About this calculator
A free tool for people trying to understand what spousal support might look like in their divorce — built to be transparent about its method and honest about its limits.
What this is
Most people going through a divorce have no idea what spousal support might cost them, or provide them, until well into the process. Attorneys can answer that question, but usually only after a consultation. This tool exists to give you a defensible starting figure before that conversation, for free, without an account.
It applies the statutory factors that courts across 8 states weigh when setting support, using each state’s own starting percentages and duration guidance. It produces a monthly range and an estimated duration, and it shows you every input and rule that produced them.
It is a calculator, not a law firm. We do not employ attorneys, we do not review your case, and we cannot tell you what your judge will do.
What the calculator reads
Every input on the form, and what it does to the figure.
- State
- Sets the starting share of the paying spouse's income, and the cap on how long support can run.
- Length of the marriage
- Banded — under 5 years, 5–9, 10–14, 15–19, 20–29, and 30 or more. Longer marriages scale the figure up.
- Income gap
- The ratio between the two incomes. The wider the gap, the larger the adjustment.
- Employment
- Whether the lower-earning spouse is working full-time, working reduced hours, or not working at all.
- Career sacrifice
- Whether either spouse stepped back from work for the family, and which one.
- Household circumstances
- Homemaking, funding a spouse's education, nearing retirement, relocating for a spouse's career, a prenuptial agreement, or a disability.
- Children
- The number of children from the marriage. Child support is calculated separately.
- Grounds for the divorce
- Some states weigh marital misconduct; the calculator applies a modest adjustment for financial misconduct and domestic violence.
- Need and ability to pay
- The recipient's monthly expenses set a ceiling on the upper figure, and a floor under the lower one.
Where it stops
Being specific about this matters more than being reassuring.
- It cannot model judicial discretion. Two judges in the same courthouse, given identical facts, can and do reach different awards. No formula captures that.
- It does not verify your figures. It calculates from what you type. Undisclosed income, disputed valuations and imputed earning capacity are all outside its reach.
- It works at state level, not county level. Local practice varies within states, and the calculator does not model it.
- It does not calculate child support or divide property. Both interact with spousal support and both are separate determinations.
- It does not model tax. Figures are gross, before tax. For agreements executed after 31 December 2018, support is neither deductible by the payer nor taxable to the recipient.
This is not legal advice
Nothing on this site is legal advice, and using it does not create an attorney–client relationship. Spousal support is decided by a judge at their discretion, under the law of your state. Before you rely on any figure here — in a negotiation, a mediation or a filing — speak to a family law attorney licensed where your divorce is being heard.