New Jersey tipped minimum wage 2026
The New Jersey tipped cash wage is $5.62 per hour. Employers may take a tip credit of up to $9.87 per hour, provided the worker's cash wage plus tips reaches the state minimum of $15.49 per hour for every workweek. [DOL Tipped][NJ labor dept.]
Cash wage and tip credit
When tips fall short
If a worker's cash wage plus reported tips do not average to the New Jersey minimum of $15.49 per hour over a workweek, the employer must pay the shortfall. The Tip Credit Checker tool runs the math at /tools/tip-credit. Under the 2021 DOL final rule, time spent on non-tip-producing work above 20 percent of the shift (or 30 continuous minutes) must be paid at the full minimum, not the tip-credited rate. [DOL FS-15]
Background
P.L. 2019 c. 32 phased the rate to $15.13 on 2024-01-01 and CPI-W indexing afterward. Seasonal and small-employer (under 6) rate is $14.53 in 2026. Tipped cash wage of $5.62 per N.J.S.A. 34:11-56a4.