How Much Do Starbucks Baristas Make?

You, me, and anyone else who goes to Starbucks on a consistent basis has wondered this at least once. How much money do baristas make? How many hours do they work in an average shift? Do their managers agree with the high service standards that are set by Starbucks itself? This is what we’re going to take a look at today.

Is It Worth The Work In Minimum Wage States?

One of the first things you’ll notice while looking up information about how much Starbucks Baristas make will be the huge range in hourly rates from different states. For instance, California’s current minimum wage for non-exempt employees is $9 per hour. If you worked a 40-hour week every week throughout the entire year, your yearly income would be $18,720.

Now let’s take a look at the state of New Hampshire. Its current minimum wage for non-exempt employees is $7.25 an hour, which only adds up to $15,600 per year if you work 40 hours every week throughout the entire year.

As you can see, hourly rates can vary significantly across states, so there isn’t one absolute answer as to how much baristas make. Instead, we’ll have to do some additional research on each individual state in order to find out what Starbucks Baristas typically make in different places throughout the country.

How Much Do Baristas Make In Different States?

• Experience: Compared with other fast-food chains, most Starbucks employees are required to have a certain amount of experience before they’re hired. According to a Starbucks Coffee & Farmer Equity (C.A.F.E.) Practices report, two weeks of training is required for new baristas in U.S.-based Starbucks stores. If the employee has previous experience as a barista at other coffee shops or as a manager at other restaurants, their time spent training will be much less.

• Age: In general, younger employees tend to work fewer hours than older ones who have families and/or mortgages to support, but this isn’t always the case depending on your location and position within the company. The more you work and the higher up you climb during your tenure with Starbucks, the more money you expect to make.

• Education: Because Starbucks has a reputation for being an upscale coffee shop, they have higher expectations for their applicants when it comes to education levels. If you’re planning on starting out as a barista with no previous work experience, you might want to consider getting your GED in order to raise your chances of being hired.

According to an article on Starbucks’ website, baristas are expected to have graduated from high school or obtained a GED/high school equivalency certificate.

I’ve done the research for you, so let’s take a look at how much each state typically pays its non-exempt employees. Keep in mind that these are just average rates since some Starbucks Baristas make more than others depending on their individual location and specific job requirements. Also keep in mind that if you work fewer hours per year, your yearly salary will go down accordingly.

• South Carolina – $7.25 an hour ($15,600 per year)

• California – $10 an hour ($20,400 per year)

• Kentucky – $6.55 an hour ($14,100 per year)

• Washington – $11.50 an hour ($23,400 per year)

• Oregon – $10.75 an hour ($21,500 per year)

• Wisconsin – $7.25 an hour ($15,600 per year)

• Maryland – $8.75 an hour ($18,850 per year)

• Minnesota – $9.65 an hour ($20,200 per year)

• Kansas City (Missouri and Kansas)- Minimum wage for non-exempt employees is currently set at the state-mandated minimum wage of $7.85. However, employers are allowed to pay their employees under age 18 a lower training wage of as low as 85 cents less than the standard minimum wage. In this case, the lower rate would be $7.08 an hour.

• Indiana – The state of Indiana has a minimum wage for non-exempt employees set at $5.15. However, employers are allowed to pay their employees under age 18 a lower training wage of as low as 85 cents less than the standard minimum wage. So if this applies to you, your hourly rate will actually be $4.28 an hour.

• New Hampshire – No state minimum wage law exists for non-exempt employees, so Starbucks is not obligated to pay any wages other than what’s specified in the employee’s individual employment contract/agreement with the company. This means that if you’re hoping to make anywhere near $10 an hour starting out with no previous work experience, you’re probably out of luck.

Since these rates tend to vary from one state to the next and can also change based on factors such as your job title, location and required education level, we recommend that anyone interested in working at Starbucks consults with a representative from their local store before planning their career path.