New Yorkers working minimum wage jobs can expect a slight increase in their pay in 2026. New York State’s minimum wage is set to increase by 50 cents. In 2024, the minimum wage rate was $16 per hour in New York City, Westchester County, and Long Island. In 2025, it increased to $16.50.
Just as the rate spiked by $0.50 this year, it is scheduled to increase by the same amount next year. In 2026, minimum wage will rise to $17 per hour in New York City, Westchester County, and Long Island. For others across the state, the minimum wage will rise to $16 per hour.
Beginning in 2027, the minimum wage will annually increase by the three-year moving average of the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) for the Northeast Region, the most accurate regional measure of inflation…