What’s the minimum wage for servers in Massachusetts?

Massachusetts at a glance

As of the U.S. Department of Labor table revised July 1, 2026. Your city may set a higher rate.

What’s different in Massachusetts

Both numbers sit well above the federal floor. Federal law lets an employer pay a tipped worker $2.13 in cash against a $7.25 minimum. Here the cash line on your pay stub starts at $6.75, which is money you get whether the dining room is packed or empty.

The bar for being treated as tipped is low. The DOL table lists the Massachusetts threshold as more than $20 in tips a month, so even someone who picks up a handful of tipped shifts can be paid at the $6.75 rate instead of the full $15.00.

For context, waiters and waitresses in the state had a median of $18.49 an hour in the May 2025 BLS survey. Employers supply that estimate and it folds in reported tips, so read it as a loose benchmark, not a promise about your own shifts.

Example shift

Say you work 6 hours and walk out with $120 in tips (illustrative numbers; use your own).

1. Wages: $6.75 × 6 = $40.50.
2. With tips: $40.50 + $120 = $160.50, or $26.75 an hour.
3. If your tips for the week don’t bring you to $15.00 an hour, federal law says your employer has to make up the difference.

What servers earn: BLS estimates the median hourly wage for waiters and waitresses in Massachusetts was $18.49 in May 2025. BLS counts tips in this figure, but the numbers come from employers’ estimates, so they may not reflect all the tips servers receive.

Check your own week: Am I being paid at least minimum wage?