The Brief The $7.25 federal minimum wage has remained stagnant since 2009, but in 30 states, minimum wage is higher, which puts the average US minimum wage at $11.59 per hour. Still, minimum wage earners need to work an impossible number of hours to afford the average rent for an apartment. A new analysis says the average minimum wage worker in the U.S. needs to work more than double what’s considered full-time hours to afford the median price of an apartment. The $7.25 federal minimum wage has remained stagnant since 2009, but in 30 states, minimum wage is higher than $7.25, which puts the average national minimum wage at $11.59 per hour for 2025. Still, the average minimum wage earner would have to work 106 hours a week to afford a $1,599 a month apartment.