Workers' Compensation Rates in Washington (2026)
State Overview
WC Requirement
Mandatory
Minimum Employees
1
Effective Date
2026-01-01
January 1 really is Washington's rate year, but nobody files it: L&I sets the rates itself by rule after public hearings rather than approving a rating bureau's filing. L&I announced the 2026 rates on November 26, 2025 — an average 4.9% increase, about $1.37 more a week per full-time position — and said they start January 1. The published tables are titled by calendar year ("2026 Rates per Hour Worked for State Fund firms"), which is the cycle.
Washington operates a monopoly state fund through the Department of Labor & Industries (L&I). All employers must purchase coverage from the state fund.
How Washington Actually Prices Workers' Comp
Washington is the categorical exception: L&I charges per hour worked, not per $100 of payroll, and rates its own risk classifications rather than NCCI codes. A dollars-per-$100-of-payroll figure is not a unit Washington uses.
Rate basis
Per hour worked
Classification system
The fund's own classification manual
How L&I calculates your premium
L&I's rate notice gives the formula directly: Total hourly rate = [(Accident Fund + Medical Aid Fund + Stay at Work) × your experience factor] + Supplemental Pension Fund. The employer multiplies that hourly rate by hours worked on the quarterly report. Employees are withheld half of [(Medical Aid + Stay at Work) × experience factor] + Supplemental Pension.
Why there is no NCCI class-code rate table on this page
Publishing "$X.XX per $100 of payroll" for a Washington NCCI code would be wrong three times over — wrong unit, wrong classification system, and attributed to L&I, which files neither. Use L&I's own rate lookup for your risk classification instead.
L&I — rates for workers' compensation by risk classification →
For the states that are rated on NCCI class codes, see our class-code directory and state rate comparison.
Sources
- L&I Rate Notice: WA Workers' Compensation (form F225-004-000) (retrieved 2026-07-29)
- L&I — Base rates (Accident, Medical Aid, Stay at Work, Supplemental Pension funds) (retrieved 2026-07-29)
How to find a Washington workers' comp class code from a job description
There is no Washington workers' comp class code for a job title. Coverage in Washington comes from the state fund, and L&I assigns the classification itself, and what gets classified is the employer's business — not the separate employments, occupations or operations inside it. "Machinist", "CNC operator", "general construction labor" and "data entry" are therefore work that sits inside whichever classification describes the business, not values you can look up on their own.
L&I publishes Washington's classifications in the WAC 296-17A — Classifications for Washington workers' compensation insurance (as codified in the Washington Administrative Code). To confirm the classification for a specific business, use L&I risk classes for workers' compensation — that is the filed authority for Washington, and a code quoted from another state's manual is not.
Washington uses no NCCI codes and no manual in the insurance-industry sense. L&I assigns every employer one or more risk classifications defined in the Administrative Code according to the nature of the business, and charges per hour worked rather than per $100 of payroll, so an NCCI code brought from another state has nothing to attach to.
L&I risk classes for workers' compensation (official Washington lookup)
Last verified: 2026-08-10 · Sources
- Washington State Department of Labor & Industries — Risk classes for workers' compensation (retrieved 2026-08-10)
Popular Workers' Comp Rate Guides by State
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Frequently Asked Questions
Related Guides for Washington Employers
- The Complete Guide to Workers' Comp Costs in 2026
National benchmarks, the 2026 state rate-change table, and how to budget your premium.
- Compare Workers' Comp Rates by State
Rank the states that are rated on NCCI class codes per $100 of payroll. Washington is not among them — see the pricing model above.
- Workers' Comp Premium Calculator
Walks through the standard rating-bureau premium algorithm step by step. It works from an NCCI class-code rate per $100 of payroll, so it does not model L&I premium — use it to understand the mechanics, not to price a Washington policy.
- Workers' Comp Class Codes Explained
How NCCI assigns a code to each job and why it creates a 10–25× swing in your rate.
- NCCI Class Code Lookup & Directory
Search workers' comp class codes by keyword to find the four-digit NCCI (or Washington bureau) code for your business — then see how it is rated above.
- Experience Modification Rate (EMR) Explained
How your claims history becomes a multiplier that raises or lowers your Washington premium.
- 5 Proven Ways to Lower Your Workers' Comp Premium
Tactics any small business can use to reduce cost at next renewal — from classification audits to return-to-work programs.
- How Rates Are Calculated: NCCI vs Independent States
Whether Washington uses NCCI or an independent bureau — and why the difference changes how your premium is set.
Coverage in Washington Comes From the State Fund
Private carriers cannot write workers' compensation in Washington, so there is no market to shop. Buy coverage and get your own rate from L&I directly.
Go to L&I