Alimony Calculator
Estimate alimony payments using a generic income-and-duration model. Alimony has no nationwide formula, so treat this as an illustrative starting point, not a jurisdiction-specific figure.
About this calculator
Unlike child support, alimony (spousal support) has no nationwide formula in the United States. Most states decide both the amount and the duration through multi-factor judicial discretion -- weighing the length of the marriage, each spouse's earning capacity and age/health, the marital standard of living, and other factors -- rather than a fixed calculation. A handful of jurisdictions do use percentage-of- income formulas, but typically only for TEMPORARY support pending trial, not final awards, and the specific percentages vary by state and even by county. This calculator uses a generic, illustrative percentage model in that same general style -- Annual Alimony is 35% of Payer Annual Income minus 25% of Recipient Annual Income, floored at zero -- to give a rough order-of-magnitude starting point, not a jurisdiction-specific calculation.
Duration follows a commonly cited general shape rather than any single state's statute: marriages under 5 years typically see no or minimal support in most jurisdictions (modeled here as 0 years), marriages of 5-9 years scale support duration to about half the marriage length, marriages of 10-19 years scale to about three- quarters, and marriages of 20+ years often see support treated as indefinite or long-term (modeled here as matching the full marriage length). Total Alimony is simply Annual Alimony times Duration. Because actual outcomes vary enormously by state and by judge, treat every figure here as a ballpark estimate for planning conversations, not a number to rely on in a filing. All figures here are gross: for any instrument executed after 2018 the payer gets no federal deduction and the recipient owes no federal tax on the money, so judge affordability against take-home pay.
Legal Disclaimer
This calculator provides general estimates only and does not constitute legal advice. Laws, regulations, and court procedures vary significantly by jurisdiction. Consult a licensed attorney in your area for advice specific to your situation.
Inputs
Results
Monthly Alimony
$1,708.33
Annual Alimony
$20,500.00
Duration
7.5 years
How to Use This Calculator
- Enter Payer Annual Income and Recipient Annual Income — use gross pre-tax figures.
- Set Years Married — this changes Duration and therefore Total Alimony, but not the monthly or annual amount, which comes only from the two incomes.
- Review Monthly Alimony and Annual Alimony as a generic illustrative estimate, not a jurisdiction-specific calculation.
- Check Duration in years — this model lengthens the support period for longer marriages, matching the general shape (short/no support for short marriages, indefinite for very long ones) that many states describe informally.
- Review Total Alimony — the cumulative obligation over the estimated support period.
- Alimony has no nationwide formula. Most states decide amount and duration through multi-factor judicial discretion, not a fixed percentage. Consult a family law attorney for your state's actual guidelines.
How the result changes with Payer Annual Income
| Payer Annual Income | Monthly Alimony | Annual Alimony | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| $40,000.00 | $541.67 | $6,500.00 | 7.5 years |
| $60,000.00 | $1,125.00 | $13,500.00 | 7.5 years |
| $120,000.00 | $2,875.00 | $34,500.00 | 7.5 years |
| $200,000.00 | $5,208.33 | $62,500.00 | 7.5 years |
What each input means
- Payer Annual Income
- Annual income of person paying alimony
- Recipient Annual Income
- Annual income of person receiving alimony
- Years Married
- Length of marriage
How this is calculated
Formula
Illustrative model only (no state uses this): Alimony ≈ 35% of payer income − 25% of recipient incomeWorked example, using the default values
- Identify Input Parameters3 parametersPayer Annual Income = 80000, Recipient Annual Income = 30000, Years Married = 10 = 3 input(s) provided
- Calculate Monthly AlimonyMonthly Alimony1708.3333333333333 = $1,708.333
- Calculate Annual AlimonyAnnual Alimony20500 = $20,500
- Calculate DurationDuration7.5 = 7.5
- Calculate Total AlimonyTotal Alimony153750 = $153,750
Engine last updated . Checked against 3 independently-derived tests — how we verify calculators. Built by Paul Gunder, a software engineer, not a licensed financial, medical, or legal professional.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a national formula for calculating alimony?
No -- unlike child support, which most states calculate with formal guideline formulas, alimony (spousal support) is decided through multi-factor judicial discretion in most U.S. states. Judges weigh factors like marriage length, each spouse's earning capacity, age and health, and standard of living during the marriage, rather than applying a fixed calculation. This calculator's percentages are a generic illustrative model, not any specific state's rule.
Why does this calculator use 35% of payer income and 25% of recipient income specifically?
Those percentages aren't drawn from any particular state's statute -- they're a generic illustrative model in the general style of the percentage-of- income formulas a few jurisdictions use for TEMPORARY (pre-trial) support, where actual formulas and percentages vary by state and county and typically don't apply to final alimony awards at all. Treat the result as a rough planning estimate, not a jurisdiction-accurate figure.
Why does Duration jump around instead of scaling smoothly with Years Married?
This calculator models a commonly cited general pattern: little or no support for marriages under 5 years, roughly half the marriage length for 5-9 year marriages, roughly three-quarters for 10-19 year marriages, and support matching the full marriage length (often described as "indefinite" or long-term) for marriages of 20 years or more. That stepped shape reflects how many states informally describe alimony duration trending with marriage length, not a smooth formula found in any specific statute.
Does raising Years Married change Annual Alimony, or only Duration?
Only Duration -- Annual Alimony is calculated purely from Payer Annual Income and Recipient Annual Income and does not use Years Married at all. Years Married only affects Duration (how many years the calculated annual amount is assumed to continue), which in turn changes Total Alimony, the cumulative figure over the estimated support period.
Is alimony still tax-deductible for the person paying it?
Not for any divorce or separation instrument executed after December 31, 2018. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act repealed the payer's deduction and the recipient's inclusion, so post-2018 alimony is paid entirely with after-tax dollars and received tax-free. Orders executed on or before that date keep the old treatment unless they are modified and the modification expressly adopts the new rules. Because this calculator takes gross pre-tax incomes, a payer should judge affordability against take-home pay, not against the gross figure shown here.
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