Maine’s minimum wage workers will earn a little more next year.
The state’s minimum wage is set to increase to $15.70 per hour, from $15.10, starting Jan. 1, 2027. For a full-time worker, that will amount to an additional $24 per week, or $1,248 per year, before taxes.
The Maine Department of Labor announced the increase on Friday, saying it is based on data recently made available by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The minimum wage for service workers who receive tips will increase to $7.85 per hour, from $7.55. The employer will have to show that the employee receives at least the minimum wage of $15.70 per hour when the hourly wage and tips are combined at the end of the week, according to the Maine DOL.
The new threshold for salaried workers to be exempt from overtime pay will be $905.79 per week, or $47,101.08 per year. Based on other factors, a worker can earn more than the minimum salary threshold and still be eligible for overtime, the department said.
The department is required to adjust the minimum wage based on the cost-of-living index for urban wage earners and clerical workers (CPI-W) in the Northeast Region, after Maine voters amended the law by referendum in 2016.
From August 2025 and August 2026, there was a 4.1% increase in the CPI-W, according to the DOL. The minimum wage increase announced on Friday is just shy of 4%.
More information about the minimum wage and other labor standards can be found on the Maine Department of Labor’s website.
