Nebraska Tipped Minimum Wage 2026
Figure basis: Official Nebraska Department of LaborNebraska lets employers pay tipped workers a cash wage of $2.13 an hour and take a tip credit of up to $12.87, as long as tips bring total pay to at least the $15.00 minimum wage. This Nebraska 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 $15.00 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 Nebraska, sourced from the Nebraska Department of Labor. Tips you earn above the minimum are always yours to keep.
Nebraska tipped workers get a cash wage of $2.13/hr, with up to a $12.87 tip credit toward the $15.00 minimum wage.
How the Nebraska 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 < $15.00: employer tops up to $15.00
effective pay = greater of (cash + tips) and $15.00
These are gross figures before tax. Tips are taxable income and must be reported. For your after-tax pay, see the Nebraska paycheck calculator, and for the regular rate the Nebraska minimum wage calculator.
Nebraska's $2.13 cash wage against a $15.00 floor
Nebraska produced one of the widest gaps in the country between the cash wage and the minimum. The state raised its minimum to $15.00 for 2026, the final step of Initiative 433 from the 2022 ballot, but left the tipped cash wage at the federal $2.13 an hour. That leaves an unusually large tip credit of $12.87, so the cash portion of a tipped paycheck can be a small fraction of total pay until the tips land.
The size of that credit makes the make-whole check especially important. Add your $2.13 cash wage to your tips per hour; the total must average at least $15.00 for every hour worked. Because $2.13 covers only a sliver of the floor, you rely on close to $12.87 an hour in tips to clear the minimum, and in any week you fall short the employer must pay the difference up to $15.00.
Keep a tip record and compare it with each pay stub, since the entire $15.00 guarantee rests on tips being counted correctly. From 2027 the minimum is indexed to the Midwest CPI-U, so the floor will keep rising while the $2.13 cash wage stays put unless lawmakers change it, widening the tip credit further.
Nebraska tipped minimum wage: frequently asked questions
What is the tipped minimum wage in Nebraska in 2026?
In Nebraska, the minimum cash wage for tipped employees is $2.13 an hour in 2026. Employers may count up to $12.87 an hour of tips (the "tip credit") toward the $15.00 minimum wage. If an employee's cash wage plus tips does not average at least $15.00 an hour, the employer must pay the difference.
Does Nebraska allow a tip credit?
Yes. Nebraska allows employers to take a tip credit of up to $12.87 an hour, meaning the direct cash wage can be as low as $2.13 an hour provided tips make up the rest to $15.00. The federal tip-credit floor is a $2.13 cash wage.
What happens if my tips do not reach minimum wage in Nebraska?
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 $15.00 an hour, Nebraska and federal law require the employer to top your pay up to $15.00. You should never earn less than the full minimum wage once tips are counted.
How much does a tipped worker make in Nebraska?
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 $15.00 minimum, so the effective rate is $15.00 an hour, about $450.00 a week or $23,400.00 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 Nebraska. The "tip credit" is how much of your tips the employer is allowed to count toward the regular minimum wage: $12.87 in Nebraska. Cash wage plus tip credit equals the $15.00 minimum wage.
Official sources
- Nebraska 2026 tipped and minimum wage figures: Nebraska 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. The employer must ensure cash wage plus tips equals at least $15.00/hr.