Non-Compete Enforceability Checker
Whether a non-compete binds you depends on the state where you work, and in ten jurisdictions on what you earn. Four states — California, Minnesota, North Dakota, Oklahoma — void employee non-competes outright, whatever the clause says. Everywhere else the restriction has to be reasonable in duration, geography and the interest it protects. Below your state’s earnings line, the clause fails however well it is drafted.
Pick your state below. You will get the governing statute, the earnings threshold if your state has one, any statutory cap on duration, and what courts there do with a restriction that reaches too far.
Where you actually perform the work, which is not always the state named in the contract’s governing-law clause.
Decides the answer outright in 10 jurisdictions.
In months, after you leave.
Washington sets a far higher threshold for contractors than for employees, so this changes the answer there.
Nothing you type here leaves your browser. There is no account, no upload and no request to a server — the whole check runs on data already loaded with this page.
Pick a state to see what its rule is. You will get an answer from the state alone; pay and duration sharpen it.
The ten jurisdictions where your pay decides it
In these ten places the earnings threshold is answered before reasonableness is considered at all. Earn at or below the figure and the restriction is void; earn above it and the ordinary tests apply. Most of these figures move every January.
| Jurisdiction | Threshold | Authority |
|---|---|---|
| Colorado | $130,014$78,008.40 for non-solicitsAdjusts annually | C.R.S. § 8-2-113, figure set by the CDLE PAY CALC Order |
| District of Columbia | $162,164Adjusts annually | D.C. Code § 32-581.01 et seq. Medical specialists have a higher figure of $270,274. |
| Illinois | $75,000$45,000 for non-solicits | Illinois Freedom to Work Act, 820 ILCS 90 |
| Maine | $63,840Adjusts annually | Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 26 § 599-A, set at 400% of the federal poverty level |
| Maryland | 150% of the Maryland state minimum wage | Md. Code, Lab. & Empl. § 3-716 |
| New Hampshire | 200% of the FEDERAL minimum wage | N.H. Rev. Stat. § 275:70-a |
| Oregon | $119,541Adjusts annually | Or. Rev. Stat. § 653.295 |
| Rhode Island | $39,900Adjusts annually | R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-59-3 |
| Virginia | $78,364.52Adjusts annually | Va. Code § 40.1-28.7:8, pegged to the state average weekly wage |
| Washington | $126,858.83$317,147.09 for independent contractorsAdjusts annually | RCW 49.62.020 and 49.62.030, figures published annually by L&I |
Maryland and New Hampshire set their lines as a multiple of a minimum wage rather than a published figure, so no single number is correct for every worker in those states. The checker explains the rule instead of inventing a number.
The four states where employee non-competes are void
California
Employee non-competes are void and unenforceable under Business & Professions Code §16600. Employers can even face penalties for requiring them.
Minnesota
Non-competes signed on or after July 1, 2023 are void and unenforceable. Confidentiality and non-solicitation terms may still apply.
North Dakota
Employee non-competes are void by statute. Only narrow sale-of-business exceptions are allowed.
Oklahoma
Non-competes are void; only non-solicitation of established customers is allowed. Employees may otherwise compete freely.
A void non-compete does not make the rest of the agreement harmless. Confidentiality, trade-secret and non-solicitation terms sit under different rules and routinely survive in all four states, which is the part people most often get wrong.
Common questions
Are non-compete agreements enforceable?
It depends on the state where you work, and in ten jurisdictions on what you earn. Four states — California, Minnesota, North Dakota, Oklahoma — treat employee non-competes as void outright. nine more restrict them, most commonly by setting an earnings threshold or requiring advance notice before you accept the offer. The rest enforce restrictions that are reasonable in duration, geography and the interest protected.
Does my salary affect whether a non-compete is enforceable?
In ten jurisdictions it decides the question before the wording is examined at all. Washington voids non-competes for employees earning $126,858.83 or less, Colorado for those under $130,014, Oregon under $119,541, and Illinois at or below $75,000. If you are under your state's line, the restriction fails no matter how carefully it was drafted.
Which states have banned non-competes?
California, Minnesota, North Dakota, Oklahoma treat employee non-competes as void. Note that this covers the non-compete specifically. Confidentiality, trade-secret and non-solicitation obligations are governed by separate rules and commonly survive in all four.
What happens if a non-compete is too broad?
That depends on the state and it matters more than most people realise. Some courts rewrite an overbroad restriction into something they consider reasonable, which means an employer loses little by drafting wide. Others delete only the offending words without rewriting. A third group strikes the whole restriction down rather than narrowing it, which gives you real leverage to ask for it to be cut back before you sign.
Which state law applies if my contract names a different state?
Generally the state where you actually perform the work, not the one named in the governing-law clause. Several states, including California and Washington, expressly refuse to enforce choice-of-law clauses that would strip a resident worker of local protections. That is why this tool asks where you work rather than what the contract says.
Is this checker free?
Yes, entirely, with no account and nothing uploaded. It runs in your browser against published statutory data. ClauseAudit's paid review is a different thing: it reads your actual contract and flags the wording, which a state-level lookup cannot do.
Where this tool stops and a contract review starts
A state lookup tells you the rule. It cannot tell you whether your clause survives it, because that turns on how the restriction is drafted, what you were given in exchange, and what the employer can actually show it is protecting. Those live in the document. An employment contract review reads the clause and flags the wording that decides it, alongside the IP assignment, arbitration and severance terms in the same agreement.
State positions from Beck Reed Riden LLP, Employee Noncompetes: A State-by-State Survey (2026-01-21); wage thresholds from the same firm’s threshold chart (2026-01-21), cross-checked against the primary source where one is published. This is information, not legal advice, and no attorney–client relationship is created by using it. Statutes and thresholds change; verify before you rely on any figure here.