Free spousal support estimator

Washington Alimony Calculator

Use the calculator below — a free Washington spousal support calculator built for spouses planning a Washington divorce. Add your marriage length and both spouses’ gross incomes, and this divorce alimony calculator returns an estimated monthly payment and how long payments may last under Washington guidelines, with the arithmetic shown step by step. No account, no paywall, and nothing is stored on our servers after your estimate is returned.

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Estimate your monthly alimony

Enter a few details to see an illustrative estimate. No personal information is stored or shared.

Your results

Illustrative estimate only.

Estimated monthly payment

$0/ month

Enter your details above to see your estimate.

How long payments last

—

Enter your details to see the estimated term

Not applicable

One-time payout option (buyout)

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Total if paid monthly: —

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Monthly take-home income (after alimony & est. taxes)

Payer keeps—

Recipient has—

How marriage length changes the term (±1 year)

1 year shorter marriage:—

1 year longer marriage:—

Plain-English summary by role

If you are paying alimony (higher earner)

Enter incomes and marriage length above to see a plain-English summary of what you would pay, keep, and owe after taxes.

If you are receiving alimony (lower earner)

Enter incomes and marriage length above to see a plain-English summary of what you would receive, keep, and plan for.

Show step-by-step math & state law breakdown

Calculation notes

Enter your details above to see exactly which statutory formula or guideline was used for your state.

Based on

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Illustrative estimate only

Tax note: Per the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), alimony payments for divorces finalized after Dec 31, 2018, are no longer tax-deductible for the payer or taxable for the recipient.

Actual alimony awards vary by state, judge, and individual circumstances. Use this estimate as a starting point, not a final answer.

Family law methodology

How is Alimony Calculated in Washington?

Alimony — also called spousal support or maintenance — is the payment one spouse makes to the other after divorce to close the gap between two households. Washington does not follow a single American rule: it sets its own standard under RCW 26.09.090, and this page applies the state’s discretionary approach rather than a national average.

In Washington, spousal support is decided under a discretionary standard — not a one-size-fits-all national formula. There is no formula to run — a judge weighs both incomes, the length of the marriage, age, health and each spouse’s contributions, so two similar cases can still land on different numbers. That is exactly what the estimator on this page encodes, and it is why two states can return very different answers to the same income and marriage facts.

Judicial discretionRCW 26.09.090

Washington relies on subjective judicial discretion.

Washington has no alimony formula. RCW 26.09.090 directs courts to consider each spouse’s financial resources and earning capacity, the standard of living established during the marriage, the age and health of both parties, and the duration of the marriage. Washington practitioners commonly benchmark awards with the AAML guideline of 30% of the payer’s gross minus 20% of the recipient’s gross.

Because Washington leaves alimony to the court, there is no single correct number. Our result is a range built on the AAML guideline (30% of the payer’s gross income minus 20% of the recipient’s, adjusted for children) — the band from the least-supportive to the most-supportive outcome judges commonly reach after weighing the standard of living, age, health, and earning capacity of both spouses.

Duration: Washington sets no statutory term schedule; maintenance runs for a period the court finds fair and equitable, with permanent maintenance reserved for long-term, economically dependent marriages.

What courts weigh

One factor shapes the rest: child support is worked out first in most states, so it changes how much income is left over for spousal support. That is why this child support and alimony calculator includes a children toggle — switch it on and the estimate drops in the states whose formula accounts for child support.

Standard of living

The lifestyle the couple established during the marriage.

Income & earning capacity

Each spouse's current earnings, employability, and future potential.

Length of the marriage

Longer marriages support larger and longer-lasting awards.

Age & health

Both spouses' physical condition and realistic work horizon.

Contributions

Career sacrifices, homemaking, and support for the other’s education.

Children & custody

Child support is calculated separately and often lowers the income available for alimony.

Property division

The marital estate awarded to each spouse at divorce.

Tax treatment

Post-2018 TCJA rules: alimony is neither deductible nor taxable.

Example calculation

A standard income-disparity scenario

A 12-year marriage where the payer earns $120,000 and the recipient earns $40,000, with no children — calculated with Washington’s actual rule:

Payer gross income$120,000 / yr

Recipient gross income$40,000 / yr

Length of marriage12 years

Children involvedNo

Estimated monthly payment$1,833 – $2,833 / month

Estimated duration58 months (4.8 years)

How the number was derived

• The Law: Washington sets no alimony formula — RCW 26.09.090 directs the court to weigh the statutory factors case by case. • The Math: The estimate applies the AAML guideline range family-law practitioners use: 25%–35% of the payer’s gross annual income ($120,000) minus 20% of the recipient’s gross annual income ($40,000) = $1,833–$2,833 per month, against a $80,000/year income gap. • Tax Impact: No TCJA adjustment or child-support modifier applies to this calculation. • Duration: A common benchmark is 40% of the marriage — 58 months for a 12-year marriage. Courts set the final term case by case.

Settlement planning

Lump-Sum Alimony Buyouts & Post-Support Cash Flow in Washington

Most Washington support awards are agreed as a set of monthly payments — but the same money can be settled in one payment up front. That trade is called an alimony buyout: instead of writing a check every month for years, the payer hands over a single lump sum today, often by letting the recipient keep more of the house or more of a retirement account, so both spouses can move on cleanly. Washington’s own amount and duration rules (RCW 26.09.090) set how much is paid each month and for how long, and that monthly stream is the thing being bought out.

Why is one payment today worth less than adding up every future check? Because money in hand now can sit in a safe account and earn interest over the same years those checks would have arrived. This alimony buyout calculator shows the same payment stream at 3.5%, 4.5% and 6.0% — the higher the rate, the smaller today’s lump sum, and the wider the gap between “paid monthly” and “paid up front”. Taking the deal up front means accepting a lump sum spousal support payment today instead of years of monthly checks.

In the 12-year, $120,000 payer / $40,000 recipient scenario used above, the monthly checks add up to $135,314 over 58 months — but settled as one single payment today they are worth $121,406 at 4.5%, $124,321 at 3.5% or $117,208 at 6.0%. That difference is what a settlement is really negotiating: the payer pays less in total, and the recipient gets the money sooner.

After the estimated $2,333-per-month transfer, the payer keeps about $5,167 per month (52% of the combined post-transfer total) and the recipient has about $4,833 (48%). The question after support is the simple one: what does each household actually have left to live on? The take-home split shows both sides after estimated taxes and after the payment, and since 2019 alimony is neither taxable for the receiver nor deductible for the payer, every dollar moves across unchanged. Print the calculator above as a spousal support worksheet and the inputs, the step-by-step math and these settlement figures all come out together on one clean page.

Educational summary of Washington law as of 2026. Statutes change; this is not legal advice. Consult a licensed attorney in your state for advice about your situation.

For a 50-state overview of divorce and family law rules, see theCornell Legal Information Institute’s table on divorce.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions about alimony in Washington

What proof does the Washington court need to reduce alimony for cohabitation?

Evidence of economics, not romance. Courts want to see that the household actually shares costs: a joint lease or deed, combined utility and grocery payments, commingled accounts, or contributions from the new partner that reduce the recipient’s living expenses. Washington judges also weigh how long the arrangement has lasted and whether the couple holds itself out as a partnership. Keep documentation and file a motion to modify — support continues at the current amount until the court orders a change.

How much alimony can I expect in Washington?

Alimony in Washington is not a fixed number — every calculation turns on both spouses’ incomes, the length of the marriage, earning capacity, age, health, and the standard of living the marriage supported. Use the estimator above as a starting point rather than a prediction, then talk to a Washington family law attorney about how those factors apply to your facts.

My spouse quit their job before filing for divorce — what happens in Washington?

A deliberate drop in income rarely resets support. Washington courts can impute earnings based on the job the spouse left, their work history, qualifications, and what the marriage’s standard of living required — and voluntary underemployment is weighed against the recipient’s actual need. Expect discovery into the departure: offer letters, severance terms, bank records, and, where the numbers warrant it, a forensic accountant. The safest move is documenting the change early rather than waiting for the first missed payment.

How long do you have to pay alimony in Washington?

Duration follows Washington’s own rule rather than a national standard: Washington sets no statutory term schedule; maintenance runs for a period the court finds fair and equitable, with permanent maintenance reserved for long-term, economically dependent marriages. Shorter marriages tend to produce short, rehabilitative terms designed to restore self-sufficiency, while longer marriages can support open-ended awards. The estimated duration shown with your result reflects that rule for the marriage length you enter.

Is there a minimum marriage length before alimony is available in Washington?

Some states set a hard eligibility floor before periodic maintenance can be ordered, while others allow support after any marriage where need and ability to pay are shown. Enter your marriage length in the calculator: where Washington sets a statutory floor below your marriage length, the estimate returns $0 instead of a payment term.

Can Washington alimony be paid as a lump sum instead of monthly payments?

Sometimes. Some states allow a lump-sum or buy-out that converts future payments into a single present-value payment, which ends the court’s ongoing jurisdiction and removes any future modification fight. Whether Washington permits it, how the lump sum is discounted, and how it is taxed all depend on the statute and the payer’s ability to pre-fund the obligation — model both structures with your attorney before trading monthly security for a lump sum.

Other States

Alimony rules vary by state. Compare estimates in any other state.