Alimony · every state
Alimony and spousal support calculator
Only some states write spousal support into a formula. Pick one of them and the calculator applies its percentages, caps and duration rule; for the others, the state page explains what the judge weighs.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How we calculate
There is no national alimony formula, and most states have none at all: judges set spousal support, called maintenance in New York, Illinois and Colorado, from a list of factors such as the length of the marriage, each spouse's earning capacity and the standard of living. 9 states on this site publish a formula that produces an amount (California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania and Texas), sometimes only for temporary support while the divorce is pending, and Arizona, Maine, Utah and Virginia set rules on how long support may last without fixing the amount. For a higher earner at $8,000 a month and a spouse at $3,000, married twelve years, the formulas give from $900 in New Mexico to $1,750 a month in Massachusetts, because they differ in the income they count, the percentages and the caps. Pick your state in the calculator to apply its own rule, and read the scope line: a temporary formula does not bind the final judgment.
Estimated spousal support in California, per month
$1,700
Duration: set by the judge
| Payer’s net income after child support | $8,000 |
| 40% of that income | $3,200 |
| 50% of the payee’s net income | $1,500 |
| Temporary spousal support (difference) | $1,700 |
California has no statewide formula: this is the Santa Clara County temporary support guideline, used while the case is pending, not for the final judgment.
The court software adjusts the result for taxes; the figure here is before that adjustment.
A marriage of 10 years or more is presumed long: the court keeps jurisdiction over support indefinitely (§ 4336).
Estimate under the California formula as published; eligibility, the judge's findings and an agreement between spouses decide the real order. How this is calculated.
Alimony in each state
Formulas, caps and durations
State rules on spousal support come in three kinds. A formula turns both incomes into an amount, usually a percentage of the higher income minus a percentage of the lower one, with a ceiling so the recipient does not end up with more than a set share of the combined income. A cap limits the amount without computing it, as in Texas, where maintenance cannot exceed the lesser of a fixed dollar amount and a fifth of the payer's average monthly gross income. A duration rule ties the length of support to the length of the marriage, as a fraction, a table or a maximum number of years.
Many formulas apply only to temporary support while the case is pending, and some only when combined income stays under a limit. Above it, or for the final judgment, the judge returns to the statutory factors. The calculator always shows the scope of the rule it applies.
What every judge looks at
Where no formula exists, and even where one does, courts weigh a familiar list: the length of the marriage, the age and health of each spouse, each one's earning capacity and the time needed to train or find work, contributions to the home and to the other spouse's career, the standard of living during the marriage, the property each receives in the divorce, and, in some states, fault. The guide to how alimony is calculated goes through these factors with examples.
Taxes changed in 2019
For divorce or separation agreements signed after December 31, 2018, alimony is no longer deductible by the payer and not taxable to the recipient on the federal return (IRS Topic 452). Older agreements keep the old treatment unless modified to adopt the new one. Several state formulas were written when alimony was deductible, which is why Colorado and some others reduce the guideline amount for post-2018 orders, and why Pennsylvania changed its percentages for orders entered from 2019.
Alimony and child support together
When both are ordered, the order of calculation matters. Some states compute spousal support first and then count it as income of the recipient for child support; others compute child support first and apply the spousal formula to what is left. New York uses a lower percentage when child support will also be paid. The calculator asks whether child support is paid and, where the state requires it, how much.
Ending or changing support
Support usually ends at the end of its term, at the death of either spouse, or when the recipient remarries; many states also allow ending or reducing it when the recipient lives with a new partner. A substantial change in income can justify a modification unless the agreement says the amount cannot be modified. Several states, Massachusetts among them, end general term alimony when the payer reaches full retirement age.