Kansas Tipped Minimum Wage 2026
Figure basis: Official Kansas Department of LaborKansas lets employers pay tipped workers a cash wage of $2.13 an hour and take a tip credit of up to $5.12, as long as tips bring total pay to at least the $7.25 minimum wage. This Kansas tipped minimum wage calculator shows what that means in practice. Enter your average tips per hour and your weekly hours, and it works out whether your tips clear the tip credit, whether your employer owes you a top-up to reach the $7.25 minimum, and your effective hourly, weekly and yearly pay. A tip credit lets an employer pay a lower direct cash wage and count part of your tips toward the regular minimum wage, but it can never leave you below the minimum: if tips fall short in a given week, the law requires the employer to make up the difference. The cash wage, tip credit and minimum wage used here are the 2026 figures for Kansas, sourced from the Kansas Department of Labor. Tips you earn above the minimum are always yours to keep.
Kansas tipped workers get a cash wage of $2.13/hr, with up to a $5.12 tip credit toward the $7.25 minimum wage.
How the Kansas tipped wage and tip credit work
cash wage = $2.13/hr (paid by employer)
total before top-up = cash wage + your tips per hour
if total < $7.25: employer tops up to $7.25
effective pay = greater of (cash + tips) and $7.25
These are gross figures before tax. Tips are taxable income and must be reported. For your after-tax pay, see the Kansas paycheck calculator, and for the regular rate the Kansas minimum wage calculator.
What the Kansas tip credit really covers
Kansas mirrors the federal tip-credit structure exactly. An employer can pay a tipped worker a direct cash wage of $2.13 an hour and claim a tip credit of up to $5.12, the pair summing to the $7.25 Kansas minimum. The important idea is that the $2.13 is a floor on cash, not a cap on what you take home: your tips sit on top, and the credit is simply how much of those tips the employer is allowed to count toward the regular minimum wage.
The tip credit is conditional, not automatic. The employer has to notify you that it intends to use it, and you must be allowed to keep your tips except where a lawful tip pool spreads them among staff who customarily earn tips. Miss either condition and the lawful wage reverts to the full $7.25 in cash.
Checking that you were made whole is a weekly calculation. Add every dollar of cash wages and tips for the workweek, divide by hours worked, and compare against $7.25 an hour. Any shortfall is money your employer legally owes you that week. A slow Tuesday does not by itself create a top-up; the law looks at the week as a whole. Keep a running note of your hours and tips so you can check it against your pay stub, and verify the current cash wage and tip credit with the Kansas Department of Labor before relying on them.
Kansas tipped minimum wage: frequently asked questions
What is the tipped minimum wage in Kansas in 2026?
In Kansas, the minimum cash wage for tipped employees is $2.13 an hour in 2026. Employers may count up to $5.12 an hour of tips (the "tip credit") toward the $7.25 minimum wage. If an employee's cash wage plus tips does not average at least $7.25 an hour, the employer must pay the difference.
Does Kansas allow a tip credit?
Yes. Kansas allows employers to take a tip credit of up to $5.12 an hour, meaning the direct cash wage can be as low as $2.13 an hour provided tips make up the rest to $7.25. The federal tip-credit floor is a $2.13 cash wage.
What happens if my tips do not reach minimum wage in Kansas?
Your employer must make up the shortfall. In any week where your cash wage of $2.13 plus your tips does not average at least $7.25 an hour, Kansas and federal law require the employer to top your pay up to $7.25. You should never earn less than the full minimum wage once tips are counted.
How much does a tipped worker make in Kansas?
It depends on tips, but here is a worked example: a server working 30 hours a week and averaging $12.00 an hour in tips. Cash wage $2.13 plus $12.00 tips is $14.13 an hour, which is above the $7.25 minimum, so the effective rate is $14.13 an hour, about $423.90 a week or $22,042.80 a year before tax. Use the calculator with your own tips and hours.
Is the tip credit the same as the tipped wage?
No, they are two sides of the same figure. The "tipped minimum wage" (or tipped cash wage) is what the employer pays directly: $2.13 in Kansas. The "tip credit" is how much of your tips the employer is allowed to count toward the regular minimum wage: $5.12 in Kansas. Cash wage plus tip credit equals the $7.25 minimum wage.
Official sources
- Kansas 2026 tipped and minimum wage figures: Kansas Department of Labor, as at July 11, 2026.
- Federal tip credit and the $2.13 cash-wage floor: US Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division.
Reviewed by the CalculatorHub team, edited by James Graham, 11 July 2026. See our methodology. General information, not legal or financial advice. Kansas permits a $2.13 tipped cash wage with a $5.12 tip credit, matching the federal FLSA.