Which states and cities make an employer put pay in a job ad, and which only make the employer give it when asked. For each one: who is covered, what the ad has to say, the penalty and the section of the law.
Select a state to see its rule. The number on a square is the smallest employer the law reaches.
Enter your headcount and pick where you hire. You get the laws that apply, the ones on the way, and one checklist for a job ad that satisfies all of them.
Every one of these laws asks for the pay range. Several ask for more. Check this table before you post one ad in several states.
| Where | Pay range | Benefits | Closing date | Job description | Commission | Tipped | Outside sites |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | |||||||
| Colorado | |||||||
| Connecticut | |||||||
| Delaware | |||||||
| Hawaii | |||||||
| Illinois | |||||||
| Maine | |||||||
| Maryland | |||||||
| Massachusetts | |||||||
| Minnesotano open-ended range | |||||||
| New Jersey | |||||||
| New York | |||||||
| Vermont | |||||||
| Virginia | |||||||
| Washington | |||||||
| Washington, D.C.healthcare benefits before the first interview | |||||||
| Albany County, New York | |||||||
| Cleveland, Ohio | |||||||
| Columbus, Ohio | |||||||
| Ithaca, New York | |||||||
| Jersey City, New Jersey | |||||||
| New York City, New York | |||||||
| Westchester County, New York |
A filled dot means the law requires it. An empty dot means it does not. Commission and Tipped mark laws that say what an ad for that kind of pay must state. Outside sites marks laws that make you pass the range to a job board or recruiter that posts for you.
Who enforces each law, what it costs, and whether you get a chance to fix the ad first. Unknown means we have not read that part of the law yet.
| Where | Enforced by | Penalty | Chance to fix the ad | Can a person sue |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | Labor Commissioner | $100 to $10,000 per violation | No penalty for a first posting violation once the postings are updated | Yes |
| Colorado | Division of Labor Standards and Statistics | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown |
| Connecticut | A court, on a claim by an employee or applicant | Compensatory damages, attorney's fees and costs | None stated | Yes, within 2 years |
| Delaware | Department of Labor | $500 to $10,000 per violation after a first warning | A first offense gets a written warning | None stated |
| Hawaii | Hawaii Civil Rights Commission | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown |
| Illinois | Illinois Department of Labor | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown |
| Maine | Maine Department of Labor | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown |
| Maryland | Commissioner of Labor and Industry | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown |
| Massachusetts | Attorney General | A warning, then up to $500, then up to $1,000 | 2 business days after notice, until October 2027 | No, the Attorney General only |
| Minnesota | Department of Labor and Industry | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown |
| Nevada | Labor Commissioner | Administrative penalty of up to $5,000 per violation | Unknown | Unknown |
| New Jersey | Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development | Up to $300, then up to $600. One violation per opening | None stated | None stated |
| New York | Commissioner of Labor | Civil penalty under Labor Law 218 | None stated | None stated |
| Rhode Island | Department of Labor and Training | Unknown | Unknown | Yes |
| Vermont | Attorney General, Civil Rights Unit | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown |
| Virginia | Attorney General | Up to $1,000, then up to $5,000 | 15 business days after written notice | Yes, within 1 year |
| Washington | Department of Labor and Industries | $100 to $5,000 per violation in damages, plus a civil penalty of up to $500 or $1,000 | 5 business days after written notice, for postings through July 27, 2027 | Yes, within 3 years |
| Washington, D.C. | Attorney General | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown |
| Cincinnati, Ohio | A court, on a claim by the applicant | Compensatory damages, attorney's fees and costs | None stated | Yes, within 2 years |
| Cleveland, Ohio | Fair Employment Wage Board | Up to $1,000, then up to $2,500, then up to $5,000 | A penalty applies only if the complaint is still unresolved after 90 days | None stated |
| Columbus, Ohio | Community Relations Commission | Civil penalties under City Code 2331.05 | Unknown | Unknown |
| Jersey City, New Jersey | Office of Code Compliance | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown |
| New York City, New York | Commission on Human Rights | Civil penalties under the City Human Rights Law | A first violation costs $0 if fixed within 30 days of the complaint | Only a current employee, against their own employer |
| Toledo, Ohio | A court, on a claim by the applicant | Compensatory damages, attorney's fees and costs | None stated | Yes, within 2 years |
Most charts treat these as the same law. They ask for different things from an employer.
| Duty | Places | What the employer does | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pay in every job ad | 23 | Put the pay range in the advertisement itself, including copies that outside job sites carry. This touches every job you post. | California 15+ColoradoConnecticutDelaware 26+Hawaii 50+Illinois 15+Maine 10+MarylandMassachusetts 25+Minnesota 30+New Jersey 10+New York 4+Vermont 5+VirginiaWashington 15+D.C.Albany CountyCleveland 15+Columbus 15+Ithaca 4+Jersey City 5+New York City 4+Westchester County 4+ |
| Pay on request | 2 | Nothing goes in the ad. When an applicant asks, and in some laws an employee, you must give the range. It needs one person or process so the answer is always the same. | CaliforniaRhode Island |
| Pay after an interview | 1 | Nothing goes in the ad. You give the range to a candidate who has interviewed, without waiting to be asked. | Nevada |
| Pay on request after a conditional offer | 2 | Nothing goes in the ad. Once you have made a conditional offer, you give the pay scale if the applicant asks. | Cincinnati 15+Toledo 15+ |
Sorted by the headcount at which the law starts to apply. A dashed outline means the law is not yet in force.
A page that says a state has no law should say how it knows. This is what we looked at.
states have no law that makes a private employer put pay in a job ad. Some of them require a written notice of the wage when a person is hired. That is a different rule and is not counted here.
| State | Bill | What it would have required | What happened |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska | HB 156 and SB 78 (2025) | Pay or a pay range in every job ad | In committee, no action since May 2025 |
| Florida | HB 1619 (2025) | Pay or a range and benefits in ads, at 10 or more employees | Died in committee, June 2025 |
| Iowa | SF 502 (2025) | The pay scale in the posting, at 15 or more employees | Stalled in subcommittee |
| Kentucky | HB 362 (2025) and HB 210 (2026) | A wage range in every posting | Both died in committee |
| Montana | SB 313 (2025) | Pay or a range in every posting, at 15 or more employees | Tabled in committee, died May 2025 |
| Pennsylvania | HB 560 (2025) | The pay range for posted jobs, at 15 or more employees | In committee since February 2025 |
| Wisconsin | AB 480 (2025) | Salary range and benefits in every posting | Failed to pass, March 2026 |
We searched the online codes of about 4,300 cities and counties for pay transparency wording. Outside the 9 on this page, we found none with its own rule. A ban on asking about salary history is a different rule and is not counted here; see salary history bans.
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From the publisher
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The rule in our own words, with a link to the law itself.