than the state rate. Since $7.25 beats $5.15, the federal rate wins wherever the federal law reaches.
Who could ever be paid $5.15
Very few people. The federal law covers businesses above its sales threshold and, separately, any worker whose job touches interstate commerce, such as handling goods from out of state, using the phone or internet across state lines, or processing card payments. Those tests catch most shops, cafes, offices and trade businesses in Georgia.
The state's $5.15 only bites on a narrow leftover: an employer with 6 or more staff whose work sits completely outside federal coverage. If you employ fewer than 6 people, the state law doesn't apply at all, and you're back to whether the federal law covers you. My honest advice is to treat $7.25 as the Georgia floor unless an employment lawyer tells you otherwise in writing.
Tipped workers in Georgia
Here's the detail most pages skip. The U.S. Department of Labor's tipped wage table notes that Georgia has a state minimum wage law, but it doesn't apply to tipped employees. So tipped pay in Georgia runs entirely on the federal rule.
| Tipped pay item | Amount (as of October 2026) |
|---|---|
| Combined cash wage and tips must reach | $7.25 |
| Maximum tip credit an employer can take | $5.12 |
| Minimum cash wage the employer pays | $2.13 |
| Tips needed to count as a tipped employee | More than $30 a month |
If a server's tips don't bring them up to $7.25 for the week, the employer has to make up the difference. If your team shares tips, my guide to tip pooling covers who can and can't be in the pool.
Overtime for Georgia employers
Georgia doesn't publish its own overtime rate in the federal table, so overtime follows the federal law: time and a half for hours over 40 in a workweek for non-exempt staff. There's no daily overtime in Georgia. A worker can do a 12-hour shift without a premium, as long as the week stays at or under 40 hours. My overtime laws guide explains which salaried roles are exempt.
Georgia's rate history
| Year (1 January) | Georgia state rate | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 1988 to 2001 | $3.25 | Employers of 6 or more |
| 2002 onward | $5.15 | Employers of 6 or more |
| As of October 2026 | $5.15 | Federal $7.25 applies to covered jobs |
The Department of Labor's history table shows Georgia hasn't changed its state figure since 2002. Wyoming is the only other state still listing $5.15 in the federal table, so Georgia and Wyoming share the lowest state rates in the country on paper, while their workers are paid the federal rate in practice.
How Georgia sits against its neighbours
| State | State minimum wage (as of October 2026) | What employers pay |
|---|---|---|
| Georgia | $5.15 | $7.25 federal for covered jobs |
| Alabama | No state law | $7.25 federal |
| South Carolina | No state law | $7.25 federal |
| Tennessee | No state law | $7.25 federal |
| North Carolina | $7.25 | $7.25 |
Florida is the outlier in the region with its own much higher state rate, which I cover in my Florida minimum wage guide. If you hire remote staff across the state line, pay the rate where each person works.
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Checks before you set Georgia pay
- Assume the Fair Labor Standards Act covers you, so $7.25 an hour is your minimum.
- For tipped staff, pay at least $2.13 in cash and top up any week where tips fall short of $7.25.
- Pay time and a half after 40 hours in a week for non-exempt staff.
- Check whether any city or county contract you hold sets a higher wage for that work.
- Keep time records, because the federal law expects them for every non-exempt worker.
My verdict
Georgia's $5.15 is a number that looks important and almost never matters. For real payroll decisions in Georgia, $7.25 an hour is the floor, $2.13 is the tipped cash wage, and overtime starts after 40 hours. If you're comparing pay across the country, my federal minimum wage guide shows which states pay more.
Frequently asked questions
What is the minimum wage in Georgia?
It's $7.25 an hour for jobs covered by the federal Fair Labor Standards Act, which is almost all of them, as of October 2026.
Why does Georgia have a $5.15 minimum wage?
That's the state law's figure, unchanged since 2002. It only applies to employers of 6 or more where the federal law doesn't.
What is the tipped minimum wage in Georgia?
Tipped staff can be paid $2.13 an hour in cash, with tips bringing them to at least $7.25. Georgia's state law doesn't cover tipped employees.
Is Georgia raising its minimum wage?
The federal tables checked in October 2026 show no scheduled change to Georgia's $5.15 state rate.
Does Georgia have daily overtime?
No. Overtime follows the federal rule of time and a half after 40 hours in a workweek.
Can small businesses in Georgia pay less than $7.25?
Only if the job falls outside federal coverage, and that's rare because handling out-of-state goods or card payments usually brings a job under the federal law.
