The Texas minimum wage is $7.25 per hour. State law doesn’t set its own dollar figure; Section 62.051 of the Texas Labor Code simply requires every employer to pay the federal minimum wage set under the Fair Labor Standards Act.1State of Texas. Texas Labor Code 62.051 – Minimum Wage That federal rate has held at $7.25 since July 24, 2009.2Texas Workforce Commission. Texas Minimum Wage Law Because Texas points to the federal statute instead of writing in a number, any future congressional increase would raise pay in Texas automatically. Texas also prohibits cities and counties from setting a higher local wage for private employers, so the $7.25 floor is the same in Houston, Dallas, Austin, and every small town in between.
Tipped Workers: $2.13 Plus Tips
If you regularly make more than $20 a month in tips, your employer can pay a direct cash wage as low as $2.13 per hour and count your tips to cover the remaining $5.12 up to $7.25.3State of Texas. Texas Labor Code 62.052 – Tipped Employees4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC 203 – Definitions If your tips in a given pay period don’t get you to $7.25 an hour across all hours worked, your employer has to make up the difference. That’s not optional.
A few protections ride along with the tip credit. Your employer has to tell you about the arrangement before using it. If they don’t, or if they keep any portion of your tips, they lose the credit and owe you the full $7.25 cash wage.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC 203 – Definitions Mandatory tip pools are allowed, but when the employer takes the tip credit, only workers who customarily get tipped can share the pool. When the employer pays the full $7.25 and skips the credit, back-of-house staff like cooks and dishwashers can be included.5eCFR. Tipped Employees Managers and supervisors cannot take any share of a pool, period.
On credit card tips, the employer can subtract the card company’s processing fee from your tip, but no more than the actual percentage charged, and never enough to drop your pay below minimum wage. Tips have to be paid out by the regular payday, not held while the employer waits on the card company.6U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet #15 – Tipped Employees Under the Fair Labor Standards Act
Workers Under 20: The 90-Day Training Rate
Employees under 20 can be paid as little as $4.25 per hour for their first 90 consecutive calendar days with an employer. The clock starts on day one and runs continuously, including days you don’t work. When those 90 days end, or when you turn 20, whichever comes first, the full $7.25 kicks in.7U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet #32 – Youth Minimum Wage – Fair Labor Standards Act Employers can’t fire existing workers or cut their hours to make room for someone eligible for the youth rate.
Who Isn’t Guaranteed $7.25
Several categories of workers sit outside the minimum wage rules under Texas Labor Code Sections 62.151 through 62.161:8Justia. Texas Labor Code Chapter 62, Subchapter D – Exemptions
- Agricultural workers in farming, ranching, or livestock production.
- Domestic workers performing household tasks in a private residence.
- Certain staff at religious, educational, charitable, and nonprofit organizations, including student learners in vocational programs.
- Professionals, outside salespersons, and public officials under Section 62.153.
- Family members working for a family-owned business.
- Inmates performing work while incarcerated.
- Workers at seasonal amusement or recreational establishments that operate fewer than seven months a year, or whose off-season revenue is less than one-third of peak-season revenue.9U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet #18 – Section 13(a)(3) Exemption for Seasonal Amusement or Recreational Establishments Under the FLSA
- Workers at sheltered workshops employing people with disabilities under special certificates.
Salaried white-collar workers in executive, administrative, or professional roles are also exempt from minimum wage and overtime, but only if they earn at least $684 per week ($35,568 annually) and their actual job duties fit the exemption. As of early 2026, that salary threshold is still in effect after a federal court vacated a 2024 rule that would have raised it.10U.S. Department of Labor. FLSA2026-1 Opinion Letter Hitting the salary number isn’t enough on its own; the work itself has to involve managing other employees, exercising independent judgment on significant matters, or applying specialized advanced knowledge.
One more wrinkle. Minimum wage protections apply only to employees, not independent contractors, and some employers misclassify workers to avoid paying. The label on your pay stub isn’t the final word. What matters is the actual relationship: who controls your schedule, who provides your tools, whether you can genuinely profit or lose based on your own business decisions, and whether you depend economically on a single employer.11U.S. Department of Labor. Notice of Proposed Rule – Employee or Independent Contractor Status Under the Fair Labor Standards Act If you suspect you’ve been misclassified, you can still bring a wage claim.
Overtime
Texas has no state overtime law. Overtime comes from the federal FLSA, which requires 1.5 times your regular rate for every hour worked beyond 40 in a single workweek.12Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC 207 – Maximum Hours At a $7.25 base, overtime is at least $10.88 an hour. The exemption categories above generally apply to overtime too, so exempt white-collar employees and agricultural workers don’t get time-and-a-half.
Overtime is counted by the week, not the day. A 12-hour shift doesn’t trigger overtime on its own if your total weekly hours stay at or below 40. And employers can’t average your hours across two weeks to erase an overtime week.
If You’re Paid Less Than You’re Owed
You have two paths, and they have different deadlines.
Texas Workforce Commission
A wage claim with the TWC has to be filed within 180 days of the date the wages became due. You can file online, by mail, by fax, or in person at a local office. The TWC notifies your employer, who has 14 days to respond, and an investigator issues a Preliminary Wage Determination Order. Either side can appeal in writing within 21 days.13Texas Workforce Commission. Wage Claim and Appeal Process in Texas
U.S. Department of Labor
If you’re covered by the FLSA (most Texas workers are), you can file a free, confidential complaint with the Wage and Hour Division. You’ll need your employer’s name, location, phone number, and a manager’s name, plus details on how and when you were paid. Pay stubs and your own records of hours help but aren’t required.14U.S. Department of Labor. Information You Need to File a Complaint Your employer can’t legally fire or retaliate against you for filing, and immigration status doesn’t affect your right to recover unpaid wages. The federal statute of limitations is two years from the violation, or three years if the violation was willful.15eCFR. 29 CFR 1620.33 – Recovery of Wages Due
What You Can Recover
Under Texas Labor Code Section 62.201, a violating employer owes the unpaid wages plus an equal amount in liquidated damages, which effectively doubles what you’re owed.16State of Texas. Texas Labor Code 62.201 – Civil Penalty The federal remedy under 29 U.S.C. ยง 216(b) works the same way, and a court must also award reasonable attorney’s fees.17Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC 216 – Penalties A court can reduce or wipe out the liquidated damages if the employer proves good faith and a reasonable basis for believing it was complying, but that defense rarely succeeds in straightforward underpayment cases.18Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC 260 – Liquidated Damages Willful violations can bring criminal fines up to $10,000 for a first offense, with potential imprisonment for repeat offenders.19U.S. Department of Labor. Fair Labor Standards Act Advisor
Because the TWC’s 180-day window is much shorter than the federal two- or three-year limit, filing early keeps both doors open.