Alimony & Child Support Estimate Calculator

How it works

Generic: spousal support = (payer income − recipient income) × your % · child support = combined income × 17/25/29/31/35% (1–5+ children) × payer’s share of income · California: spousal ≈ 40% × payer net (after child support) − 50% × recipient net; child CS = K × (HN − H% × TN) × children multiplier (Fam. Code §4055) · Illinois: maintenance = lesser of 33⅓% payer net − 25% recipient net and 40% of combined net − recipient net; duration = years married × 0.20–0.80 · New York: maintenance = lesser of 20% payer − 25% recipient (30% − 20% with no child support) and 40% of combined − recipient, payer income capped at $241,000; child support = combined income (cap $193,000) × 17/25/29/31/35% × payer share · Pennsylvania: spousal/APL = 33% obligor net − 40% obligee net (25% − 30% with children) · Texas: maintenance ≤ lesser of $5,000 or 20% of gross; child support = 20/25/30/35/40% of net resources up to $11,700 · Wisconsin: child support = 17/25/29/31/34% of payer gross; maintenance starts from an equal income split

Support rules differ by state and country, so this calculator offers a generic estimate plus the published formulas of six US states. The generic option keeps the old approach: spousal support as a percentage of the gap between the two incomes, and child support as a percentage of combined income by number of children (the New York and Wisconsin style rates), paid by each parent in proportion to income. The state options follow their guideline formulas: California’s temporary spousal support rule of thumb and its statutory child support formula, which also uses each parent’s share of time with the children; Illinois’s maintenance formula with its 40% cap and duration table; New York’s maintenance and child support (CSSA) formulas with the 2026 income caps; Pennsylvania’s spousal support formula for orders since 2019; Texas’s maintenance cap and percentage-of-net child support; and Wisconsin’s percentage standard with its shared-placement rule. Where both kinds of support are owed, spousal support is worked out first and moved from one parent’s income to the other’s before child support, as the guidelines do (California works both out together). Illinois and Pennsylvania compute child support from schedule tables, so those cases show the generic figure and say so. A comparison table shows the same incomes under every guideline, and another shows how child support changes with the number of children. Every result is a starting point for a conversation with a lawyer or mediator: real orders also weigh health insurance, childcare, other children, the standard of living during the marriage, earning capacity and the judge’s discretion.

Worked example

A payer earning $6,000 a month and a recipient earning $2,000 have a $4,000 gap. At the generic 25%, estimated spousal support is $1,000 a month, or $12,000 a year, leaving the payer $5,000 and the recipient $3,000. Under New York’s formula, after FICA their incomes are $5,541 and $1,847; with no child support, maintenance is the lesser of 30% × 5,541 − 20% × 1,847 = $1,293 and 40% × 7,388 − 1,847 = $1,108, so $1,108 a month. For a 10-year marriage the advisory duration is 1.5 to 3 years. Switching to Both with one child, New York maintenance drops to $646 (20% − 25%); child support is 17% of the $7,388 combined income = $1,256, of which the payer, with 66% of the income after maintenance, pays $832, for a total of about $1,479 a month.

Sources: California Family Code §4055 (child support formula) · Illinois 750 ILCS 5/504 (maintenance guidelines) · New York courts — 2026 child support and maintenance income caps · Pennsylvania Rule 1910.16-4 (support guidelines formula) · Texas child support cap ($11,700 from September 2025) · Wisconsin DCF 150 — child support percentage standard

Frequently asked questions