What is the Minimum Wage for Servers in Illinois?

If you are a server in Illinois or are at least considering becoming one, then you should know what the minimum wage is for servers in Illinois to ensure you are being paid the correct amount, or whether this is a job you would like to do. The Illinois server minimum wage rate in 2023 is $7.80 per hour.

The laws surrounding the Illinois minimum wage for servers act as a safety net for those that may not earn enough in tips to meet the minimum wage threshold in the state.

Servers are those who provide and serve their customers with food and beverages in a restaurant or similar type of business where food and drinks are brought to the table, and as part of this service, a server will typically receive tips (gratuities) for doing so.

Illinois servers usually rely less on their low hourly wage and more on the generosity of the guests they serve for their paycheck each week.

Illinois Server Minimum Wage 2023

The minimum cash wage for servers in Illinois is $7.80 per hour which is the same as the tipped minimum wage in Illinois.

The minimum wage for waiters in Chicago is very different and depends on the size of the business you work for, learn more by checking out the Chicago minimum wage page.

This is the minimum per hour that an Illinois server must be paid and that an Illinois employer must pay its servers.

As you can see from the following graphic, the minimum wage for servers in Illinois has increased steadily over the past several years.

Server Minimum Wage in Illinois (Minimum Cash Wage and Tip Credits)

$7.80 per hour may sound like a tiny amount to be paid an hour, but if tips are not sufficient enough Illinois servers are required to be supplemented by their employers via “tipped credit”, which in Illinois is $5.20 per hour, making the server minimum wage in Illinois total of $13.00 per hour – the same as the official minimum wage in Illinois.

Based on the tipped minimum wage laws that apply to all states, Illinois employers are required to pay their employees an hourly minimum cash wage with the addition of tip credits.

What tipped credits allow employers to do is pay tipped employees less than the minimum wage so long as they can make up the difference via tips per hour during each pay period.

Tip credit not only allows server employees to be paid less than the minimum hourly wage, but it is also the same concept with bartenders, hotel workers, some airport workers at baggage drops, and pretty much any job role where tips are the primary income for the employee.

In Illinois, servers must be paid a base minimum cash wage of $7.800 per hour. The expectation is that Illinois servers will make at least an additional $5.20 per hour in tips on average across their pay period, and if they do, then the employer is only obligated to pay an Illinois server $13.00 per hour.

Let’s assume that a server does not make at least $7.80 per hour in tips as an average over the course of their pay period (usually two weeks), then the employer must step in and pay the Illinois server a tip credit of $5.20 per hour, so the server makes a minimum of $13.00 per hour for the duration of the pay period they worked.

Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and Tipped Employees

The Federal Fair Labor Standards Act, also known as the FLSA, is a federal law from the U.S. Department of Labor.

This law establishes a national minimum wage, defines classifications for employees, and covers other essential standards and requirements for employers.

Federal law requires that employers make tipped employees aware of the cash wage paid (currently, the national direct hourly salary is $2.13 per hour), let them know about the tip credit, and explain any tip pooling systems at the workplace.

Because Illinois’ minimum wage rate is higher than the federal minimum wage rate, the state laws supersede the federal regulations.

Illinois Server Minimum Wage History

The table below showcases the current rate and history of the Illinois server minimum wage over the past 15+ years since 2008.

You can see when there were increases in the server minimum wage, which includes not only the tipped minimum wage rates but the tipped credit rates too.

Average Server Salary in Illinois (2023)

If you are a server or are looking to work as a server in a restaurant or similar service-related business in Illinois, knowing the hourly wage for servers is important, but knowing what you can expect to earn is perhaps even more important.

There are some Illinois servers that are probably not going to take a position at a restaurant with the view that they can only earn $13.00 per hour because based on working 35-40 hours a week, they would earn $455-$520 per week.

What Do Servers Get Paid in Illinois

The average server hourly wage in Illinois (according to the job website Indeed.com) is a generous $16.06 per hour.

So, if you were to work an 8-hour shift or a total of 8 hours in a day across a couple of shifts, you could earn (on average) about $128.00 (8 hrs x $16.06). If you worked five days per week with daily pay of $128.00 then you could earn about $640 per week.

If you took just two weeks off a year and worked for 50 weeks you could earn $32,000. If you decided to take 3 weeks off per year, or a total amount of time that was the equivalent of about 3 weeks off, then you could earn 49 x $640 = $31,360 for the year. This, of course, is before Illinois income tax has been deducted.

The above calculations are just averages to give you an idea of what you can earn as an Illinois server. The most important aspects of how much you can earn will depend on how good you are at your job, what type of food/beverage establishment you work at, and how busy the restaurant/cafe or bar is.

Also, many people that work at restaurants or similar establishments are willing to work more than 40-hours per week which may make them qualify for overtime pay.

If the average food item on the menu is $12-$18 and the restaurant mainly serves wings, burgers, subs, nachos, fries, and similar snack-style food, then the average check for each guest or table will not be that high, and therefore, the percentage tip against the total check will result in you earning a lower amount of tips per table you serve and you’ll have to serve many tables during your shift.

On the other hand, if you work at a finer dining restaurant or one that is really busy and serves steak, seafood, and other higher-priced menu and beverage items, then you stand to earn more money as the total check for each table you serve will be that much higher and the percentage tip you receive on a higher check will be that much more.

Final Thoughts

As an Illinois employer, it is your responsibility to pay your servers a minimum hourly rate + tip credit that equals or surpasses the Illinois minimum wage in the event that your servers do not earn enough to meet the $13.00 per hour threshold in a given workweek.

Failing to do so will be breaking federal and state laws. Equally, it is important that as a server working in Illinois, you know your rights and how much you should be paid with your hourly wage and tip credits.

If you have specific questions about the laws surrounding the minimum wage for servers in Illinois (tipped employees) from both an employer and employee perspective, you can contact the Illinois Fair Labor and Standards Division.

Additionally, if you are an employee who isn’t being paid what you legally should be, you can file a complaint with them too.