Tipped Minimum Wage in New Hampshire (2026)
New Hampshire nudges the federal tipped-wage numbers upward: a $3.27 cash wage instead of $2.13, and a slightly smaller tip credit as a result. The minimum itself stays at $7.25. Here is how the credit works, what your employer owes you in a slow week, and where the state's small differences show up in your overtime rate.
By the TippedPay editorial team · Updated $1
Key numbers at a glance
| Rule | Federal | New Hampshire (2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Full minimum wage | $7.25 | $7.25 — same |
| Tipped cash wage | $2.13 | $3.27 |
| Maximum tip credit | $5.12 | $3.98 |
| Top-up when tips fall short | Required every workweek | Required every workweek |
How New Hampshire tipped pay works
New Hampshire requires employers to pay tipped staff at least $3.27 an hour in cash wages and allows a tip credit of up to $3.98 against the $7.25 minimum, per the U.S. Department of Labor table, July 2026. In practice the state runs the federal playbook with one twist: the employer must put a little more cash on the table ($3.27 versus the federal $2.13) and may count a little less of your tips toward the wage ($3.98 versus the federal $5.12). Tips bridge the remaining gap.
The guarantee is the weekly floor. Cash wage plus tips must average at least $7.25 for every hour of the workweek — measured week by week, never averaged across weeks, and within a week a strong Saturday cannot prop up a dead Tuesday. Run the numbers: 30 hours at $3.27 is $98.10 from the employer, and the weekly floor is 30 × $7.25 = $217.50. Keep $250 in tips and you finish at $348.10, comfortably clear. Keep only $80 and cash plus tips comes to $178.10 — short by $39.40, which must appear on your check as make-up pay. Our server paycheck calculator runs this top-up check on your own hours and tips in seconds.
Because the state minimum matches the federal $7.25, New Hampshire tipped protections are essentially the federal protections — the weekly top-up, the full-minimum overtime basis, the ban on managers in tip pools. Neighboring states have moved to higher minimums with much larger guaranteed cash wages; the state-by-state table shows how wide that gap has grown for the same job.
New Hampshire vs. the federal $2.13 system
| Rule | Federal | New Hampshire (2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Full minimum wage | $7.25 | $7.25 — same |
| Tipped cash wage | $2.13 | $3.27 |
| Maximum tip credit | $5.12 | $3.98 |
| Top-up when tips fall short | Required every workweek | Required every workweek |
| Overtime basis | Full minimum — OT cash rate ≈ $5.76 | Full minimum — OT cash rate ≈ $6.90 |
| Tip pools | Employees only, never managers | Employees only, never managers |
The differences look small on paper and are not small in the OT column. Every extra dollar of required cash wage flows straight into the overtime rate, because tipped overtime is computed from the cash wage plus half the full minimum. New Hampshire's $1.14-an-hour premium over the federal cash wage becomes real money across a summer of double shifts.
What New Hampshire servers should watch
The top-up, checked weekly. A $7.25 floor is low enough that a mediocre week can still fall under it once tip-outs are subtracted. Track hours and kept tips per workweek; if the average lands under $7.25, the difference is owed as make-up pay — automatically, by law, not as a favor.
Overtime at the state rate, not the federal one. New Hampshire overtime rides on the full minimum, and the OT cash rate is the cash wage plus half the minimum: $3.27 plus about $3.63, roughly $6.90 an hour, plus your tips. An employer using the federal $5.76 formula — or worse, time-and-a-half on $3.27 — is shorting every overtime hour. The overtime calculator shows the exact figure for your week.
Tip pool membership. Tip pools are legal for employees only, never managers or supervisors. A manager taking a share is the classic violation, and it is the one that can void the employer's tip credit — jumping every affected server's cash wage to the full minimum for the affected period.
Your real number. A $3.27 base with $26 an hour in tips is a $29-an-hour job in disguise. Compute your effective hourly — total wages plus kept tips, divided by hours — before comparing this job to any other offer. In a state with a $7.25 floor, the tips are the wage; the floor only matters when they fail.
FAQ
What is the tipped minimum wage in New Hampshire in 2026?
$3.27 per hour in cash wages. New Hampshire allows a tip credit of up to $3.98 against the $7.25 minimum, with tips covering the gap.
Why is New Hampshire's tipped cash wage higher than $2.13?
New Hampshire sets its own tipped cash wage above the federal floor: $3.27 an hour in cash, with a $3.98 maximum tip credit against the $7.25 minimum.
What happens if my tips don't reach $7.25 an hour in New Hampshire?
The employer must top up the difference for that workweek, bringing your total to at least $7.25 for every hour. The check happens weekly — a strong week cannot cover a slow one.
How is overtime calculated for tipped employees in New Hampshire?
Overtime is based on the full minimum, not the $3.27 cash wage. The OT cash rate equals the cash wage plus half the minimum: $3.27 plus about $3.63, or about $6.90 per overtime hour, plus your tips.
Can managers take part in a tip pool in New Hampshire?
No. Tip pools are for employees only — managers and supervisors may never keep any share of tipped employees' tips.
How do I calculate my real weekly pay in New Hampshire?
Cash wage times hours, plus the tips you kept, checked against the $7.25-per-hour weekly floor. A paycheck calculator that runs the top-up rule automatically is the fastest way.