Minimum Wage 2026: Rates by Age Band | UK

You must be at least school leaving age to get the National Minimum Wage, and aged 21 to get the National Living Wage. The minimum wage will still apply for workers aged 20 and under.

The Budget on 28 October 2026 confirmed the rates from 1 April 2027. The National Living Wage will increase by 3.9% to £13.21 per hour for workers aged 21 and over. The rate for 18 to 20-year-olds will be £11.27, and the rate for 16 to 17-year-olds and eligible apprentices £8.31. The government expects the rise to benefit around 2.3 million workers (see what the Autumn Budget 2026 announced).

The rates change on 1 April every year. Since 1 April 2024 the National Living Wage has been for those aged 21 and over.

Apprentices are entitled to the apprentice rate if they are either:

• ✓Yes: Aged under 19
• ✓Yes: Aged 19 or over and in the first year of their apprenticeship

Apprentices are entitled to the minimum wage for their age if they are aged 19 or over and have completed the first year of their apprenticeship. GOV.UK gives the example of an apprentice aged 21 who has completed the first year, who is entitled to a minimum hourly rate of £12.71.

The National Minimum Wage is the minimum pay per hour almost all workers are entitled to. It does not matter how small an employer is, they still have to pay the correct minimum wage.

Workers are also entitled to the correct minimum wage if they are:

• ✓Yes: Part-time
• ✓Yes: Casual labourers, for example someone hired for one day
• ✓Yes: Agency workers
• ✓Yes: Workers and homeworkers paid by the number of items they make
• ✓Yes: Apprentices
• ✓Yes: Trainees or workers on probation
• ✓Yes: Disabled workers
• ✓Yes: Agricultural workers, foreign workers, seafarers or offshore workers
• ✓Yes: Non-family members living in the employer's home who share in the work and leisure activities and are treated as one of the family, for example au pairs

Contracts for payments below the minimum wage are not legally binding. The worker is still entitled to the National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage.

These workers are not entitled to the National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage:

• ✗No: Self-employed people running their own business
• ✗No: Company directors
• ✗No: Volunteers or voluntary workers
• ✗No: Workers on a government employment programme, such as the Work Programme
• ✗No: Members of the armed forces
• ✗No: Family members of the employer living in the employer's home
• ✗No: Workers younger than school leaving age (usually 16)
• ✗No: Higher and further education students on work experience or a work placement up to one year
• ✗No: People shadowing others at work
• ✗No: Workers on government pre-apprenticeship schemes
• ✗No: People on the European Union programmes Leonardo da Vinci, Erasmus+ or Comenius
• ✗No: People working on a Jobcentre Plus Work Trial for up to 6 weeks
• ✗No: Share fishermen, prisoners, and people living and working in a religious community

Pay reference periods are usually set by how often someone is paid, for example one week, one month or 10 days. A pay reference period cannot be longer than 31 days. A worker must be paid the minimum wage, on average, for the time worked in the pay reference period.

Some payments must not be included when the minimum wage is calculated, including tips, service charges and cover charges, and extra pay for working unsocial hours on a shift.

In a GOV.UK example, a worker aged 27 who works 40 hours a week at £13 an hour pays £15 a week to rent a uniform, and the money is not refunded. To calculate the minimum wage, the employer must deduct the uniform rental from the pay. That gives £12.67 per hour, which is below the minimum wage rate of £12.71, so the employer will need to pay the arrears back.

• Talk to your employer first. If that does not solve the problem, you can ask the employer in writing to see your payment records. You can take someone with you and make copies of the records.
• Use the calculator for workers to check if you are getting the correct minimum wage or if an employer owes you payment from the previous year.
• Call the Acas helpline on 0300 123 1100, Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm, for free and confidential advice on employment rights, including pay and the National Minimum Wage.
• Make a complaint to HM Revenue and Customs about your employer or employment agency, or complain on behalf of someone else.

Workers can also go directly to the employment tribunal themselves. Under section 104A of the Employment Rights Act 1996, an employee who is dismissed is regarded as unfairly dismissed if the reason, or the principal reason, is that action was taken by or on behalf of the employee with a view to enforcing a right under the National Minimum Wage Act 1998. See our unfair dismissal guide for how a claim works.