Hawaii Minimum Wage Calculator
Hawaii’s minimum wage is $16 per hour for 2026 and 2027. A covered 40-hour week pays $640 before tips. The often-quoted $14.75 tipped cash amount is available only when tips support the full $1.25 credit; the calculator adjusts that credit when they do not.
Time card Calculate pay for a covered hourly job
Weekly gross including tips—
Confirm coverage to calculate.
- Hourly floor—
- Per workday—
- Weekly gross—
- Monthly average—
- Yearly gross—
- Employer cash before shortfall
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- Weekly tips retained
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- Employer tip-credit adjustment
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- Total employer cash
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Overtime uses the full regular rate before subtracting a permitted tip credit. The employer adjustment restores cash pay when weekly tips do not support the maximum credit under Hawaii’s $7 buffer rule. This floor scenario does not calculate pay at a higher agreed rate. Per-workday pay divides the week by the days with hours. Annual figures repeat the rounded weekly result.
Reviewed rate period: 2026-01-01 through 2027-12-31. Gross earnings before taxes or deductions. Annual figures repeat this weekly scenario; they do not combine different rate periods.
Reviewed October 2, 2026. The next scheduled general rate is $18 on January 1, 2028, outside this tool’s reviewed period. Hawaii DLIR minimum-wage schedule.
Hawaii’s $7 buffer makes its tip calculation different
The state’s guide requires ordinary cash wages plus tips to reach at least $23 per hour when claiming a credit in 2026–2027: $16 plus $7. Full credit requires average tips of at least $8.25 per hour. Between $7 and $8.25, only a partial credit is supported. At $7 or less, this minimum-floor model uses the full $16 cash wage. DLIR tip-credit guide, Exhibit 4.
| 40-hour week | Tips per hour | Supported credit per hour | Employer cash | Cash plus tips |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $200 retained tips | $5.00 | $0 | $640.00 | $840.00 |
| $300 retained tips | $7.50 | $0.50 | $620.00 | $920.00 |
| $330 retained tips | $8.25 | $1.25 | $590.00 | $920.00 |
| $400 retained tips | $10.00 | $1.25 | $590.00 | $990.00 |
The result starts with cash at the maximum credit and shows an employer adjustment when less credit is supported. At $300 tips, the initial $590 cash becomes $620 after a $30 adjustment. At $200 tips, the entire $50 credit is restored. That last example totals $840; the law’s credit condition does not make $920 an unconditional wage guarantee when no credit is taken.
Which tips and employees belong in the calculation?
The Hawaii notice uses more than $20 in customary monthly tips to define a tipped employee. Federal tip-credit eligibility must also be satisfied where applicable. Enter the tips retained for the same workweek and eligible occupation as the hours. The state guide averages weekly tips over hours worked; unrelated tips from another job do not support this employer’s credit. Tip-credit notice and weekly calculation example.
Hawaii’s administrative rule requires a communicated tip-credit policy and records of tips and the credit claimed. Its policy-change restriction also matters: an employer should not treat this estimator as permission to change compensation arrangements week by week to evade the rule. HAR § 12-20-11, tipped wages and records.
Overtime uses $16 before subtracting the supported credit
Ordinary weekly overtime starts after 40 hours. For 45 hours without a credit, pay is $760: $640 for the first 40 and $120 for the next five. With $450 tips, the full $1.25 credit is supported; employer cash is $703.75 and total gross is $1,153.75. The overtime cash rate is $22.75, calculated as $24 minus $1.25. Tips exceeding the credit are not added to the overtime regular rate. HAR § 12-20-11(d).
Hawaii distinguishes ordinary weekly overtime from state or county public-works construction, where daily and specified weekend or holiday rules can apply. This calculator excludes those contracts. DLIR overtime and coverage FAQ.
Annual gross is not a salary exemption or a living-cost estimate
Forty hours for 52 weeks at $16 produces $33,280, or $2,773.33 per month on average. These conversions do not determine whether a guaranteed salary is exempt under Hawaii law or whether a separate federal exemption applies. They also do not estimate rent, household needs or after-tax spending power. Use the weeks field for a shorter period of employment.
For another Pacific workplace, review California minimum wage, Alaska minimum wage, Oregon minimum wage or Washington minimum wage separately; their treatment of tips differs from Hawaii’s credit system.
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Updated First published