Child support estimator

How child support is calculated in the U.S.

Every U.S. state has its own child support guideline, but almost all of them fit into one of two families: income shares (40+ states, including California, Florida, Pennsylvania, and most of the Midwest) and percentage of obligor income (Texas, Mississippi, North Dakota, Wisconsin, and New York below a statutory cap). Both models share the same goal — order a monthly payment that reflects what the child would have received if the parents lived together — but they get there different ways.

Income-shares math, in plain English

In an income-shares state, both parents' gross monthly incomes are added together. That combined number is run against a schedule published by the state — typically a big table indexed by combined income and number of children. The result is the total child-support obligation (what both parents together are expected to spend on the kids). Each parent then pays their proportional share — if Parent A earns 60% of the combined income, Parent A is on the hook for 60% of the obligation. The non-custodial parent pays their share in cash to the custodial parent; the custodial parent is presumed to spend their share directly.

Percentage-of-obligor math

In a percentage-of-obligor state like Texas, only the paying parent's income matters for the baseline. Texas uses 20% of monthly net resources for one child, 25% for two, 30% for three, and so on, up to a statutory cap on net resources that rises every few years (roughly $9,200/month as of 2024). The "net resources" calculation has its own worksheet — it's gross minus federal income tax on a single filer, Social Security, Medicare, union dues, and health insurance for the kids.

Worked example: income shares at $10,000 combined

Parents with $10,000 combined gross monthly income and two children in an income-shares state might land around $1,600/month total obligation (roughly 16% of combined income, scaled for two kids). If Parent A earns $6,000 (60%) and Parent B earns $4,000 (40%), Parent A owes about $960/month. That's the baseline — before overnight credits, health-insurance credits, and childcare.

Worked example: Texas percentage

Parent A earns $7,500/month net resources and has two kids. Texas guideline = 25% × $7,500 = $1,875/month. If Parent A's net resources were $10,500, the statutory cap would kick in — 25% × $9,200 = $2,300/month, and anything above would require a judge to make specific findings about the children's proven needs.

Edge cases that move the number

• Substantial parenting time — most states reduce support by a specific amount or percent once the paying parent has ~30% or more of overnights. Some states have a "shared parenting" formula that kicks in at 50/50.
• Health insurance premiums — the parent paying the kids' portion of a family policy usually gets a line-item credit on the worksheet.
• Existing orders — child support already being paid for kids from another relationship is deducted from gross before running the guideline.
• Self-employment income — judges routinely add-back depreciation, personal vehicle expenses, and other Schedule C deductions when setting child support income.
• High income above the schedule cap — every state's schedule ends at some combined income ($30k–$50k monthly depending on state). Above that cap, the judge has discretion.

When to run this estimator vs. the state worksheet

This calculator is for the early "what does this even look like?" conversation — what to expect before a filing, negotiation, or mediation. Every state has an official worksheet (often a free fillable PDF or web form on the judicial-branch site). Run that before you sign anything, and ask a family-law attorney to review the inputs. The expensive mistakes are almost always in what you put into the worksheet — income that's misclassified, deductions missed, overnights miscounted — not in the math itself.