Child support · UT
Utah child support calculator
The base combined table of Utah Code § 81-6-304, the obligor-only low income table and the joint custody overnight formula.
Rules read on official Utah pages on · Checked by Radif Partners · How we calculate
- Model
- Income shares
- Income counted
- Adjusted gross
- Shared parenting
- No fixed formula
- 1 child, $5,000 / $3,000
- $572
- a month, rules of January 1, 2023
Utah child support in 2026 comes from tables that moved: since September 1, 2024 they sit in the new Utah Domestic Relations Code, Title 81, Chapter 6, and the old section numbers of Title 78B, Chapter 12 no longer exist. With $4,000 and $2,000 of monthly adjusted gross income and two children, the base combined obligation is $1,290 and the parent without the children pays $860 a month. When each parent has the children more than 30% of the nights, joint physical custody applies and every overnight past 110 subtracts a fixed slice of the base amount, a larger slice after 130: at 146 nights the same parent owes $617. Very low incomes use a second table read on one parent's own income, with a $30 floor. The tables apply to orders entered since January 1, 2023.
Guideline child support in Utah, per month
$572
$6,863 a year
| Combined adjusted gross income | $8,000 |
| Base combined obligation, 1 child | $915 |
| Paying parent’s share of income | 62.5% |
Estimate under the Utah 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.
Old citations, new home
Court forms, articles and older orders still cite § 78B-12-301 for the table and § 78B-12-208 for joint custody. Chapter 366 of the 2024 General Session renumbered the whole child support act into Title 81: the base combined table is now § 81-6-304, the low income table § 81-6-305, sole custody § 81-6-205 and joint custody § 81-6-206. The amounts did not change with the move. They apply to orders entered for the first time since January 1, 2023, and a final order from before that date could be modified onto them from January 1, 2025.
Fixed slices per overnight
Utah does not cross-multiply time shares the way many income shares states do. Once both parents pass the 30% line, the parent with fewer overnights starts from an income share of the base combined obligation and loses 0.0027 of that obligation for each night from 111 to 130, then 0.0084 for each night beyond. A result below zero turns the other parent into the payer. On an equal schedule the lower earner is counted at 183 nights, whichever split the plan shows.
| Overnights with the paying parent | Monthly award, two children |
|---|---|
| 0 | $860 |
| 110 | $860 |
| 120 | $825 |
| 130 | $790 |
| 146 | $617 |
| 183 | $227 |
The first slices are thin: the 10 extra nights between 110 and 120 save $35. Above 130 each night is worth about three times as much.
Blank cells and the second table
The base table opens at $1,951 with a single amount for one child; columns for more children begin further down, and the first line with all six columns is $2,401. Where the cell is blank the base combined obligation is zero, and each parent's award comes from the low income table on that parent's own income, which runs to $1,960 for one child. A parent earning $1,500 alone owes $134 for one child. A parent below the top of that table pays the lesser of the two tables. At the other end, the table stops at $100,000 and Utah sets no ceiling: the court orders a just amount, never less than $13,472 for six children or the top line for fewer.
Costs split down the middle
Child care and the children's health premium are not prorated by income in Utah: each parent pays 50%, and so do uninsured medical and dental bills. From January 1, 2027 orders must also carry a minimal child care award from a new table. The statutes are on le.utah.gov; alimony runs on its own rules, see Utah alimony.
The Utah guideline this calculator applies
| Rule | Utah |
|---|---|
| Model | Income shares, combined monthly adjusted gross income table (Utah Code § 81-6-304) with an obligor-only low income table (§ 81-6-305) |
| Income counted | Adjusted gross income: gross income minus the deductions the guideline allows. |
| Official schedule | $1,951 to $100,000 of combined income a month, 221 rows |
| Shared parenting | No overnight formula in the calculator (see the rule below) |
| In force since | January 1, 2023 |
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 | $366 | $478 | $557 | $617 |
| $3,000 | $485 | $794 | $918 | $1,024 |
| $4,000 | $581 | $1,004 | $1,160 | $1,294 |
| $5,000 | $668 | $1,175 | $1,351 | $1,506 |
| $6,000 | $745 | $1,290 | $1,477 | $1,647 |
| $8,000 | $915 | $1,442 | $1,642 | $1,831 |
| $10,000 | $1,026 | $1,683 | $1,917 | $2,137 |
| $12,500 | $1,192 | $1,938 | $2,202 | $2,455 |
| $15,000 | $1,340 | $2,155 | $2,452 | $2,734 |
| $20,000 | $1,605 | $2,504 | $2,834 | $3,159 |
How the amount is set. Find the bracket containing the combined adjusted monthly gross income (§ 81-6-204(1)(d)). Brackets are $100 wide from $2,001 to $20,000 and $2,000 wide from $20,001 to $100,000 (first row $1,951-$2,000). If no amount is listed, the base combined obligation is $0 (§ 81-6-204(4)) and the obligor-only low income table applies (§ 81-6-205(3)). Amounts and incomes are rounded to the nearest dollar (§ 81-6-204(10)). source
Income. Gross income per Utah Code § 81-6-203 (income may be imputed; the statute refers to minimum wage for a 40-hour work week). Adjusted gross income = gross income minus alimony previously ordered and paid and child support previously ordered, and credits for other children under § 81-6-202(7)-(8); alimony ordered in the pending case is not subtracted (§ 81-6-204(1), (3)).
Above the table. Above $100,000 combined monthly adjusted gross income the court orders an appropriate and just amount case by case, not less than the highest amount in the table for the number of children (§ 81-6-204(8)). More than six children: court may add amounts (§ 81-6-204(7)).
Parenting time. Joint physical custody = the child stays with each parent overnight for more than 30% of the year and both contribute to expenses (Utah Code § 81-9-101). The lower-overnight parent's award = income share of the base combined obligation minus (overnights over 110 and under 131 x .0027 x base combined obligation) minus (overnights over 130 x .0084 x base combined obligation); a negative result makes the other parent the obligor; equal parent-time counts the lower-income parent as 183 overnights (§ 81-6-206(3)-(7)). Sole custody: extended parent-time of 25 of 30 days reduces support 50%, 12 of 30 days 25% (§ 81-6-211).
Child care and health care. Parents share equally reasonable work-related child care expenses; a minimal child care award (§ 81-6-306 table) applies to orders entered or modified on or after January 1, 2027 (§ 81-6-209(1), effective 5/6/2026). Parents share equally the out-of-pocket premium paid for the child's portion of health insurance and all reasonable uninsured medical and dental expenses (§ 81-6-208(3)(d)-(e)). Medical and child care expenses are added to the base child support award (Utah Code § 81-6-101 definition of base child support award; §§ 81-6-208, 81-6-209).
Low incomes. Low income table based on the obligor's own adjusted gross income (Utah Code § 81-6-305), used when the base table shows no amount or when it gives a lower award (§ 81-6-205(3)-(4)); $30 minimum award in sole custody (§ 81-6-205(5)); joint custody award is $0 if the base combined obligation is $0 (§ 81-6-206(2)).
When support ends. A child for support purposes is under 18, or 18 or older while enrolled in high school during the normal and expected year of graduation, or of any age if incapacitated from earning a living (Utah Code § 81-6-101). source
Worth knowing in Utah
- Utah moved its child support law from Title 78B, Chapter 12 to the new Utah Domestic Relations Code, Title 81, Chapter 6, effective September 1, 2024 (Laws 2024, ch. 366); the old § 78B-12-301 table is now § 81-6-304. source
- Final orders entered before 2023 could be modified under the current tables only from January 1, 2025 (§ 81-6-304(4)). source
- There is no cap: above $100,000 combined monthly income the court sets a just amount, never below the top of the table (§ 81-6-204(8)). source
- From January 1, 2027 Utah orders must include a minimal child care award from a new table (§ 81-6-306, § 81-6-209(1)(a)(ii)). source
- Uninsured medical and dental expenses and the child's health insurance premium are split 50/50, not by income (§ 81-6-208(3)). source