What is the Washington State exempt salary threshold for 2026?

Washington's overtime exemption salary-level threshold for 2026 is $1,541.70 per week ($80,168.40 per year), effective January 1, 2026. This is 2.25 times the state minimum wage, as published in L&I Publication F700-207-000. The threshold applies to executive, administrative, and professional (EAP) positions under Washington's overtime rules.

Does meeting the Washington salary threshold mean I am exempt from overtime?

No. Meeting the salary-level threshold is only one of three requirements for overtime exemption. An employee must also (1) be paid on a salary basis and (2) perform exempt executive, administrative, or professional duties. An employee who earns above the salary threshold but is paid hourly, or whose duties do not qualify, is generally entitled to overtime pay.

Is Washington's exempt salary threshold higher than the federal FLSA threshold?

Yes. Washington's 2026 salary-level threshold of $1,541.70/week ($80,168.40/year) is significantly higher than the federal FLSA threshold of $684.00/week ($35,568.00/year). When a worker is subject to both state and federal law, the higher state standard governs. Workers in Washington who are compared only against the federal threshold may be misclassified as exempt when they are not under Washington law.

Does the Washington exempt salary threshold change every year?

Yes. Washington's exempt salary threshold is set at 2.25 times the state minimum wage, which L&I adjusts each January through an annual cost-of-living process announced by September 30 of the prior year. When the minimum wage rises, the salary threshold rises automatically. The 2026 threshold is ${fmtCurrency(publishedWeekly)}/week, effective January 1, 2026.

Are there different thresholds for small and large employers in Washington?

Washington previously had separate salary thresholds for small (1–50 employees) and large (51+ employees) employers. For 2026, both employer-size tiers have converged at 2.25× the state minimum wage — $1,541.70/week ($80,168.40/year). There is no longer a different rate based on employer size for the salary-level test under Washington law.

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Washington wages & exemptions

Washington Exempt Salary Threshold Calculator

Check whether a salary meets Washington's overtime exemption salary-level test for executive, administrative, and professional employees — and see why clearing this threshold alone is not enough.

For 2026, Washington's salary-level threshold for the overtime exemption is $1,541.70 per week ($80,168.40 per year), effective January 1, 2026 — set at 2.25 times the state minimum wage of $17.13/hour for both small and large employers, as published in L&I Publication F700-207-000 [10-2025]. — Source: L&I Publication F700-207-000 (lni.wa.gov)

Three-test rule — read this first: Meeting the salary-level threshold does not make an employee exempt from overtime. Overtime exemption under Washington law requires satisfying all three of the following tests simultaneously:

Salary basis — the employee must be paid a predetermined fixed salary not subject to reduction based on the quality or quantity of work.
Salary level — the salary must meet or exceed the threshold calculated below.
Duties — the employee must primarily perform executive, administrative, or professional duties as defined by L&I rules.

This calculator tests only the salary level. An employee who clears this threshold but fails either of the other two tests is legally entitled to overtime pay.

Enter salary to check against the salary-level test

The 2026 Washington salary threshold

Washington's overtime rules for executive, administrative, and professional (EAP) employees are codified under WAC 296-128 and explained on L&I's overtime changes page. The salary-level threshold is set by regulation at 2.25× the state minimum wage. For 2026, with a minimum wage of $17.13/hour, the derived threshold is:

2026 threshold formula

$17.13/hr × 2.25 × 40 hrs/week = $1,541.70/week$1,541.70/week × 52 weeks = $80,168.40/year L&I published figures (F700-207-000 [10-2025]):$1,541.70/week ($80,168.40/year)

The L&I publication explicitly states "$1,541.70 a week ($80,168.40 a year)" — those published dollar figures are verified and may be cited directly. The small difference between the derived and published figures reflects how L&I rounds internally; the published figures are authoritative for compliance purposes.

Both employer-size tiers have converged at 2.25× for 2026

Washington previously used a phase-in schedule with different thresholds for small employers (1–50 employees) and large employers (51+ employees). Beginning January 1, 2026, both tiers are set at 2.25× the state minimum wage — employer size no longer affects the salary threshold. The both employer-size tiers converged at 2.25× starting january 1, 2026.

Employer size	2026 multiplier	Weekly threshold	Annual threshold
Small (1–50 employees)	2.25× state minimum wage	$1,541.70	$80,168.40
Large (51+ employees)	2.25× state minimum wage	$1,541.70	$80,168.40

Washington's threshold is higher than the federal FLSA threshold

The federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) sets a salary-level threshold of $684.00/week ($35,568.00/year) under 29 CFR § 541.600. Washington's 2026 threshold of $1,541.70/week is more than twice the federal floor. When state law provides a higher standard of protection, the state rule governs for workers in that state.

This matters because workers in Washington are routinely misclassified when employers apply only the federal threshold. An employee earning between the federal floor and the Washington threshold is not exempt under Washington law, even if they would be under the FLSA. State law protection applies to covered employees in Washington regardless of FLSA coverage.

Annual indexing — the threshold moves every January

Washington's state minimum wage is adjusted annually through a CPI-W (Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers) process. L&I announces the new rate by September 30 of each year for an effective date of January 1. Because the exempt salary threshold is calculated as 2.25× the state minimum wage, it adjusts automatically each January when the minimum wage changes. The 2026 figures on this page are effective 2026-01-01 through December 31, 2026. Check L&I's minimum-wage page for the most current rate after each annual update.

What this calculator does not determine

Salary-basis test — whether the employee is actually paid on a salary basis (fixed salary not subject to reduction for quality or quantity of work). This is a separate legal determination that depends on the employment arrangement, not the pay amount.
Duties test — whether the employee's primary job duties qualify as executive (management and supervision of two or more employees), administrative (office/non-manual work directly related to business operations or management, exercising discretion and independent judgment), or professional (requiring advanced knowledge in a field of science or learning, or creative work requiring invention and talent). These tests require analysis of actual job duties.
Whether a collective-bargaining agreement modifies overtime rights.
Whether the computer-professional or outside-sales exemptions apply — those have different salary or compensation rules.
Whether an employee's job title alone affects exemption status. Titles are not determinative; actual duties control.
Whether a specific employer or worker is covered by Washington's overtime rules.

Worked examples

Example 1: salary below the Washington threshold

Entered salary: $1,400.00/week ($72,800.00/year) Washington threshold: $1,541.70/week ($80,168.40/year) Result: Does not meet the Washington salary-level test Gap: $141.70/week ($7368.40/year) Federal FLSA: $684.00/week — this salary does exceed the federal threshold Note: Fails the WA salary-level test regardless of duties or salary-basis status.

Example 2: salary above the Washington threshold

Entered salary: $1,600.00/week ($83,200.00/year) Washington threshold: $1,541.70/week ($80,168.40/year) Result: Meets the Washington salary-level test Gap: none Note: Meets the salary-level test only. Exemption still requires the salary-basis test and the duties test to also be satisfied.

Sources and verification

The salary threshold figures are sourced from L&I Publication F700-207-000 [10-2025], which is the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries' official publication on overtime rules for white-collar workers, retrieved from lni.wa.gov. The 2.25× multiplier and the published dollar amounts of $1,541.70/week and $80,168.40/year are verified from that publication (four occurrences each). The minimum wage figure of $17.13/hour effective January 1, 2026 is sourced from L&I's minimum-wage page. The federal FLSA threshold of $684.00/week is sourced from 29 CFR § 541.600 (84 Fed. Reg. 51230, effective January 1, 2020), the prevailing rule following the November 2024 vacatur of the 2024 DOL rulemaking. The threshold on this page will be updated when a new rule takes effect.

Cross-links: Washington Overtime Calculator — Washington Minimum Wage & Local Rates

Common questions

Can my employer avoid overtime by giving me a salary instead of hourly pay?

Not automatically. Simply converting pay to a salary does not make an employee exempt. The salary must meet the applicable threshold, the pay arrangement must satisfy the salary-basis test, and the actual job duties must qualify under the executive, administrative, or professional duties test. All three conditions must be met simultaneously. An hourly worker reclassified as "salaried" without satisfying all three tests remains entitled to overtime.

My job title says "manager" — am I exempt in Washington?

Job titles are not determinative. L&I looks at actual duties. A "manager" who spends most of their time performing the same non-managerial tasks as the employees they nominally oversee may not satisfy the executive duties test. An employer cannot exempt a worker simply by assigning a managerial title without a genuine change in duties and pay structure.

What if my salary is above the threshold but I'm paid hourly?

The salary-basis test requires a fixed predetermined salary not subject to reduction for quality or quantity of work. If you are paid hourly — even at a high hourly rate — you likely do not satisfy the salary-basis test and therefore cannot qualify for the EAP exemption, regardless of how your salary annualizes. There are narrow exceptions (e.g., the hourly rate exception for certain professionals) that require separate analysis.

Does this threshold apply to computer professionals?

Washington has separate exemption rules for computer software professionals, which include an alternative compensation threshold. This calculator covers only the standard EAP (executive, administrative, professional) salary-level test. If you work in a computer-related technical role, consult L&I's overtime guidance and WAC 296-128 directly for the applicable threshold.