Minimum Wage in Texas – weekly, monthly, annually

In Texas, the minimum hourly wage is $7.25, which is equal to the federal minimum wage. In the last year, more than half of all states have raised their minimum wage rates, but Texas did not.

Like in most states, the cost of living in Texas has gone up considerably while income is flat. The fact of the matter is that Texas hasn’t adjusted its minimum wage rate since 2009 when the state implemented the federal hourly minimum pay of $7.25.

Studies have shown that the average single adult (without any dependents) must earn at least $16.41 in Texas to live with reasonable living standards, so a minimum pay raise for Lone Star State workers is long overdue.

Still, some major cities like Austin and Houston have passed legislation to offer workers a livable wage. Austin’s minimum wage, for example, changed to $15 an hour, and in Houston, the minimum pay of airport workers is $13.00 an hour, while for municipal workers, a minimum wage rate of $15.00 an hour applies.

Not all employees, however, receive the minimum wage rate in Texas, as several employees are exempt. Tipped employees, for example, may be paid under the minimum wage level, but if they don’t make $7.25 an hour, the employer needs to compensate the worker for the difference.

In Texas, an employee can be considered a tipped worker if he or she earns $20 or more in tips on a monthly basis rather than the $30 a month that’s specified in the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

But there are more exempt groups. Standard exemptions to Texas’ minimum wage regulations include farm and ranch workers, domestic employees, full-time students, and workers at certain recreational and seasonal businesses.

Texas Paycheck Calculator

Our Texas Paycheck Calculator displays your hourly wage transformed into annual, weekly, or monthly earnings.

How to use our Texas paycheck calculator

1. First, enter your hourly wage.
2. Second, enter your weekly working hours.
3. Our paycheck calculator instantly shows you what that means in terms of weekly, annual, and monthly wages.

How does this Texas paycheck calculator work?

Employees paid by the hour may only with difficulty determine how their hourly wage relates to periodical earnings, like per week, month, or year.

For employees paid per week or month, that’s different. So to help these hourly workers determine how their hourly pay translates to periodical earnings, like per month, year, or week, we designed this paycheck calculator.

Let’s see how it works: when you enter your hourly wage and how many hours you work each week, the paycheck immediately shows you your pay translated to annual, weekly, and monthly wages.

These results are generated by multiplying your base hourly pay by the number of hours, weeks, or months you work annually, assuming you work 40 hours a week.

Minimum Wage in Texas

So in Texas, the hourly minimum pay is $7.25. This translates to $58.00 per day, $290.00 per week (at 40 working hours), $1256.67 per month, or $15,080.00 per year.

As mentioned earlier, not every Texas worker will receive the minimum hourly wage. There are groups, like farm workers, nonprofit workers, tipped employees, and students, that may be exempt from Texas’ or FLSA (Fair Labor Standards Act) rules.

Texas minimum wage exemptions

In Texas, several categories of workers are exempt from minimum pay and overtime regulations. The following overview is not a complete listing, but it includes the most common categories:

• Workers for nonprofit, educational, religious, or charitable are exempt, as are sheltered workshop workers.
• Elected officials, business professionals, executives, administrators, outside salespersons, or people that hold public offices may hold exempt status.
• Domestic workers such as babysitters and housekeepers may be exempt, as are companions for the elderly and infirm.
• Tipped workers are exempt. If a worker’s hourly pay (including tips), however, doesn’t reach $7.25, the employer is obligated to pay the difference.
• Youth younger than 20 years of age may receive $4.25 an hour as a training wage for up to 90 days.
• Full-time students can be paid 85 percent (so $6.16) of Texas’ minimum hourly pay if they engage in a work-study project at a university or college on a part-time basis (20 hours a week max).
• In Texas, inmates are also exempt from the state’s minimum pay rates, and for an employer’s family members, the same applies.
• Workers in the recreational and amusement sector may be exempt, as are employees in the dairying and production of livestock businesses.

All Texas employers are required to clearly display state-designated informative posters with minimum pay and overtime information in prominent places, so their workers can learn all about Texas and federal wage requirements and labor rights.

Texas overtime wage

FLSA (Fair Labor Standards Act) regulations order Texas employers to pay their workers 1.5 times the regular hourly wage if they put in more than 40 hours in a regular work week. This means that qualifying overtime hours are paid at least at a rate of $10.88 in Texas. However, some workers are exempt. The following is not a complete overview, but it lists the most common groups:

• Individuals working for charitable, nonprofit, educational, or religious organizations and agencies may be exempt from Texas’s overtime wage regulations.
• Some agricultural workers, outside salespersons, and individuals working a commission base are exempt from Texas’ overtime rules.
• Executives, professionals, and administrators are exempt from Texas’ overtime laws, but they need to make at least $684 per week.
• Fire protection workers, elected officials, and law enforcement employees may also be exempt.

Please note that this post doesn’t contain legal advice. If you have any questions about Texas’ minimum wage policies or minimum wage compliance, consult a tax professional or a tax attorney.