Indiana child support calculator
You can see an estimate of Indiana child support before you talk to a lawyer or go to court, because the state uses a set formula. Put in both parents' income before tax and the nights the children spend with each of you, and we'll work it out the way the court's worksheet does.
$0 a week
Put in both parents' income to see an estimate. Put 0 if a parent has no income.
Tell us about your situation and where you are. We'll follow up about the next step.
Indiana uses income before tax because its schedule already allows for average taxes of 21.88%. If your taxes are far from that, you're self-employed, or your pay swings with overtime or bonuses, a judge may use a different figure. Uninsured medical bills are split by the same income shares and aren't in the weekly amount.
How child support is calculated in Indiana
The Indiana child support guidelines add both parents' weekly income before tax, after a few adjustments: support already paid for older children, spousal maintenance paid, and a credit for younger children. The total, rounded to the nearest $10, sets a basic amount in the Indiana Supreme Court's schedule. Work-related child care and the children's health insurance go on top, and each parent owes a share of the total that matches their share of the income.
| Children | Basic support at $1,000 a week | At $2,000 a week | Share above $9,200 a week |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $180 | $274 | 8.1% |
| 2 | $270 | $411 | 11.4% |
| 3 | $338 | $514 | 13.1% |
| 4 | $380 | $578 | 14.7% |
| 5 | $395 | $614 | 16.2% |
| 6 | $416 | $669 | 17.6% |
| 7 | $435 | $723 | 19% |
| 8 | $451 | $774 | 20.4% |
Incomes in the table are both parents' combined, and amounts are weekly. The parent the children live with less pays their share to the other parent, minus what they already pay for child care and insurance, and minus a parenting time credit once they have the children at least 52 nights a year. The credit grows with time. With equal time, 181 to 183 nights each, a judge names one parent to cover clothes, school costs and personal care, and the other parent gets the credit. If what that parent already pays and the credit come to more than their share, the other parent pays the difference. That mostly happens with near-equal time when the parent with more nights earns much more.
The schedule stops at $9,200 a week of combined income. Above that, we use the shares the Indiana courts' online calculator, as of its April 2026 version, applies to all combined income, because the guidelines don't spell out the arithmetic. Under $100 a week combined, a judge decides case by case, so we don't show a number. Our result can differ from the court's online calculator by a cent, and now and then by a dollar, because we round each parent's share of income the way the guidelines' own example does.
When a judge can order more or less support
The guideline amount is presumed right, but a judge can order a different amount by explaining why in writing. Parents who agree on a different amount still file the worksheet and give a reason. Some of the reasons a judge weighs:
- Taxes. A parent whose taxes are far from the schedule's average.
- Parenting time. The credit isn't automatic, and it counts only nights that actually happen. A judge can reduce it when it would leave a parent unable to support the child, or allow one under 52 nights for a baby or toddler or when parents live far apart.
- Children on different schedules. When each child spends a different number of nights with each parent.
- Work and travel costs. Union dues a job requires, or the cost of traveling for parenting time.
- Other duties. Supporting an elderly parent, or large medical bills of the parent's own.
- Income a parent could earn. A parent who works less than they could, without a good reason, can be treated as earning what they could.
- Very low income. A judge should leave the paying parent enough to live on.
Uninsured medical, dental and similar bills are shared by income from the first dollar, on top of the weekly amount.
Questions parents ask about Indiana child support
How much is child support in Indiana?
It depends on both parents' incomes, how many children you have and the nights each of you has them. With $1,000 a week of combined income and one child, the schedule's basic amount is $180 a week. A parent who earns 60% of that income owes 60% of it, $108, before child care, insurance and the parenting time credit.
How is child support calculated in Indiana?
Indiana adds both parents' weekly income before tax, finds the basic amount for your number of children in the Indiana Supreme Court's schedule, adds work-related child care and the children's health insurance, and splits the total by income. The parent who pays then takes off what they already pay toward those costs, and a parenting time credit once they have the children at least 52 nights a year.
Does 50/50 custody change child support in Indiana?
It usually lowers support rather than ending it. Indiana treats 181 to 183 nights a year each as equal time. A judge names one parent to pay for clothes, school costs and personal care, and the other parent gets the largest parenting time credit. When one parent earns a lot more, that parent usually pays either way.
What if we earn more than $9,200 a week together?
The schedule stops at $9,200 a week of combined income. Above that, the Indiana courts' online calculator, as of its April 2026 version, uses a share of all combined income: 8.1% for one child, 11.4% for two and 13.1% for three. The guidelines don't spell out that step, and a judge can order a different amount with a written reason.
Who pays uninsured medical bills in Indiana?
Both parents, in proportion to their incomes, from the first dollar. That covers what's left after insurance, including deductibles, but not everyday items like vitamins or over-the-counter medicine kept at one home. To ask the other parent to share a bill, send them the paperwork within 30 days of getting it, or of the visit if you paid then, or they may not have to pay their part.
Can you modify child support in Indiana?
Yes. Either parent can ask the court to change support when circumstances have changed so much, and for good, that the order is no longer reasonable. You can also ask when the order is at least 12 months old and the guideline amount now differs from it by more than 20%. A change usually applies only from the day the request is filed, not earlier. Support for two or more children doesn't drop by itself when the oldest turns 19, so ask the court then too.
Where the numbers come from
- Indiana Child Support Rules and Guidelines, adopted by the Indiana Supreme Court, updated May 14, 2024
- Guideline Schedules for Weekly Support Payments, the schedule of basic support
- The Supreme Court's order of May 14, 2024, which corrected part of the schedule
- The Indiana courts' child support calculator, which works from the same guidelines
Checked September 29, 2026. Indiana's four-year review of its guidelines was under way then, and no changes had been proposed yet.
Talk it through with an Indiana family law attorney
A family law attorney can tell you what a judge is likely to order in your situation, and whether any of these adjustments apply to you.
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