Why Jury Duty Pay Is So Low — And Why Nobody's Fixing It

Updated July 2026 · 6 min read

Let's be honest: $15 a day is not a lot of money. In 1990, maybe you could grab lunch and take the bus home. In 2026? That's not even a Chipotle burrito bowl with guac.

And yet, that's exactly what California pays its jurors. Florida too. And most of the country hasn't raised rates in decades.

So why is jury duty pay still stuck in the past? I dug into this, and the answer is kind of frustrating — but also makes sense once you understand how the system works.

The Short Answer: Nobody Wants to Pay for It

Jury duty pay comes out of state and county budgets. Courts are perpetually underfunded, and raising juror pay is genuinely expensive when you're running hundreds of trials a year. A small increase — say, from $15 to $50 — would cost California alone tens of millions of dollars annually.

And here's the political reality: voters don't vote based on jury pay. Politicians have zero incentive to fight for it.

A Quick History of How We Got Here

In the early days of the US, jury duty was actually seen as an honor — and jurors weren't paid at all. Over time, states started adding nominal stipends to cover travel expenses. These amounts were never designed to replace lost income; they were just meant to cover the basics.

Federal jury pay was $5/day in 1945. It's $50/day now — but that's still only a 10x increase over 80 years, while inflation has risen roughly 15x over the same period.

The States That Are Doing Better

Not every state is stuck at rock-bottom rates. Here's the range you'll actually see:

• $5/day: Idaho, some Texas counties
• $10–15/day: California, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina
• $40–50/day: New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, federal courts
• $60+/day: Federal courts after 10 days of service

New York stands out because it also requires employers to pay your wages for the first 3 days. Connecticut mandates 5 days of employer pay. These states actually take the burden seriously.

The Real Cost Nobody Talks About

When a juror earning $200/day gets paid $15 by the court, someone is eating that $185 difference. Sometimes it's the juror. Sometimes it's a generous employer. Often, it's both — with the juror picking up childcare, parking, and lost overtime on top of it.

A 2023 survey found that nearly 40% of Americans who served jury duty reported financial stress as a result. That's not a side effect of civic duty — it's a structural failure.

So Will It Change?

Slowly, maybe. Some states have been incrementally raising rates. But meaningful reform — where jury pay actually reflects minimum wage, let alone real lost income — would require political will that just isn't there yet.

In the meantime, the best thing you can do is know your rights: check if your employer must pay you during jury service (see our state-by-state guide), claim every dollar of mileage reimbursement you're entitled to, and understand how to request a hardship exemption if the financial hit would be severe.

Bottom Line

Jury duty pay is low because it was always low, it's expensive to fix, and nobody with power has had enough reason to push for change. That's the blunt truth. Knowing this won't put money in your pocket, but it might make the frustration a little more bearable.