How Is Child Support Calculated in Utah?
Utah adds both parents' adjusted gross incomes, finds that total on the state support table, and splits the table amount by each parent's income share. The parent with fewer overnights pays their share, plus part of insurance and child care. A lawyer can confirm your inputs before you sign anything.
The most common mistake people make with a Utah child support calculator is entering their take-home pay. The Utah child support guidelines start from gross monthly income, before taxes and deductions, so a paycheck-based entry can throw the result off by hundreds of dollars a month.
The math itself is simple. The hard part is agreeing on what goes into it, because income, overnights and other children in the home are exactly what parents end up disputing.
What Numbers Does the Utah Child Support Calculator Need?
The calculator needs each parent's gross monthly income, any alimony or support already ordered in another case, other children living in each home, the number of children in this case, and each parent's overnights. Insurance and work-related child care are added after the base amount is set.
Every official tool, including the Office of Recovery Services (ORS) child support calculator, asks for these same inputs. Getting each one right matters more than which calculator you use.
What counts as gross income for Utah child support?
Gross income is almost every dollar a parent receives before taxes. Under Utah Code § 81-6-203, it includes wages, salaries, commissions, bonuses, rents, dividends, pensions, Social Security, workers' compensation, unemployment benefits and alimony received.
Some money is left out. Needs-based benefits such as SNAP food assistance, Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) are excluded, and so is the child's own income. Earned income is capped at one full-time, 40-hour job unless the parent normally and consistently worked more hours before the order was entered.
Self-employed parents are measured differently. Their income is gross receipts minus the expenses needed to keep the business running at a reasonable level. That number does not have to match the net profit on a tax return, which is why cases involving a business owner take more paperwork.
What is imputed income in Utah child support?
Imputed income is a figure a court assigns to a parent who is unemployed or earning less than they are able to. The court looks at work history, job qualifications, education, age, health and what people with similar backgrounds earn in the local job market.
When a parent has no recent work history or the occupation is unknown, Utah allows income to be imputed at the federal minimum wage for a 40-hour week. Imputation requires an agreement, a default, or a hearing where the judge makes findings.
It also has limits. A court cannot impute income when child care costs would roughly equal what the custodial parent could earn, when a physical or mental condition keeps the parent from earning minimum wage, or when a child's unusual needs require that parent at home.
Other Children and Earlier Support Orders
Utah subtracts alimony and child support a parent already pays under earlier orders before the calculation begins. Children from another relationship who live in a parent's home can also be counted at either party's request, using a separate court worksheet.
What remains is each parent's adjusted gross income. That is the figure that goes on the table, and it is often lower than the number on a pay stub.
A Worked Example Using the Utah Child Support Table
With a combined adjusted gross income of $8,000 a month and one child, Utah's table sets the base support obligation at $915. If the paying parent earns 37.5% of the combined income, their share comes to about $343 a month before insurance and child care.
Here is how that example breaks down. Parent A has the child most nights, which is called sole physical custody, and neither parent pays support or alimony from an earlier case, so gross and adjusted gross income are the same.
| Step | Parent A | Parent B | Combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross monthly income | $5,000 | $3,000 | $8,000 |
| Share of combined income | 62.5% | 37.5% | 100% |
| Base obligation, 1 child | $915 | ||
| Each parent's share | $571.88 | $343.13 | $915 |
| Monthly support paid | None | $343.13 to Parent A |
Parent A's share is not paid to anyone. The table assumes it is spent directly on the child in Parent A's home.
Insurance and child care come next. Say Parent A pays $120 a month for the child's portion of health insurance and $600 a month for daycare while at work. Each of those costs is split equally, so Parent B owes $60 toward insurance and $300 toward child care.
That brings Parent B's total monthly payment to about $703, more than double the base figure. Many online estimates skip this step, which is why parents are surprised by the final order.
With two children, the table amount at the same $8,000 combined income is $1,442, so Parent B's share rises to about $541 a month.
These figures come from the base combined child support obligation table in Utah Code § 81-6-304, which applies to orders first entered on or after January 1, 2023.
What happens when the other parent has more overnights?
Once the parent with fewer nights reaches more than 110 overnights a year, Utah treats the case as joint physical custody and switches to a different worksheet. That threshold is more than 30% of the year, and both parents must also be paying the child's expenses.
On the joint worksheet, every overnight above 110 lowers that parent's support share a little, and each overnight above 130 lowers it faster. In practice, the number of overnights in your custody order changes the support figure, and a schedule sitting at 108 or 112 nights deserves a close count.
On an equal parent-time schedule, the parent with the lower income is treated as having 183 overnights, even if the calendar gives them 182.
Low-Income and High-Income Cases
Utah has a separate low-income table for a paying parent with limited earnings, and in a sole custody case the base award cannot drop below $30 a month. At the other end, the main table stops at a combined income of $100,000 a month.
Above that level, a judge sets an appropriate amount case by case. The order cannot be lower than the highest figure the table lists for that number of children.
What Costs Are Added to the Table Amount?
The child's share of health insurance, uninsured medical and dental bills, and work-related child care are all divided between the parents outside the base table figure. Most online calculators handle these poorly, which is one reason two tools rarely agree.
How are health insurance and medical bills split?
Parents split the child's portion of the insurance premium equally, based on what is actually paid. They also split reasonable and necessary uninsured medical and dental costs equally, such as co-pays and deductibles. That 50/50 rule comes from Utah Code § 81-6-208, not from each parent's income percentage.
Splitting Work-Related Child Care
Reasonable work-related child care is also shared equally. This covers care a parent needs in order to work, such as daycare or an after-school program. Keep the provider's receipts and contact details, because the other parent can ask for written proof of the cost.
What changes for child care in orders starting January 1, 2027?
For support orders entered or modified on or after January 1, 2027, Utah adds a presumed "minimal child care award" paid by the parent who owes support. The amount comes from a new table in Utah Code § 81-6-306 that is based on combined income and the child's age.
The award ends when the child turns 13 and does not apply when support is set with the low-income table. Parents can rebut it with an agreement the court accepts, or with evidence that a different amount, including zero, fits the child's situation.
Why Do Two Utah Child Support Calculators Give Different Numbers?
When two calculators disagree, the difference almost always traces back to the inputs. A few entries account for most of the gap:
- Net pay entered instead of gross income
- Overtime or bonuses left out, or counted above the 40-hour cap
- An overnight count that lands on the wrong side of 110 or 130
- A tool still running the older table used for pre-2023 orders
- Insurance premiums and child care skipped entirely
- One parent's income entered at a figure the court would impute higher
The fix is to run the numbers the way the court will. Utah courts use standard forms, including the sole and joint custody worksheets posted on the Utah Courts child support page, and each input has to match the financial declaration filed in the case.
If you want a second set of eyes, you can talk through your numbers with our team.
When Is It Worth Having a Lawyer Check the Calculation?
A lawyer is worth calling when income is disputed, when the schedule sits near 110 or 130 overnights, or when a parent owns a business or earns irregular pay. In those cases, a small input change can move support by thousands of dollars over the life of the order.
Business owners' cases need extra care. Their returns often have to be rebuilt from bank deposits and profit and loss statements before any calculator result means much, and that rebuilding is where most of the money in the case is decided.
Quick Answers on Utah Child Support Math
How long does child support last in Utah?
Child support in Utah runs until the child turns 18 or graduates from high school with their normal class, whichever comes later. It ends earlier if the child marries, joins the military or dies. Support can continue for an adult child who is incapacitated from earning a living.
Can parents agree to pay less child support than the Utah table shows?
Parents can propose any amount, but a judge has to approve it. An agreed amount that meets or exceeds the guideline figure is presumed adequate. An amount below the guidelines needs a written finding that the table figure would be unjust, inappropriate, or not in the child's best interest.
Is the ORS calculator result the final child support amount?
No. The ORS calculator gives an estimate. Support becomes final only when a court or the Office of Recovery Services enters it, based on verified income. If the income you entered does not match your tax returns and pay stubs, the final number will not match either.
Does child support stop if a parent goes to jail in Utah?
Incarceration of 90 or more consecutive days cannot be treated as voluntary unemployment in Utah. For incarcerations that begin on or after January 1, 2027, support is suspended automatically. It restarts on the first day of the first full month after 90 days have passed since release.
The rule has exceptions, including jail time for failing to pay support or for an offense against the child or the other parent.
Can I use the Utah child support calculator if each parent has one of the children?
Yes, but it uses a different method called split custody. Each parent's share of the base obligation is calculated, weighted by how many children live in the other home, and the smaller amount is subtracted from the larger one. The parent with the higher result pays the difference.
Before You Sign a Support Agreement, Get the Inputs Checked
A calculator estimate is a good starting point for a conversation with the other parent. It is not a good place to stop if income is uncertain, overnights are close to a threshold, or an older order may be out of date.
Carlson Legal Group handles child support from first orders to adjustments years later, with offices in Downtown Salt Lake, Draper, Price and St. George.
You can have a Utah child support lawyer check the numbers before you agree to them or call (385) 503-8208 to schedule a consultation.
Joey Carlson
Owner
Joey Carlson has practiced law in Utah for over 12 years across business, employment, and family law. He planted his flag in family law because he’s done it as the client.
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