Tipped Minimum Wage in Rockville (2026)
Rockville does not print its own wage poster — it inherits one of the strongest local minimum wage laws in the country. Montgomery County's rates apply inside the city, and as of July 1, 2026 they run $18.00 an hour at large employers, tiered down to $15.95 at the smallest, with a $4.00-an-hour cash floor for tipped staff. Here is how the tiers, the tip credit and the weekly make-up math actually work for a Rockville server.
By the TippedPay editorial team · Updated $1
Key numbers at a glance
| Rule | Federal | Maryland (2026) | Rockville via Montgomery County (July 1, 2026) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full minimum wage | $7.25 | $15.00 | $18.00 (51+), $16.50 (11–50), $15.95 (≤10) |
| Tipped cash wage | $2.13 | $3.63 | $4.00 |
| Tip credit | Up to $5.12/hour | Up to $11.37/hour | Up to $14.00/hour at the large tier |
| Top-up rule | Weekly make-up pay | Weekly make-up + Tip Credit Wage Statement | Weekly make-up + Tip Credit Wage Statement |
How Rockville tipped pay works
Rockville has no separate city minimum wage, so the Montgomery County minimum wage law governs its restaurants. The county tiers by employer size and adjusts each July 1 with the regional CPI-W: from July 1, 2026, employers with 51 or more employees owe at least $18.00 an hour, those with 11 to 50 owe $16.50, and those with 10 or fewer owe $15.95 — per the county's Office of Human Rights and the Maryland Department of Labor, which lists the county rates on its wage law page. A year earlier, on July 1, 2025, the same tiers stood at $17.65, $16.00 and $15.50, so every tier climbed again this summer.
For tipped workers the county sets its own cash floor: at least $4.00 an hour in direct wages, with tips closing the gap to the applicable tier. That floor now matches Maryland's statewide tipped minimum, which also stands at $4.00 in current Department of Labor guidance — but the county's full minimums run up to $3.00 higher than the state's $15.00, and it is the full minimum your tips must reach. If cash plus tips fall short for the workweek, the employer owes make-up pay, and any restaurant using the tip credit must give each tipped worker a Tip Credit Wage Statement every pay period showing the effective hourly rate with tips included. We cover the state-level mechanics on our Maryland tipped minimum wage page and the county-wide picture on our Montgomery County page.
Worked example, large employer, 30-hour week: the county floor is 30 × $18.00, or $540.00. The employer pays at least $4.00 × 30, or $120.00, in cash wages. Tips must supply the other $420.00. Keep $480 in tips and the week totals $600.00 — an effective $20.00 an hour, no top-up owed. Keep $390 and the total is $510.00, which is $30.00 short, so $30.00 in make-up pay lands on the check. At the $16.50 mid tier the same 30-hour week floors at $495.00. The server paycheck calculator reproduces this table for any tier and any schedule.
Rockville vs. Maryland and the federal floor
| Rule | Federal | Maryland (2026) | Rockville via Montgomery County (July 1, 2026) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full minimum wage | $7.25 | $15.00 | $18.00 (51+), $16.50 (11–50), $15.95 (≤10) |
| Tipped cash wage | $2.13 | $3.63 | $4.00 |
| Tip credit | Up to $5.12/hour | Up to $11.37/hour | Up to $14.00/hour at the large tier |
| Top-up rule | Weekly make-up pay | Weekly make-up + Tip Credit Wage Statement | Weekly make-up + Tip Credit Wage Statement |
| Overtime basis | 1.5× after 40 hrs/week | 1.5× after 40 hrs/week | 1.5× after 40; OT cash roughly $13.00 at the large tier, plus tips |
| Adjustment schedule | None (unchanged since 2009) | Flat in statute | Every July 1, indexed to CPI-W |
Read the tipped cash row left to right and the stakes appear: $2.13 federally, $3.63 statewide, $4.00 in Rockville — but the real difference is the target tips must hit, $7.25 versus $15.00 versus as much as $18.00, per the U.S. Department of Labor's tipped minimum wage table for the federal baseline and the county's official rate notice for the local numbers. On a 30-hour week at the large tier, the gap between the state minimum and the county minimum is worth $90.00 before tips.
What Rockville servers should watch
Which tier you are in. The rate your employer owes depends on head count — 51 or more means $18.00, 11 to 50 means $16.50, 10 or fewer means $15.95. Employers count employees to their advantage surprisingly often; a restaurant group's total head count, not one location's, is generally the right measure, so verify rather than assume the small tier.
The July 1 reset. Montgomery County moves mid-year with CPI-W, and the July 1, 2026 step raised every tier — from $17.65 to $18.00 at the top. A register system still charging the prior summer's rate after the first of July is shorting hours. Check stubs each July against the county's Office of Human Rights notice.
The Tip Credit Wage Statement. Maryland requires restaurants that use the tip credit to provide a written or electronic statement each pay period showing cash wages plus tips as an effective hourly rate. It is the single fastest way to police the make-up rule — no statement, or one that never shows at least the tier minimum, is a compliance problem. Overtime past 40 hours is computed on the full minimum, about $13.00 an hour in cash at the large tier plus tips; the overtime calculator handles the arithmetic.
The neighbors. Rockville sits near three other wage regimes: the rest of Montgomery County matches it, Takoma Park follows the same county law, and Hyattsville across the county line runs on Prince George's County's lower $15.30. Two restaurants ten minutes apart can differ by nearly $3.00 an hour in guaranteed cash — our city minimum wage tracker keeps them straight.
FAQ
What is the tipped minimum wage in Rockville in 2026?
$4.00 an hour in cash wages plus tips up to the applicable Montgomery County minimum: $18.00 for employers with 51 or more employees, $16.50 for 11 to 50, and $15.95 for 10 or fewer, as of July 1, 2026, per the county Office of Human Rights and the Maryland Department of Labor.
Does Rockville have its own minimum wage?
No separate city rate. Rockville employers follow the Montgomery County minimum wage law, which runs higher than Maryland's statewide $15.00, with the county's tipped cash floor of $4.00 an hour.
What happens if my tips don't reach the county minimum in Rockville?
The employer must top up the difference for that workweek, and Maryland requires restaurants using the tip credit to hand each tipped worker a Tip Credit Wage Statement every pay period showing the effective hourly rate including tips.
How much is a server guaranteed in Rockville each week?
Hours times the applicable county tier before tips — $540.00 on a 30-hour week at the $18.00 large-employer rate, of which at least $120.00 must be paid in cash wages, with tips owing the rest or the employer making it up.
How does overtime work for tipped employees in Rockville?
Time-and-a-half the regular rate after 40 hours in a week. When tips satisfy the tip credit, the overtime cash rate works out to roughly the $4.00 cash wage plus half the full minimum — about $13.00 an hour at the large-employer tier — with tips on top.
Is Rockville's tipped wage higher than Maryland's?
Yes. The county tipped cash floor is $4.00 against the state's $3.63, and the county full minimums run $15.95 to $18.00 against the state's $15.00, so tips must reach higher in Rockville and the make-up obligation is bigger when they don't.