Alimony · NY
New York alimony and spousal support calculator
New York sets temporary and post-divorce maintenance with the same arithmetic, applied to the payor’s income up to an inflation-indexed cap.
Rules read on official New York pages on · Checked by Radif Partners · How we calculate
- Income counted
- Gross income
- $8,000 vs $3,000 a month
- $1,400
- a month under the rule
- 12-year marriage
- 21.6 months to 43.2 months
- Rules read on
- October 8, 2026
New York maintenance under Domestic Relations Law § 236(B) is computed in two passes. Without child support, take 30% of the payor's income minus 20% of the payee's; when the payor also pays child support as the noncustodial parent, 20% minus 25%. Then take 40% of the combined income minus the payee's income, and keep the lower figure. Only the payor's income up to $241,000 a year enters the formula, the cap published by the courts and in force since March 1, 2026 (it was $228,000). A payor with $11,000 a month and a payee with $3,000 gives $2,600 a month without child support, $1,450 with it. The payor keeps at least the self-support reserve of $21,546 a year. For post-divorce maintenance an advisory schedule suggests a term of 15% to 50% of the marriage depending on its length.
Estimated spousal support in New York, per month
$1,400
Duration: 22 months to 43 months
| Payor’s annual income used (up to the cap) | $96,000 |
| 30% of payor − 20% of payee | $21,600 |
| 40% of combined income − payee income | $16,800 |
| Annual guideline maintenance (lower amount) | $16,800 |
| Monthly maintenance | $1,400 |
Without child support (or when the payor has custody), the 30%/20% formula applies.
The duration schedule is advisory: 15% to 30% of the length of the marriage for post-divorce maintenance; temporary maintenance ends with the judgment.
Estimate under the New York formula as published; eligibility, the judge's findings and an agreement between spouses decide the real order. How this is calculated.
The cap moves every two years
The statute itself names a starting cap of $184,000 and orders an adjustment every two years from March 1, 2020, by the change in the consumer price index, rounded to the nearest thousand dollars; the Office of Court Administration publishes the result. The March 1, 2026 adjustment raised it from $228,000 to $241,000, about $20,083 a month. Income above the cap is not ignored, but what it adds is up to the judge, who must give reasons using the listed factors. A payor earning $30,000 a month with a non-earning spouse gets a guideline of $6,025 on the capped part; anything beyond that is argued, not computed.
Maintenance before child support
New York runs maintenance first and the Child Support Standards Act second: the maintenance figure is subtracted from the payor's income and added to the payee's before child support is calculated. That is why the percentages drop when child support is also owed. In our example the payee receives $2,600 without children but $1,450 with them, and then child support on top. The lower percentages apply only when the payor is the noncustodial parent; a payor who has custody uses the 30%/20% version. If the guideline would push the payor below the self-support reserve of $21,546 a year, the award shrinks to the excess over the reserve.
| Length of marriage | Advisory term |
|---|---|
| up to 15 years | 15% to 30% of the marriage |
| over 15 up to 20 years | 30% to 40% of the marriage |
| more than 20 years | 35% to 50% of the marriage |
How long, and when it stops
The duration schedule is advisory, a word the statute chose with care: the court may use it, must explain its choice either way, and may award non-durational maintenance in a fitting case. Seventeen years of marriage suggests 61.2 to 81.6 months. Temporary maintenance stops at the judgment of divorce. Post-divorce maintenance stops at the death of either party or the payee's remarriage, and the payor's actual retirement with a substantial loss of income is a ground to modify it. Unrepresented parties must be told the guideline amount before any order is entered.
The New York rule this calculator applies
Scope. Temporary maintenance (DRL § 236(B)(5-a)) and post-divorce maintenance (DRL § 236(B)(6)); same amount formula for both; advisory duration schedule for post-divorce maintenance only. Actions commenced under Part B.
Amount. DRL § 236(B)(5-a)(c) and (6)(c), for payor income up to the income cap: (1) if child support will be paid and the payor is the non-custodial parent: 20% of payor income minus 25% of payee income; (2) otherwise (no child support, or payor is the custodial parent): 30% of payor income minus 20% of payee income. Then 40% of combined income minus payee income. The guideline amount is the lower of the two; zero if <= 0. Maintenance is computed before child support. Above the cap, additional maintenance is discretionary (para. d). If the guideline amount would reduce the payor below the self-support reserve, the amount is the payor's income minus the reserve; payor below the reserve = rebuttable presumption of no maintenance. Income = CSSA income (DRL § 240) without deducting maintenance paid to this spouse.
Duration. DRL § 236(B)(6)(f)(1) advisory schedule for post-divorce maintenance (length of marriage = date of marriage to commencement of the action): 0 up to and including 15 years: 15%-30% of the length of the marriage; more than 15 up to and including 20 years: 30%-40%; more than 20 years: 35%-50%. The court may award non-durational maintenance in an appropriate case (f)(2). Temporary maintenance lasts no later than the judgment of divorce (5-a)(g).
Eligibility. On application, the court shall order the guideline amount up to the cap unless it finds it unjust or inappropriate under the listed factors (DRL § 236(B)(5-a)(h), (6)(e)), with written reasons. Maintenance ends on the death of either party or the payee's remarriage (§ 236(B)(1)(a), (6)(f)(3)).
Worth knowing in New York
- Since March 1, 2026 the maintenance guideline applies to the payor's income up to $241,000 (previously $228,000), and the self-support reserve is $21,546 (NY Courts notice). source
- When a party is unrepresented, the court may not enter a maintenance order without telling them the guideline amount (DRL § 236(B)(5-a)(h)(3), (6)(g)). source
- If the payor defaults or income evidence is insufficient, temporary or post-divorce maintenance is based on the payee's needs or the pre-divorce standard of living, whichever is greater (DRL § 236(B)(5-a)(j), (6)(i)). source
- Actual retirement of the payor with a substantial drop in income is a ground to modify post-divorce maintenance (DRL § 236(B)(6)(f)(4)). source