---
title: "Server Minimum Wage in Rhode Island (2026)"
url: https://www.tipmaxapp.com/us/answers/rhode-island/server-wage
language: en
publisher: TipMax (Entermaurs Incorporated)
date_published: 2026-09-23
last_verified: 2026-09-23
---

# What’s the minimum wage for servers in Rhode Island?

**Short answer:** Rhode Island sets its minimum wage at $16.00 an hour, and tipped servers can be paid a cash wage of $3.89. With the tip credit, your employer counts tips toward the remaining part of $16.00. It’s the employer’s job to make sure cash wage and tips together hit $16.00 for every hour, or to pay the gap itself.

## Rhode Island at a glance

| Rule | Rhode Island | Federal |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Minimum wage | $16.00 | Federal: $7.25 |
| Tipped cash wage (paid before tips) | $3.89 | Federal: $2.13 |
| Can tips count toward minimum wage? | Yes | DOL: Yes |

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

## What’s different in Rhode Island

Rhode Island pairs a high overall minimum with a low cash wage. At $16.00, the minimum is more than double the federal $7.25, yet the $3.89 cash floor sits much closer to the federal $2.13 than to the state minimum. Tips are expected to cover most of each hour.

That structure makes the top-up rule matter more than usual. On a dead weekday lunch, $3.89 and a few small tips can land far below $16.00 an hour, and the gap is the employer’s responsibility. Your own notes on hours and tips are how you spot a missing top-up.

Rhode Island counts you as tipped once you receive more than $30 a month in tips. The May 2025 BLS median for waiters and waitresses in the state was $17.03, just above the minimum. Employers estimate that number and it includes reported tips.

## Example shift

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

1. Wages: $3.89 × 6 = **$23.34**.
2. With tips: $23.34 + $120 = **$143.34**, or **$23.89 an hour**.
3. If your tips for the week don’t bring you to $16.00 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 Rhode Island was **$17.03** in May 2025. BLS counts tips in this figure, but the numbers come from employers’ estimates.

Check your own week: https://www.tipmaxapp.com/tools/tipped-wage-check

## Official sources

- [U.S. Department of Labor: Minimum wages for tipped employees (state table)](https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/state/minimum-wage/tipped)
- [U.S. Department of Labor: State minimum wage laws](https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/minimum-wage/state)
- [BLS: Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, waiters and waitresses (35-3031)](https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes353031.htm)
- [Rhode Island labor agency](http://www.dlt.ri.gov/)

## Last verified

September 23, 2026. Checked the U.S. Department of Labor state tables (revised July 1, 2026) and BLS OEWS May 2025.

## About TipMax

Rhode Island’s $3.89 cash wage has to reach $16.00 with tips every hour, so tracking slow shifts on their own shows when your employer owed you a top-up.

TipMax is an iPhone app for servers and bartenders that tracks tips and tip-outs and turns a restaurant menu into study flashcards.

Download TipMax free: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/tipmax-study-track-earn/id6744850146

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TipMax Answers explains public government guidance on pay and workplace rules in plain English for tipped workers. It is **not legal, tax, or accounting advice**. Rules change and local rules can add to them. Confirm with the agency linked on this page or a qualified professional. TipMax the app helps you track tips and pay; it doesn’t enforce wage law or decide disputes.