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Mexico minimum wage 2026: MXN 315.04 a day, MXN 440.87 in the northern border zone, and 61 professional minimums

Last verified: 2026-10-26 · Status: Changing

From 1 January 2026 the general minimum wage is MXN 315.04 a day in most of Mexico and MXN 440.87 a day in the Northern Border Free Zone, increases of 13 and 5 percent over 2025. A tripartite national commission (CONASAMI) sets the general minimum for each geographic area and professional minimums for 61 trades, which range from MXN 316.85 to MXN 705.46 a day outside the border zone. The law says annual increases may never fall below observed inflation, the minimum wage cannot be garnished or discounted except for listed items, and since 2016 it may not be used as a unit of account outside labor (the UMA is used instead).

USD conversions use MXN 18.5026 per US dollar, the US Federal Reserve H.10 noon buying rate in New York for 16 October 2026 (FRED series DEXMXUS), the latest observation available when this page was verified. Conversions are for orientation only.

Key facts

General minimum wage, 2026315.04 MXN per dayCONASAMI resolution, DOF 9 December 2025, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
General minimum wage, 2026, monthly equivalent9582.47 MXN per monthCONASAMI resolution, DOF 9 December 2025, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
Minimum wage, Northern Border Free Zone, 2026440.87 MXN per dayCONASAMI resolution, DOF 9 December 2025, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
Increase in the general minimum wage for 202613.0 %CONASAMI resolution, DOF 9 December 2025, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
Increase in the border zone minimum wage for 20265.0 %CONASAMI resolution, DOF 9 December 2025, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
General minimum wage, 2025278.80 MXN per dayCONASAMI 2026 table, 2025 column, as of 2026-10-26 · repealed
Number of professional minimum wages61 tradesCONASAMI resolution, DOF 9 December 2025, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
Unidad de Medida y Actualización (UMA), 2026117.31 MXN per dayINEGI, DOF 9 January 2026, as of 2026-10-26 · in force

The rule

1. General minimum wage 2026. Since 1 January 2026 the daily general minimum wage is MXN 315.04 in the General Minimum Wage Zone (the whole country outside the border strip, formerly 'rest of the country') and MXN 440.87 in the Northern Border Free Zone. In the general zone the 13.0 percent increase combines a fixed recovery amount (MIR) of MXN 17.01 with a 6.5 percent increase on the 2025 amount of MXN 278.80; in the border zone the increase is 5.0 percent over MXN 419.88, with no MIR.
Cost to do it: Minimum daily cost of one worker before benefits and contributions: MXN 315.04 (MXN 440.87 in the border zone), about MXN 9,582.47 a month.
Example: A full time worker at the general minimum earns MXN 9,582.47 a month; in Tijuana, Ciudad Juárez or Reynosa the floor is MXN 13,409.80 a month. / About USD 518 and USD 725 a month at 18.5026.Resolution of the Council of Representatives of CONASAMI fixing the general and professional minimum wages in force from 1 January 2026, DOF 9 December 2025, Resolution, general minimum wage points, 2025-12-09 official text · verified 2026-10-26 · changed: Raised on 1 January 2026 from MXN 278.80 to MXN 315.04 a day (general zone, 13.0 percent) and from MXN 419.88 to MXN 440.87 (border zone, 5.0 percent).
2. The Northern Border Free Zone covers the municipalities along the US border: Ensenada, Playas de Rosarito, Mexicali, Tecate, Tijuana, San Quintín and San Felipe (Baja California); San Luis Río Colorado, Puerto Peñasco, General Plutarco Elías Calles, Caborca, Altar, Sáric, Nogales, Santa Cruz, Cananea, Naco and Agua Prieta (Sonora); Janos, Ascensión, Juárez, Práxedis G. Guerrero, Guadalupe, Coyame del Sotol, Ojinaga and Manuel Benavides (Chihuahua); Ocampo, Acuña, Zaragoza, Jiménez, Piedras Negras, Nava, Guerrero and Hidalgo (Coahuila); Anáhuac (Nuevo León); and Nuevo Laredo, Guerrero, Mier, Miguel Alemán, Camargo, Gustavo Díaz Ordaz, Reynosa, Río Bravo, Valle Hermoso and Matamoros (Tamaulipas). Every other municipality and Mexico City are in the General Minimum Wage Zone.Resolution of the Council of Representatives of CONASAMI fixing the general and professional minimum wages in force from 1 January 2026, DOF 9 December 2025, Resolution, geographic areas; LFT art. 96, 2025-12-09 official text · verified 2026-10-26
3. Professional minimum wages. CONASAMI also fixes minimums for 61 trades and special jobs, set at the 2025 amounts plus the total increase of each area; where the border zone amount would be lower than the general zone amount, the general zone amount applies in both. For 2026, outside the border zone they run from MXN 316.85 (poultry farm handler) to MXN 405.82 (social work technician), with print reporters and photographers at MXN 705.46; in the border zone they are MXN 440.87, except print reporters at MXN 705.46. Examples: bricklayer MXN 363.44, auto mechanic MXN 375.35, administrative assistant (secretario auxiliar) MXN 374.60, cash register operator MXN 326.84, domestic worker MXN 342.47, night watchman MXN 326.38.Resolution of the Council of Representatives of CONASAMI fixing the general and professional minimum wages in force from 1 January 2026, DOF 9 December 2025, Resolution, professional minimum wage points and table, 2025-12-09 official text · verified 2026-10-26
4. How minimums are set. The minimum wage is the least a worker may receive in cash for a working day and must be enough to meet a family head's normal material, social and cultural needs and the children's compulsory education. General minimums apply by geographic area and professional minimums by trade, both fixed by a national commission of worker, employer and government representatives. The annual fixing or revision of minimum wages may never be below the inflation observed during their period in force.Ley Federal del Trabajo (LFT), DOF 1 April 1970 (Chamber of Deputies consolidated text, last reform DOF 14 May 2026); Constitución Política de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos (CPEUM) (Chamber of Deputies consolidated text, last reform DOF 7 October 2026), LFT arts. 90, 91, 94 and 96; CPEUM art. 123, section A, VI, 2021-03-30 official text · verified 2026-10-26
5. Protection of the minimum wage. The minimum wage is exempt from garnishment, set off or discount, except for court ordered child or spousal support, rent for company housing (up to 10 percent), INFONAVIT loan or rental payments freely accepted by the worker (up to 20 percent for loans and 30 percent for rent), and FONACOT consumer credit freely accepted (up to 10 percent). Wages are paid in legal tender, or with the worker's consent by bank deposit, card or transfer at the employer's cost, and the worker must have access to a detailed pay slip, which may be the electronic payroll invoice (CFDI).Ley Federal del Trabajo (LFT), DOF 1 April 1970 (Chamber of Deputies consolidated text, last reform DOF 14 May 2026); Constitución Política de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos (CPEUM) (Chamber of Deputies consolidated text, last reform DOF 7 October 2026), LFT arts. 97 and 101; CPEUM art. 123, section A, VIII, 2025-02-21 official text · verified 2026-10-26
6. Not a unit of account. Since the deindexation reform of 27 January 2016 the minimum wage may not be used as an index, unit, base, measure or reference for purposes alien to its nature; fines, thresholds and caps in other laws are expressed in the Unidad de Medida y Actualización (UMA), which is MXN 117.31 a day for 2026. Labor law still uses the minimum wage for labor purposes, for example the seniority premium cap of twice the applicable minimum wage.Constitución Política de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos (CPEUM) (Chamber of Deputies consolidated text, last reform DOF 7 October 2026), Art. 123, section A, VI, first paragraph, 2016-01-27 official text · verified 2026-10-26
CategoryGeneral Minimum Wage ZoneNorthern Border Free Zone
General minimum wage315.04440.87
2025 general minimum (for reference)278.80419.88
Bricklayer (oficial de albañilería)363.44440.87
Truck driver, general cargo370.90440.87
Auto and truck mechanic375.35440.87
Administrative assistant (secretario auxiliar)374.60440.87
Supermarket shelf employee320.32440.87
Farm day laborer356.16440.87
Domestic worker342.47440.87
Social work technician405.82440.87
Print reporter and press photographer705.46705.46

Selected 2026 minimum wages in MXN per day (CONASAMI table, DOF 9 December 2025).

Worked example

  • A retailer employs 100 shelf staff in Mexico City at the professional minimum of MXN 320.32 a day: MXN 974,306.67 a month of base pay (about USD 52,658).
  • The same 100 staff in Matamoros, in the border zone, cost at least MXN 440.87 a day each: MXN 1,340,979.58 a month (about USD 72,475), 38 percent more.
  • Each year end bonus at the general minimum is at least 15 days, MXN 4,725.60 (about USD 255), paid before 20 December (LFT art. 87).

Step by step

  1. 1. Map every workplace to its geographic area using the municipality list in the CONASAMI resolution.
  2. 2. Check whether any role is a listed trade with a professional minimum higher than the general minimum.
  3. 3. Update payroll for 1 January each year: CONASAMI fixes the next year's minimums, which are published in the DOF in December (the 2026 amounts were published on 9 December 2025).
  4. 4. Recheck pay floors that are linked to the minimum wage in your own policies and in any collective agreement, and keep fines and thresholds outside labor law in UMA.

Common traps

  • Using the general minimum in the border zone. Employees in the listed border municipalities must earn at least MXN 440.87 a day, including in professional categories.
  • Ignoring professional minimums. A bricklayer, driver or mechanic paid MXN 315.04 is underpaid; the trade minimum applies.
  • Deductions below the floor. Discounts on a minimum wage are only allowed for the items in LFT art. 97, within its percentage limits.
  • Mixing up minimum wage and UMA. Non labor fines and caps (for example the IMSS contribution cap of 25 UMA) use the UMA, not the minimum wage.

Sources

Related pages

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