Canada Minimum Wage by Province Checker
Provincial and federal minimum wage, a pay check, and the pay a week to a year.
Also good to know
Official pages
Every province and territory
General minimum wages for adult workers; in most places they apply to young workers too. The federal-sector column is what a federally regulated employer must pay there: the federal minimum wage or the local rate, whichever is higher.
Rules used and official sources
- Government of Canada: current and forthcoming general minimum wage rates in Canada
- Government of Canada: minimum wage rates for young workers and specific occupations
- Government of Canada: federal minimum wage (pay and deductions under the Canada Labour Code)
- Government of Canada: federally regulated industries and workplaces
- Canada Labour Code, s. 178.1 (the federal minimum wage rises with the CPI every April 1, rounded up to the nearest 5 cents)
- Government of Alberta: minimum wage
- Government of British Columbia: minimum wage
- Manitoba Employment Standards: minimum wage
- Government of Newfoundland and Labrador: Labour Standards Act topics
- Government of the Northwest Territories: minimum wage
- Government of Nova Scotia: minimum wage
- Government of Ontario: your guide to the Employment Standards Act, minimum wage
- Government of Saskatchewan: minimum wage and reporting for duty pay
For general information only, not legal advice. Templates are generic starting points — have a qualified lawyer review anything you rely on.
About the Canada Minimum Wage by Province Checker
Each province and territory sets its own general minimum wage, and most raise it once a year with inflation. Employers in federally regulated industries, such as banks, airlines, interprovincial trucking and rail, telecom and Canada Post, pay the federal minimum wage instead, or the provincial rate where that is higher. Choose your province or territory and your kind of employer to see the minimum wage that applies and what it pays a week, every two weeks, a month and a year. You can also check whether your own hourly pay or salary meets it.
The rates come from the Government of Canada’s minimum wage database and from the provinces’ own labour pages, which are linked next to each rate. An increase that has already been announced is shown with its start date, and the checker uses it from that day. Nothing you enter leaves your browser.
How to use it
- Choose your province or territory: the general minimum wage and the weekly to yearly pay appear.
- If you work for a federally regulated employer (a bank, airline, interprovincial transport company, telecom company or broadcaster, Canada Post…), choose “Federally regulated”: you get the federal rate or the local one, whichever is higher.
- Enter the hours you work in a usual week.
- To check your pay, enter your hourly rate, or your salary and how often it is paid.
- Compare every province and territory in the table, then copy the summary or download the table as a CSV file.
Examples
$36,000 ÷ 52 weeks ÷ 40 hours = $17.31 an hour, compared with the minimum wage that applies
Banks are federally regulated, so the teller gets the federal minimum wage, which is higher than Alberta’s general rate of $15.00 an hour
$680 a week · $1,360 every two weeks · $2,946.67 a month · $35,360 a year
Weekly = rate × hours; yearly = weekly × 52; monthly = yearly ÷ 12.
Provincial and federal minimum wages
For most workers, pay rules come from the province or territory where they work. Federally regulated private-sector employers follow the Canada Labour Code instead, and they pay the federal minimum wage, or the provincial or territorial rate where that is higher (federal minimum wage). The federal rate is raised every April 1 by the change in the consumer price index for the previous year, rounded up to the nearest 5 cents, and it is never lowered (Canada Labour Code, s. 178.1). The list of federally regulated industries includes banking, air transport, interprovincial road and rail transport, telecommunications, broadcasting, ports and shipping, courier services and most federal Crown corporations.
The provinces and territories set their general rates on their own dates. Ontario adjusts its rate every October 1 (Ontario), British Columbia every June 1 (British Columbia) and the Northwest Territories every September 1 (Northwest Territories). The Government of Canada database lists every current and announced rate.
Students and special rates
- Ontario has a student minimum wage for students under 18 who work up to 28 hours a week while school is in session, or during a school break, and separate rates for homeworkers and for hunting, fishing and wilderness guides.
- Alberta lets employers pay students under 18 a lower rate for up to 28 hours a week during the school year, and for all hours during school breaks (Alberta).
- British Columbia sets a minimum for each hour of engaged time of ride-hail and delivery app workers, and daily or monthly minimums for live-in camp leaders, live-in home support workers and resident caretakers.
- Quebec has a lower rate for employees who usually receive tips.
In most provinces the general rate also applies to young workers. The Government of Canada keeps a list of rates for young workers and specific occupations. The checker shows these rates under your province.
How the pay check works
An hourly rate is compared with the minimum wage that applies. A salary is turned into pay for an hour: weekly pay (yearly ÷ 52, monthly × 12 ÷ 52, every two weeks ÷ 2) ÷ the hours you work a week. The minimum is converted to weekly, monthly and yearly pay with 52 weeks a year. The check uses straight time: overtime pay, vacation pay and deductions such as room and board are not included.
Limitations
- General rates and a few special rates only. Exemptions and the rates for particular jobs (farm piece rates, construction and forestry orders) are not checked: see the official page for your province.
- Overtime, vacation pay, public holiday pay and the deductions an employer may make are not included.
- Rates are reviewed every year. The checker switches to an announced rate on its start date, and it warns you when a rate has been in force for more than a year, because it may have been raised since.
- Information, not legal advice. For a dispute, contact your province’s or territory’s employment standards office, or the federal Labour Program for a federally regulated job.
Privacy
Everything happens in your browser. What you enter or open here is not uploaded or stored by MySmartCoPilot.
Frequently asked questions
Which minimum wage applies to me?
Most workers get the general minimum wage of the province or territory where they work. Workers in federally regulated industries get the federal minimum wage, or the provincial or territorial rate if it is higher.
How often does the minimum wage change?
The federal rate changes every April 1 with inflation. Most provinces and territories also raise their rate every year, each on its own date: Ontario on October 1, British Columbia on June 1 and the Northwest Territories on September 1, for example. Announced changes appear in the checker with their start date.
Is there a lower minimum wage for students?
In Ontario and Alberta, yes, for students under 18: in Ontario for up to 28 hours a week while school is in session and during school breaks, and in Alberta for up to 28 hours a week in the school year and for all hours during school breaks. In most other places, young workers get the general rate.
How do I turn the minimum wage into a salary?
Multiply the hourly rate by your hours a week to get weekly pay, multiply that by 52 for a year, and divide the year by 12 for a month. At 40 hours a week, $17.00 an hour is $680 a week, $35,360 a year and $2,946.67 a month.
Does a salaried employee have to earn the minimum wage?
Usually yes. Most employees must get at least the minimum wage for every hour they work, and a salary counts as wages: Saskatchewan’s page, for example, says that most employees must be paid at least minimum wage for each hour or part of an hour they are required to work, and that wages include any salary or commissions (Saskatchewan). Some jobs are exempt, so check your province’s page.
Is my pay information stored?
No. The check runs in your browser, and nothing you enter is sent anywhere.