OSHA Fine Estimator
Estimate OSHA penalties based on violation type, gravity, employer size, and mitigating factors.
About this calculator
OSHA sets a statutory ceiling on how much it can fine an employer for each citation, and that ceiling is adjusted every year for inflation under the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act. As of 2026 the maximum is $16,550 per Other-Than-Serious or Serious violation, and $165,514 per Willful or Repeated violation (with a $11,823 statutory floor on willful penalties); a Failure-to-Abate citation can add up to $16,550 for each day past the abatement deadline, generally capped at 30 days. This calculator estimates where an actual citation is likely to land inside those ceilings.
OSHA compliance officers start from a Gravity-Based Penalty tied to the severity and probability of injury (the Gravity input here), then apply the same kind of percentage reductions area offices routinely use in practice: a size reduction of up to 60% for small employers (25 or fewer employees), up to 40% for mid-size employers, and up to 20% for employers under 250 employees; up to a 25% reduction for a documented, effective safety and health program; and up to a 10% reduction for a clean prior inspection history. The Base Penalty reflects the violation type and gravity before any reductions, and the Adjusted Penalty applies all qualifying reductions (capped at 95% total) to show a more realistic estimate. Because OSHA area offices retain discretion in setting the exact gravity rating and any reduction percentage for a specific citation, read this number as a directional planning figure rather than the exact dollar amount a compliance officer will ultimately propose.
Inputs
Results
Base Penalty
$12,413.00
≈ 8 months of rent
Adjusted Penalty
$3,103.00
≈ 3 smartphones
Figures current as of 2026. Source: OSHA, "2026 Annual Adjustments to OSHA Civil Penalties" (Directorate of Enforcement Programs memorandum, May 21, 2026)
How to Use This Calculator
- Enter violation type (other-than-serious, serious, willful, repeat, or failure to abate).
- Enter the violation's gravity level (low, moderate, high, or severe) and the employer's total employee count.
- Indicate whether an effective safety program is in place and whether the employer has a clean prior violation history.
- Read the estimated base penalty and the adjusted penalty after reductions are applied.
- Review the reduction factors: small employer size, good faith efforts, and clean violation history — note that actual penalties are set by OSHA area offices.
What each input means
- Violation Type
- Category of OSHA citation.
- Gravity
- OSHA's gravity-based-penalty severity rating for the hazard.
- Number of Employees
- Total company employees for size-based reduction.
- Safety Program in Place
- Whether an effective, documented safety program is in place.
- Clean Violation History
- Whether the employer has no prior OSHA violations.
How this is calculated
Worked example, using the default values
- Identify Input Parameters5 parametersViolation Type = 2, Gravity = 3, Number of Employees = 50, Safety Program in Place = 1, Clean Violation History = 1 = 5 input(s) provided
- Calculate Base PenaltyBase Penalty12413 = $12,413
- Calculate Adjusted PenaltyAdjusted Penalty3103 = $3,103
- Calculate Savings from ReductionsSavings from Reductions9310 = $9,310
- Calculate Size ReductionSize Reduction40 = 40
Figures and sources
- 2026 OSHA maximum penalty per violation: $16,550 (Other-Than-Serious/Serious/Failure-to-Abate per day), $165,514 (Willful/Repeated), $11,823 statutory minimum for Willful (2026) — OSHA, "2026 Annual Adjustments to OSHA Civil Penalties" (Directorate of Enforcement Programs memorandum, May 21, 2026)
Engine last updated . Checked against 2 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
Why does changing the violation type move the estimate so much more than anything else?
The violation type sets which statutory penalty ceiling applies, and those ceilings differ by roughly 10x: Other-Than-Serious and Serious violations cap out at $16,550, while Willful and Repeated violations cap out at $165,514 with an $11,823 statutory floor. Gravity, employer size, and the mitigating factors all scale the penalty within whichever ceiling the violation type selects, so no other single input can move the estimate as far as switching between a Serious and a Willful classification.
What does the Gravity rating actually represent?
Gravity is OSHA's own severity-and-probability rating for the hazard behind the citation: how serious an injury could result, and how likely it is to occur. This calculator scales the Base Penalty proportionally from Low up through Severe, mirroring how OSHA's own Gravity-Based Penalty tables scale the statutory maximum down for less severe hazards rather than charging the full ceiling on every citation.
How much can the reduction factors realistically lower a penalty?
The three reductions here — small-employer size (up to 60%), a documented safety program (up to 25%), and a clean violation history (up to 10%) — can combine, but this calculator caps the total at 95% so a penalty never reaches zero. A small employer with no prior violations and an effective safety program in place sees the largest realistic discount; a large employer with a documented history of violations sees little to no reduction from these factors.
Why doesn't the Number of Employees input change the Base Penalty?
Base Penalty is calculated purely from violation type and gravity, before any reductions are applied — it represents what OSHA's statutory tables would assess before considering who the employer is. Employee count only enters the calculation afterward, through the small-employer size reduction that's applied to produce the Adjusted Penalty, so it can move the final adjusted number without ever touching the base figure.
Will OSHA actually charge the Adjusted Penalty amount shown here?
Not necessarily. This estimate mirrors the general structure OSHA area offices use — a statutory maximum scaled by gravity, then reduced for size, good faith, and history — but the exact gravity rating assigned to a hazard and the exact reduction percentages applied are matters of compliance-officer and area-office judgment on a real citation. Use this as a planning estimate, not a substitute for an actual OSHA determination or legal advice.
Related Calculators
The questions that sit next to this one — chosen by subject, including calculators filed under a different category.
OSHA Recordable Rate Calculator
Calculate TRIR and DART rates from hours worked and incident counts.
OSHA & Workplace SafetySafety Training Cost Calculator
Calculate total safety training costs including trainer fees, employee labor, and materials.
Business LawRegulatory Fine Calculator
Estimate regulatory fines based on violation severity, history, and cooperation.
OSHA & Workplace SafetyConfined Space Air Monitoring Calculator
Evaluate LEL, O2, H2S, and CO readings against OSHA action levels for permit-required confined spaces.
More in Safety, Compliance & Emergency.