US minimum wage by year

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When President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed America’s first federal minimum wage into law in 1938, it was 25 cents per hour. Adjusted for inflation, that would be worth about $4.45 today.

Scroll over the chart to see the US federal minimum wage through history, and what it would be worth in today’s dollars.

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics and Department of Labor

Note: Figures adjusted to 2018 dollars using the CPI-U

Throughout history, Congress has raised the minimum wage 22 times. The current level, at $7.25 an hour, was set in 2009.

Cities and states have the option of setting their own minimum wages. As of January 2019, 29 states had a minimum wage rate above the federal level.

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