Montana minimum wage and tip laws (2026)

The minimum wage in Montana is $10.85 an hour.

Minimum wage

$10.85

For a 40-hour week

$434.00

Source: MCA 39-3-404 ($10.85 effective January 1, 2026; adjusted each January 1 by CPI and rounded to the nearest 5 cents) Read the rule

Montana does not let employers count your tips toward the minimum wage. You are owed the full $10.85 an hour before tips, and every tip you receive is on top of that.

Tips can count toward the wage

No

Tipped cash wage

$10.85

Source: MCA 39-3-402 and 39-3-404 (Department of Labor & Industry: no tip credit, meal credit or training wage is allowed under Montana's wage and hour laws) Read the rule

• Hours past 40 in a workweek are paid at 1.5 times your regular rate.

Overtime rate at minimum wage

$16.275

Source: 29 U.S.C. 207(a)(1); 29 CFR 778.107; Fact Sheet #15 (overtime for tipped employees is computed on the full minimum wage, not the cash wage) Read the rule

Montana does not require meal or rest breaks for adult workers, and neither does federal law. If your employer does give short breaks of 5 to 20 minutes, federal law says those minutes are paid.

Source: 29 CFR 785.18 and 785.19 (federal law does not require breaks; short breaks that are given must be paid) Read the rule

Taxes and deductions you agreed to, like health insurance, are normal. These are the ones that cause trouble in restaurants and bars, and what Montana allows:

Required uniforms

Only if pay stays above minimum

Register or cash shortages

Only if pay stays above minimum

Broken dishes or equipment

Only if pay stays above minimum

Card processing fee on card tips

Only if pay stays above minimum

Customers who walk out

Only if pay stays above minimum

"Only if pay stays above minimum" means the deduction cannot take your pay for the week below minimum wage. For a worker paid a tipped cash wage, that usually leaves no room for a uniform, shortage, breakage or walkout deduction. A card fee works differently: only the fee on the card tip itself, taken from that tip.

Source: 29 CFR 531.35 (wages must be paid free and clear); Fact Sheet #16; Fact Sheet #15 (credit card fee deduction limited to the fee actually charged and may not reduce pay below minimum wage) Read the rule

Managers and owners can share in the pool

No

Kitchen staff can share when a tip credit is taken

Not applicable

Kitchen staff can share when no tip credit is taken

Yes

In most states, an employer can require tipped staff to pool tips with others who serve customers, like bussers, runners and bartenders. Managers, supervisors and owners can never take a share. Under federal law, cooks and dishwashers can share only when the employer takes no tip credit, and some states do not allow it at all. The answers above show the rule in Montana.

Source: 29 U.S.C. 203(m)(2)(B); 29 CFR 531.54 Read the rule

Under federal law, a mandatory service charge, like an automatic 20% on large parties, is not a tip. It belongs to the business unless it is paid out, and when it is paid to you it counts as wages. It cannot be used to cover the tip credit, and it should not be reported as tips on your stub. Some states give the charge to the staff when customers were not clearly told it is not a tip, so if a charge was presented as a gratuity, it is worth asking where it went.

Source: 29 CFR 531.55 (a compulsory service charge is not a tip) Read the rule

Montana does not require paid sick leave statewide. Some employers offer it anyway, and in a few places a city or county law requires it.

Source: No federal paid sick leave requirement for private employers.

Some parts of Montana law depend on things a pay stub does not show. A TruWage result for Montana can be off if any of these apply to you:

• If your employer is not covered by federal wage law and takes in $110,000 or less a year, it may legally pay $4.00 an hour instead of $10.85. This check uses $10.85, so a minimum wage shortfall may be overstated.

Start with your manager or payroll and show them the numbers. Many mistakes get fixed that way. If it is not fixed, you can file a wage claim. It is free and you do not need a lawyer.

Agency

Montana Department of Labor & Industry, Employment Standards Division, Compliance and Investigations Bureau

Phone

406-444-6543

File the Electronic Wage Claim online; paper forms are available at Job Service offices or by email to dlierdwage@mt.gov. The Department enforces the Montana Minimum Wage and Overtime Compensation Act and the Wage Payment Act.

How to file a wage claim

You can also file with the U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division, which enforces federal wage law, at 1-866-487-9243. They take complaints in many languages and keep the name of the person complaining confidential.