Ghana's minimum wage in 2026: GH₵21.77 a day, and how it has changed since 2015
Ghana's national daily minimum wage is GH₵21.77 from 1 January 2026, about GH₵588 for a 27-day month. Here's who sets it, who it covers, and every rate since 2015.
Ghana's national daily minimum wage is GH₵21.77 from 1 January 2026, up 9% from GH₵19.97 in 2025. Over a 27-day working month, the convention SSNIT uses, that comes to about GH₵588 a month. It's the least an employer may pay a worker for a day's work, and it's reviewed every year by the National Tripartite Committee, which brings government, employers and organised labour together.
This guide explains what the minimum wage covers, what it comes to after SSNIT and tax, and how it has moved since 2015 against inflation. The full history, with the source for every year, is in our national minimum wage dataset.
Who sets it, and who it covers
The National Tripartite Committee (NTC) sets the National Daily Minimum Wage under the Labour Act, 2003 (Act 651). Its members represent the government, organised labour and employers. Each year it agrees a new rate and publishes it in a communiqué. The Fair Wages and Salaries Commission publishes those communiqués.
The minimum wage is a floor for every worker, in the public and private sectors. An employer paying below it must raise pay to at least the new rate when it takes effect. Many jobs pay well above it, and some sectors negotiate their own minimum through collective agreements. The national rate is the legal minimum beneath all of them.
What the minimum wage comes to in a month
The rate is set per day, so a monthly figure depends on how many days you count. SSNIT uses 27 days: its minimum insurable earnings for 2026, GH₵587.80, is the daily wage times 27.
| Per day | 26 days | 27 days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 minimum wage | GH₵21.77 | GH₵566.02 | GH₵587.79 |
After SSNIT and income tax
At GH₵587.79 a month, a worker's SSNIT contribution (5.5% of basic salary) is GH₵32.33. That leaves chargeable income of GH₵555.46, which is below the GH₵588 tax-free band that applies from September 2026. So no income tax is due, and take-home pay is GH₵555.46.
That's no accident. The new tax-free threshold set by the Income Tax (Amendment) Act, 2026 is close to the monthly minimum wage, so the lowest-paid pay no income tax. Pay a little more and tax starts gradually: on GH₵1,000 a month, income tax is GH₵44.98. You can check any salary in the PAYE and salary calculator, and the PAYE guide explains the bands.
Kaneshie trotro station, Accra. For a minimum-wage worker, the daily fare is a large share of the day's pay. Photo: JulianGrayscales, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Every rate since 2015
| Year | Daily minimum wage | Rise on the year before | Took effect |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | GH₵7.00 | 1 January 2015 | |
| 2016 | GH₵8.00 | 14.3% | 1 January 2016 |
| 2017 | GH₵8.80 | 10.0% | 1 January 2017 |
| 2018 | GH₵9.68 | 10.0% | 1 January 2018 |
| 2019 | GH₵10.65 | 10.0% | 1 January 2019 |
| 2020 | GH₵11.82 | 11.0% | 1 January 2020 |
| 2021 | GH₵12.53 | 6.0% | 4 June 2021 |
| 2022 | GH₵13.53 | 8.0% | 1 January 2022 |
| 2023 | GH₵14.88 | 10.0% | 1 January 2023 |
| 2024 | GH₵18.15 | 22.0% | 1 January 2024 |
| 2025 | GH₵19.97 | 10.0% | 1 March 2025 |
| 2026 | GH₵21.77 | 9.0% | 1 January 2026 |
A few years had quirks worth knowing:
- 2021 took effect on 4 June 2021, not in January, so the 2020 rate applied until then.
- 2023: the NTC also agreed a cost-of-living allowance of 15% of the rate, paid on top. It isn't included in the table.
- 2024: we couldn't find the NTC's own communiqué. The GH₵18.15 figure comes from a payroll provider's report of the decision and matches the 2025 communiqué, which set 2025 at 10% above the 2024 rate.
- 2025 took effect on 1 March 2025, not 1 January.
Over the whole period the daily rate has roughly tripled, from GH₵7.00 to GH₵21.77.
Has it kept up with prices?
Whether a rise leaves workers better off depends on what happened to prices. This table compares each year's rise with inflation in the year before it was set, using the Ghana Statistical Service's year-on-year consumer price inflation for December:
| Year of the new rate | Rise in the minimum wage | Inflation in the year before (December) | Better or worse off? |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 10.0% | 54.1% (2022) | Much worse |
| 2024 | 22.0% | 23.2% (2023) | About the same |
| 2025 | 10.0% | 23.8% (2024) | Worse |
| 2026 | 9.0% | 5.4% (2025) | Better |
The crisis years of 2022 and 2023 hit minimum-wage earners hard. Prices rose far faster than their pay, and the 2024 rise only matched inflation. With inflation back in single digits during 2025, the 2026 rise is the first in several years to buy more than the one before. Our inflation data has the full monthly series.
Makola Market, Accra. What the minimum wage buys depends on prices here as much as on the rate itself. Photo: JustSwanzy, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Why the minimum wage matters beyond the lowest-paid
The daily minimum wage is used as a yardstick well beyond the lowest-paid jobs:
- SSNIT's minimum insurable earnings are set from it. For 2026 that's GH₵587.80, so contributions are paid on at least this much.
- Income tax: the new tax-free band from September 2026 was set close to the monthly minimum wage.
- Pay negotiations in many sectors start from the percentage the NTC agrees.
So when the NTC announces a new rate, usually towards the end of the year for the year after, it affects far more payslips than the minimum-wage ones.
Common questions
What is the minimum wage in Ghana in 2026? GH₵21.77 a day, from 1 January 2026. That's about GH₵588 for a 27-day month.
How much is the minimum wage per month in Ghana? It depends on the number of working days. At 27 days, the convention SSNIT uses, it's GH₵587.79. At 26 days it's GH₵566.02.
Is the minimum wage taxed? No income tax is due on a full month at the minimum wage in 2026. After the 5.5% SSNIT contribution, chargeable income is below the GH₵588 tax-free band.
Who sets the minimum wage in Ghana? The National Tripartite Committee, made up of government, organised labour and employers, under the Labour Act, 2003. It agrees a new rate each year.
What was the minimum wage in 2025? GH₵19.97 a day, effective 1 March 2025. The 2024 rate of GH₵18.15 applied until then.
Does the minimum wage apply to domestic workers and small businesses? The national minimum wage is a floor for workers generally. If you're unsure whether it applies to a particular job, ask the Labour Department or the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission.
Last checked 27 September 2026 against the National Tripartite Committee's communiqués, published by the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission, SSNIT's 2026 insurable earnings notice, and the Ghana Statistical Service's consumer price index. The full history with a source for every year is our minimum wage dataset.
Cover photo: Ibn Shiraz, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
