Trends: Bureau of Labor Statistics and Department of Labor
Federal Minimum Wage in Real Terms
The federal minimum wage was $5.15 at the end of 2006 and has been $7.25 since July 24, 2009. Divided by each year's CPI-U annual average and expressed in 2025 dollars, the end-of-year rate is worth $8.22 for 2006, $10.88 for 2009 (the highest of these 20 years) and $7.25 for 2025. This is our computation from the two tables cited below; the method is stated under the table.
Federal minimum wage, 2006 to 2025, in current and 2025 dollars
| Year | Rate on December 31 (DOL) | Change during the year | CPI-U annual average, 1982-84 = 100 (BLS) | Rate in 2025 dollars (computed) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | $5.15 | – | 201.600 | $8.22 |
| 2007 | $5.85 | $5.15 until July 24, 2007 | 207.342 | $9.08 |
| 2008 | $6.55 | $5.85 until July 24, 2008 | 215.303 | $9.79 |
| 2009 | $7.25 | $6.55 until July 24, 2009 | 214.537 | $10.88 |
| 2010 | $7.25 | – | 218.056 | $10.70 |
| 2011 | $7.25 | – | 224.939 | $10.38 |
| 2012 | $7.25 | – | 229.594 | $10.17 |
| 2013 | $7.25 | – | 232.957 | $10.02 |
| 2014 | $7.25 | – | 236.736 | $9.86 |
| 2015 | $7.25 | – | 237.017 | $9.85 |
| 2016 | $7.25 | – | 240.007 | $9.73 |
| 2017 | $7.25 | – | 245.120 | $9.52 |
| 2018 | $7.25 | – | 251.107 | $9.30 |
| 2019 | $7.25 | – | 255.657 | $9.13 |
| 2020 | $7.25 | – | 258.811 | $9.02 |
| 2021 | $7.25 | – | 270.970 | $8.61 |
| 2022 | $7.25 | – | 292.655 | $7.98 |
| 2023 | $7.25 | – | 304.702 | $7.66 |
| 2024 | $7.25 | – | 313.689 | $7.44 |
| 2025 | $7.25 | – | 321.943 | $7.25 |
Method and how to read it
This is the one page in the trends section with a computed column, and the computation is a single division. For each year, the nominal rate is the federal minimum wage in effect on December 31 under the Fair Labor Standards Act, taken from the Department of Labor's history table as held on the federal minimum-wage page; where the rate changed during a year (July 24 of 2007, 2008 and 2009) the earlier rate and the change date are in the third column, and no within-year average is attempted. The CPI-U annual average is the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers, all items, U.S. city average, not seasonally adjusted, with 1982 to 1984 set to 100, as the BLS Public Data API returns it for series CUUR0000SA0. The rate in 2025 dollars is the nominal rate divided by that year's CPI-U and multiplied by the 2025 CPI-U (321.943), so the 2025 row equals its nominal rate by construction.
The real column answers one question: how much would the year's minimum wage buy in 2025 prices. It does not say what anyone was paid, how many workers earned the minimum (the BLS report table does), or what state and local minimums were, most of which are above $7.25 today. The CPI-U is a national average of urban prices, so the real value differs by place, and a different deflator (CPI-W, C-CPI-U, PCE) would give different figures. The window is the twenty years the API returns without an account; the Learn explainer covers nominal and real wages, and the indexing explainer covers the states that adjust their rates by the CPI each year.
Source, release and next release
- Bureau of Labor Statistics and Department of Labor, All items in U.S. city average, all urban consumers, not seasonally adjusted (CPI-U), 1982-84=100 (CUUR0000SA0), annual averages as returned by the BLS Public Data API on ; reference period annual averages 2006 to 2025.
- Next release: the 2026 annual average is published with the January 2027 CPI, in February 2027 (BLS CPI release calendar).
- Table: BLS Public Data API v1, series CUUR0000SA0, 2006 to 2015 (response with its response-time field zeroed), fetched (SHA-256 ebb1c4e2d64c…).
- Table: BLS Public Data API v1, series CUUR0000SA0, 2016 to 2025 (response with its response-time field zeroed), fetched (SHA-256 44568fb03c1b…).
- Nominal rates: U.S. Department of Labor, History of Federal Minimum Wage Rates Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (src/data/minimum-wage/federal.json, verified 2026-10-17); the rate shown for each year is the one in effect on December 31.
- Real column computed by this site: nominal rate ÷ CPI-U annual average for the year × CPI-U annual average for 2025 (321.943), rounded to the cent. No other adjustment.
- Figures are shown as published; this site does not seasonally adjust, deflate, interpolate or extend any series.