Virginia Minimum Wage 2026
Figure basis: Official Virginia Department of Labor and IndustryVirginia's minimum wage is $12.77 per hour in 2026, set by the state and above the federal minimum of $7.25. This Virginia minimum wage calculator turns that hourly rate into the numbers that actually matter to you: weekly, monthly and yearly pay. At $12.77 an hour, someone working a full 40-hour week earns about $510.80 before tax, or roughly $26,561.60 across a full year. Enter your own hours per week and weeks worked to see your gross pay, and edit the rate if you are paid above the minimum. The minimum wage is a floor, not a ceiling: employers can pay more, and some cities in Virginia set their own higher local minimums. Tipped workers can be paid a lower cash wage as long as tips bring them up to the minimum; see the tipped calculator for that. The figure here is the state rate for 2026, sourced directly from the Virginia Department of Labor and Industry; the pay calculation is simply hours times the rate.
Virginia's 2026 minimum wage is $12.77 per hour. Full time (40 hrs/week) that is about $510.80 a week and $26,561.60 a year before tax.
How Virginia minimum wage pay is calculated
weekly pay = hourly rate x hours per week
annual pay = hourly rate x hours per week x weeks per year
overtime = hourly rate x 1.5 (hours over 40 in a week, FLSA)
These are gross figures before federal and Virginia income tax, Social Security and Medicare. Your take-home pay is lower; see our Virginia paycheck calculator for the after-tax amount.
Virginia just put the $15 path back on the calendar
Virginia's minimum wage rose to $12.77 per hour on January 1, 2026, up from $12.41 in 2025, and it is now indexed to inflation. The bigger story is legislative. The 2020 law that was meant to march Virginia to $15 an hour stalled, because its later steps needed a second General Assembly vote that never happened. In April 2026, new legislation (HB1/SB1, signed April 9, 2026) restored the schedule, locking in $13.75 on January 1, 2027 and $15.00 on January 1, 2028. So the $12.77 on this page is a floor that is about to move twice in short order.
For a full-time worker (2,080 hours), $12.77 is roughly $26,561.60 a year before tax, about $11,481.60 more than the $15,080 a federal-minimum worker earns in a neighboring $7.25 state. Virginia uses the federal tip credit: a $2.13 cash wage, with tips expected to bring a tipped worker up to $12.77 an hour. If they fall short in a week, the employer makes up the difference.
A common mistake is to assume the CPI indexing and the legislated jumps stack on top of each other. They do not: the $13.75 and $15.00 figures are fixed in statute, and annual inflation indexing resumes only after the $15.00 step. If you are budgeting payroll for 2027 and 2028, plan around those set figures, then re-check each January.
Virginia minimum wage: frequently asked questions
What is the minimum wage in Virginia in 2026?
Virginia's minimum wage is $12.77 per hour in 2026, set by the state and above the federal minimum of $7.25. At $12.77 an hour, a full-time worker (40 hours a week) earns about $510.80 a week and $26,561.60 a year before tax. This rate took effect on January 1, 2026.
How much is full-time minimum wage in Virginia per year?
At Virginia's $12.77 minimum wage, 40 hours a week for 52 weeks is 2,080 hours, which comes to about $26,561.60 a year ($2,213.47 a month) in gross pay before tax and deductions. Part-time hours scale down from there; use the calculator to enter your own hours.
Does Virginia's minimum wage change every year?
Yes. Virginia adjusts its minimum wage each year for inflation (cost of living), so it typically rises a little every January. $13.75 on 2027-01-01, then $15.00 on 2028-01-01 (HB1/SB1, signed April 9, 2026).. Always check the current figure with the Virginia Department of Labor and Industry before relying on it.
What is the tipped minimum wage in Virginia?
Virginia lets employers pay tipped workers a lower cash wage of $2.13 an hour and count up to $10.64 of tips toward the minimum (a "tip credit"). If cash wage plus tips does not reach $12.77 an hour, the employer must make up the difference. See our Virginia tipped minimum wage calculator for the full breakdown.
Is Virginia's minimum wage higher than the federal minimum wage?
Yes. Virginia's $12.77 is $5.52 an hour above the federal minimum of $7.25, which works out to about $11,481.60 more a year for a full-time worker.
Official sources
- Virginia 2026 minimum wage rate: Virginia Department of Labor and Industry, as at July 16, 2026.
- Federal minimum wage ($7.25) and overtime rules: 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. Rose from $12.41 (2025) to $12.77 (2026). The 2020 path to $15 had lapsed, but 2026 legislation (HB1/SB1, signed April 9, 2026) restored scheduled increases to $13.75 on January 1, 2027 and $15.00 on January 1, 2028.