Minimum wage in Seattle is now almost $21 an hour

• The state minimum wage floor, meanwhile, rose from $16.28 to $16.66 per hour.

The big picture: Among states, Washington has had the highest minimum wage for several years running.

• That's a title the Evergreen State continues to hold in 2025, according to the HR software service Paycom.

Yes, but: Washington, D.C., has a higher 2025 minimum wage, at $17.50 per hour.

• So do several other cities besides Seattle, including West Hollywood (over $19.60 per hour) and Tukwila (over $20 per hour).

Reality check: Even though Washington and Seattle have among the nation's highest wage floors, it doesn't mean local minimum wage workers can easily afford rent.

• A full-time worker making the new state minimum wage would earn about $35,000 per year.
• But, as of last summer, the median apartment in Washington cost about $22,000 per year, per the Washington Center for Real Estate Research.
• In Seattle, the city minimum wage amounts to about $43,000 for full-time workers, while the median apartment in King County last summer rented for about $25,000.