National Minimum Wage

The National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage are the UK’s statutory hourly pay floors.

From 1 April 2026 the National Living Wage for workers aged 21 and over is £12.71 an hour. The 18 to 20 rate is £10.85, and the under-18 and apprentice rates are £8 an hour. These are legal floors, not a campaign “living wage” an employer chooses to pay. Average pay across all hours worked must not fall below the applicable rate — including overtime hours, even where the contract pays no overtime premium.

Volunteer expenses that stay at genuine out-of-pocket costs do not by themselves create National Minimum Wage entitlement. Regular pay, or benefits that go beyond expenses, can.

Also called: federal minimum wage (US), provincial minimum wage (Canada), national minimum wage / award rates (Australia) — those are different schemes. Related: overtime, TOIL.