New Jersey tipped minimum wage (2026)
New Jersey sets a tipped cash wage of $6.05/hr — above the federal $2.13 — with employers allowed to count up to $9.87/hr of your tips toward the $15.92/hr minimum.
Note: Tip credit allowed only if tipped employees are informed in advance of the cash wage, the tip credit claimed, and tip-retention/tip-pool rules. A $15.23 minimum wage applies to employers with fewer than 6 employees and to seasonal employment.
How New Jersey compares
At $6.05/hr, New Jersey ranks 16th of the 47 states with a single published tipped cash wage. No other state pays tipped workers exactly $6.05/hr.
Tips have to cover 62% of your $15.92/hr minimum here. On a shift where they don't, the shortfall is your employer's to pay — but only if you can show what you actually made.
Thirty hours on the schedule guarantees $181.50 before tips, $117.60 more than the same week would guarantee under the federal $2.13 floor.
Nearest rates on either side: Massachusetts at $6.75 and South Dakota at $5.93.
New Jersey pays at least as much as every state it borders (Delaware $2.23, Pennsylvania $2.83), so crossing a state line does not raise your base wage.
What's different about tipped work in New Jersey
The disclosure is the condition, not a formality: without it the $9.87 credit is not available and the employer owes the full $15.92.
New Jersey only allows the tip credit if the employer tells the worker in advance what the cash wage is, how much credit is being claimed, and how tip retention works.
The number that actually matters
Official wage tables lean on reported pay and miss most cash tips, so your real hourly — cash plus card, minus tip-out — lives only in your own records. That's the number that tells you whether a shift was worth it, and the one you'll need at tax time.
Simulate a New Jersey shift
Legal minimums are the floor. Enter a real shift — your actual hourly is what decides whether the night was worth it.
Federal tipped minimum cash wage is $2.13/hr — but many states require more, and if tips don't bring you to the full minimum wage ($7.25 federal), your employer must make up the difference. Enter your state's tipped minimum as the base wage for an accurate number.
Quick answers
What is the tipped minimum wage in New Jersey?＋
Employers in New Jersey must pay tipped workers a cash wage of at least $6.05/hr, and tips must bring total pay to at least $15.92/hr. Figures as of July 1, 2026 (US DOL).
Can my New Jersey employer take a tip credit?＋
Yes, up to $9.87/hr — but only if your tips actually cover the gap. If they don't, the employer must make up the difference.
What if my tips don't reach the full minimum wage?＋
Federal law (FLSA) requires your employer to make up the difference whenever cash wage + tips falls below the applicable minimum wage for the pay period. Track every shift so you can prove a shortfall.
Source: U.S. DOL Wage and Hour Division (July 1, 2026). Federal floor: $2.13 cash / $7.25 total. Not legal advice — local ordinances (city minimum wages) may set higher rates.
Compare with other states
Working out what a shift actually paid you? Run it through the tips-to-hourly calculator — base pay plus tips, minus tip-out, divided by the hours you really worked.
TipScan reads your checkout slip and computes your real hourly every shift — with New Jersey's wage rules built in. Free, no ads.
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