Child support · TX
Texas child support calculator
Texas looks at one paycheck only: a fixed percentage of the paying parent’s net resources, whatever the other parent earns.
Rules read on official Texas pages on · Checked by Radif Partners · How we calculate
- Model
- Percentage of payer income
- Income counted
- Net resources
- Shared parenting
- No fixed formula
- 1 child, $5,000 / $3,000
- $1,000
- a month, rules of September 1, 2025
Texas child support is a percentage of the paying parent’s monthly net resources: 20% for one child, 25% for two, 30% for three, 35% for four and 40% for five or more (Texas Family Code § 154.125). The other parent’s income is not part of the calculation. The percentage applies only to the first $11,700 of net resources a month, the cap in force since September 1, 2025, so the presumptive amount for one child stops at $2,340. A parent with $6,000 of net resources and two children pays $1,500 a month. Below $1,000 of net resources, a lower schedule applies (15% for one child). Net resources are gross income minus federal income tax figured as a single filer, Social Security and Medicare, union dues and the cost of the children’s health and dental coverage. Medical and dental support are ordered on top of the percentage, and the number of nights each parent has does not change the guideline.
Guideline child support in Texas, per month
$1,000
$12,000 a year
| Paying parent’s monthly net resources | $5,000 |
| Guideline percentage, 1 child | 20.0% |
Estimate under the Texas guideline as published, from the incomes you enter. Deviations, imputed income, other children and the judge's findings can change the order. How this is calculated.
One income, not two
Texas is one of the few states where the parent receiving support could double their salary and the guideline would not move by a dollar. Section 154.125 applies its percentage to the obligor’s net resources alone; the obligee’s income, the parents’ relative earnings and the children’s actual budget only come in as reasons the court may give for departing from the guideline (§ 154.123). That makes the Texas calculation short, but it makes the definition of net resources decisive. Under § 154.062 they include wages, overtime, bonuses, self-employment and rental profit, Social Security other than SSI, unemployment and workers’ compensation, and alimony received. Federal income tax is then deducted as if the parent were single, with the standard deduction, whatever the filing status on the parent’s real return. Texas has no state income tax, so there is nothing to deduct for it on a Texas paycheck. The Attorney General’s Monthly Child Support Calculator performs that tax step from gross pay; our calculator takes the net figure directly.
| Net resources a month | 1 child | 2 children | 3 children |
|---|---|---|---|
| $3,000 | $600 | $750 | $900 |
| $6,000 | $1,200 | $1,500 | $1,800 |
| $11,700 | $2,340 | $2,925 | $3,510 |
| $18,000 | $2,340 | $2,925 | $3,510 |
The $11,700 ceiling and the 2025 adjustment
The guideline percentages apply only to net resources up to a maximum that the Title IV-D agency, the Office of the Attorney General, publishes in the Texas Register. The figure is indexed to inflation every six years, rounded to the nearest $50, and takes effect on September 1 of the adjustment year (§ 154.125(a-1)); the current $11,700 has applied since September 1, 2025, and the next revision is due in 2031. An obligor netting $18,000 a month therefore owes the same presumptive $2,340 for one child as someone at exactly the cap. Above it, the obligee may ask for more, but only by proving the child’s needs, and the order cannot exceed the greater of the presumptive amount or the proven needs (§ 154.126). We read the $11,700 figure on the OAG calculator, not in the Register notice itself.
A cliff at $1,000
For obligors under $1,000 of monthly net resources, § 154.125(c) lowers each percentage by 5 points. Because the schedule switches all at once rather than phasing in, a parent netting $999 owes $150 for one child, and a parent netting $1,000 owes $200. A raise of one dollar adds about $50 of support. It is worth checking which side of it the net resources really fall on before an order is signed.
Children in another household
An obligor who also supports children not before the court gets a lower percentage. Section 154.129 publishes a grid: the row is the number of other children the obligor has a duty to support, the column the number before the court. With one other child, a single child before the court calls for 17.5% instead of 20%, which on $5,000 of net resources is $875 a month; two children before the court call for 22.5%. Section 154.128 offers the alternative of deducting a notional amount for the other children from net resources first. Our calculator does not ask about other households, so apply the grid rate yourself if it fits your case.
Medical and dental support, and possession
Health and dental coverage for the child are separate orders under §§ 154.181 to 154.1825, added to the percentage. When the obligor provides the insurance, its cost is deducted from the obligor’s net resources before the percentage is applied. When the obligee provides it, the obligor reimburses the reasonable cost as additional support. When no coverage is available, the court orders cash medical support of up to 9% of the obligor’s annual resources. Time with the child is different: a standard possession order and an expanded one produce the same guideline figure. A parent with near-equal possession can only ask the judge to deviate, and the order must then state both parents’ net resources and the reason for the variance (§ 154.130).
The Texas guideline this calculator applies
| Rule | Texas |
|---|---|
| Model | Percentage of the obligor's monthly net resources (Fam. Code § 154.125) |
| Income counted | Monthly net resources: income minus taxes, FICA and the children’s health insurance (Tex. Fam. Code § 154.062). |
| Percentages | 1 child: 20% · 2 children: 25% · 3 children: 30% · 4 children: 35% · 5 children: 40% |
| Income cap | $11,700 a month (paying parent) |
| Shared parenting | No overnight formula in the calculator (see the rule below) |
| In force since | September 1, 2025 |
Monthly support for one paying parent, the other parent without income
| Paying parent’s monthly income | 1 child | 2 children | 3 children | 4 children |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $2,000 | $400 | $500 | $600 | $700 |
| $3,000 | $600 | $750 | $900 | $1,050 |
| $4,000 | $800 | $1,000 | $1,200 | $1,400 |
| $5,000 | $1,000 | $1,250 | $1,500 | $1,750 |
| $6,000 | $1,200 | $1,500 | $1,800 | $2,100 |
| $8,000 | $1,600 | $2,000 | $2,400 | $2,800 |
| $10,000 | $2,000 | $2,500 | $3,000 | $3,500 |
| $12,500 | $2,340 | $2,925 | $3,510 | $4,095 |
| $15,000 | $2,340 | $2,925 | $3,510 | $4,095 |
| $20,000 | $2,340 | $2,925 | $3,510 | $4,095 |
How the amount is set. Monthly support = percentage x obligor's monthly net resources (capped at $11,700): 20% for 1 child, 25% for 2, 30% for 3, 35% for 4, 40% for 5, not less than the 5-child amount for 6+ (§ 154.125(b)). Low-income obligors (< $1,000 net) use 15/20/25/30/35% (§ 154.125(c)). source
Income. Resources include 100% of wages and salary (commissions, overtime, tips, bonuses), interest, dividends, royalties, self-employment income, net rental income, and other income actually received (severance, pensions, trust income, capital gains, Social Security other than SSI, VA disability other than non-service-connected pension, unemployment, disability and workers' compensation, gifts and prizes, spousal maintenance, alimony). Excluded: return of principal, accounts receivable, TANF/federal public assistance, foster care payments. Deducted: Social Security taxes; federal income tax computed for a single person claiming one personal exemption and the standard deduction; state income tax; union dues; the cost of health insurance, dental insurance or cash medical support for the child ordered under §§ 154.182 and 154.1825; nondiscretionary retirement contributions if the obligor does not pay Social Security tax (Fam. Code § 154.062).
Parenting time. The Texas guidelines have no parenting-time formula; the percentage schedule applies regardless of possession, and the amount of time with each parent is a deviation factor the court may consider (§ 154.123).
Child care and health care. Not a separate add-on; childcare expenses incurred due to employment are a deviation factor (§ 154.123). The cost of health and dental insurance or cash medical support for the child is deducted from the obligor's resources (§ 154.062(d)(5)). If the obligee provides the insurance, the obligor pays its actual cost as additional support up to a reasonable cost (§ 154.182(b-1), § 154.1825(d)). If no insurance is available, cash medical support of up to 9% of the obligor's annual resources is ordered in addition to guideline support (§ 154.182(b)(3)). Medical and dental support are ordered in addition to the percentage guideline (§§ 154.181-154.1825).
Low incomes. Obligors with monthly net resources below $1,000 are presumptively ordered under the low-income schedule: 15%, 20%, 25%, 30%, 35% for 1 to 5 children (§ 154.125(c)); this schedule applies in actions filed on or after September 1, 2021 (per the OAG calculator).
When support ends. Support may be ordered until the child is 18 or graduates from high school, whichever is later, or indefinitely for a disabled child (§ 154.001(a)); support past 18 requires enrollment and attendance in a high school program (§ 154.002). source
The state also runs its own official child support calculator; use it, or the court's worksheet, for a filing.
Worth knowing in Texas
- The Office of the Attorney General is the Title IV-D child support agency in Texas and conducts the periodic guidelines review. source
- The net-resources cap is adjusted every six years for CPI inflation, rounded to the nearest $50, effective September 1 of the adjustment year (§ 154.125(a-1)). source
- Federal income tax is computed as if the parent were single with one personal exemption and the standard deduction, regardless of actual filing status (§ 154.062(d)(2)). source
- Delinquent child support accrues 6% simple interest per year (§ 157.265). source
- When the order deviates from the guideline percentages, the order must state the net resources of each parent, the percentage applied and the reasons for the variance (§ 154.130). source