SupportDecode

Updated for 2026 guidelines

Georgia Child Support Calculator 2026

Georgia rewrote its child support law in two stages, and the second stage started this January. This page runs the supported O.C.G.A. 19-6-15 math on gross incomes, including the parenting-time adjustment reproduced from the Commission training example.

Reviewed by SupportDecode Editorial Team Page content reviewed Sources Methodology Update log

Estimate Georgia child support

1/3Both parents' gross monthly income

Georgia computes support on GROSS income (O.C.G.A. 19-6-15(f)): pay from all sources before any tax comes out. Do not subtract income tax or FICA. Salary, self-employment, bonuses, and commissions all count.

Is the paying parent self-employed?

Self-employed parents get a Schedule B adjustment: one-half of self-employment taxes (6.2 percent plus 1.45 percent Medicare) comes off gross income (19-6-15(f)(5)(A)).

Same rule: that parent gross pay from all sources, before taxes.

2/3Children and parenting time

The Basic Child Support Obligation table covers 1 to 6 children.

Natural or adopted children from another relationship who live in the paying parent home and qualify under O.C.G.A. 19-6-15(f)(5)(C). If the court allows this discretionary hardship credit, Georgia deducts 75 percent of a theoretical support order. Enter 1 to 6, or leave blank when the credit does not apply.

Days the court order gives the noncustodial paying parent (0 to 182 whole days); the other parent is assumed to hold the rest of the year. Georgia uses a new days-to-the-power-2.5 formula in O.C.G.A. 19-6-15(g), reproduced against the Georgia Child Support Commission Schedule C training example. Leave blank for the unadjusted calculation.

3/3Monthly add-ons (optional)

Child care needed for work, prorated between the parents on Schedule D (19-6-15(h)).

The cost of covering the children only, prorated on Schedule D (19-6-15(h)).

Estimated monthly child support: $458.13

The paying parent pays this amount to the receiving parent each month.

How this estimate was computed
Line itemAmount
Combined adjusted gross income (monthly)SB 454 (2024) enrolled/signed Act: full amended O.C.G.A. 19-6-15 incl. BCSO table and low-income table (Office of the Governor of Georgia / General Assembly)$4,000.00
Basic Child Support Obligation (1 child, table row 4000)Subsection (o) table effective 2024-07-01 (SB 454)SB 454 (2024) enrolled/signed Act: full amended O.C.G.A. 19-6-15 incl. BCSO table and low-income table (Office of the Governor of Georgia / General Assembly)$733.00
Payer pro rata BCSO share (62.5% of combined AGI)SB 454 (2024) enrolled/signed Act: full amended O.C.G.A. 19-6-15 incl. BCSO table and low-income table (Office of the Governor of Georgia / General Assembly)$458.13
Presumptive monthly child support (payer to recipient)SB 454 (2024) enrolled/signed Act: full amended O.C.G.A. 19-6-15 incl. BCSO table and low-income table (Office of the Governor of Georgia / General Assembly)$458.13

Assumptions

  • Schedule E deviations (high income upward deviation, travel, mortgage, extraordinary expenses, etc.) are not applied; the result is the presumptive amount.
  • Preexisting-order deductions (Schedule B item 2) are not modeled; provide already-adjusted gross income if a preexisting order exists.
  • The "$2,394 self-support reserve (180% FPG)" circulating in commentary is not in the enacted SB 454 text and is not applied; the Act's Low-Income Adjustment table is the only low-income mechanism.

Continue with this income in the PayDecode take-home calculator

PayDecode is a separate site. The link may not carry your numbers over; if its form opens blank, enter the income there again.

Estimate only. The court or state agency calculation controls.

Georgia guidelines, effective 2026-01-01.

Georgia guideline facts

Guideline model
Income shares, computed on both parents GROSS monthly incomessource
Statute
O.C.G.A. § 19-6-15, rewritten by SB 454 (2024)source
BCSO table range
$800 to $40,000 combined monthly income, 1 to 6 childrensource
High-income line
Above $40,000 a month, raised from $30,000 by SB 454source
Parenting time formula
Days raised to the power 2.5, mandatory since January 1, 2026source
Official calculator
Yes: the Commission online calculator, free account requiredsource
Current regime effective
January 1, 2026 (SB 454 phase two)source
Data last reviewed
August 7, 2026source

How Georgia calculates child support

Georgia uses income shares on GROSS income. Both parents matter, and neither subtracts taxes first. Wages, self-employment earnings, bonuses, and commissions all go in at their before-tax amounts. That surprises people who have seen net-income states like Florida.

A few Schedule B adjustments come off gross pay. A self-employed parent deducts half of self-employment taxes, meaning 6.2 percent plus 1.45 percent Medicare. For the paying parent, this form can also apply 75 percent of a theoretical order for qualified other children living in that parent home. That hardship credit is discretionary, so the court may decline it.

The adjusted incomes are added and matched to the Basic Child Support Obligation table. Senate Bill 454 replaced the table on July 1, 2024, the first dollar update since 2006, and stretched it from $800 up to $40,000 of combined monthly income. We transcribed all 785 rows of the signed Act into this tool, so any income in that range resolves.

Each parent then carries a slice of the table amount matching their slice of combined income. The children health insurance premium and work-related child care are added on Schedule D and split the same way, with a credit to whoever pays the bill directly.

Since January 1, 2026, court-ordered parenting days enter a mandatory formula using each parent days raised to the power 2.5. This calculator reproduces the Commission January 2026 Schedule C training example and applies the adjustment for 0 to 182 paying-parent days.

A Low-Income Adjustment table also arrived on January 1, 2026. A paying parent earning $1,500 a month or less pays a set percentage of income, 19 percent for one child up to 28 percent for six. From $1,550 the table switches to dollar rows that phase out between $2,450 and $3,950 depending on how many children there are. The parent owes the lesser of that table amount and the regular formula result.

Worked example: $3,500 and $2,500 gross, 1 child, 120 parenting days

  1. A paying parent grosses $3,500 a month and holds 120 court-ordered parenting days a year. The receiving parent grosses $2,500 and holds the other 245 days. One child, no add-ons.
  2. Combine the gross incomes: $3,500 plus $2,500 is $6,000. The BCSO table row at $6,000 for one child reads $1,009.
  3. Split it by income. The paying parent earns 58.3333 percent of the total, so their base share is $588.58. The receiving parent carries the remaining $420.42.
  4. Raise each parent days to the power 2.5 and divide the paying parent weight by both weights. Applying that share to the $1,009 BCSO gives a $145.05 parenting-time reduction.
  5. Subtract $145.05 from the paying parent $588.58 base share. The estimated monthly support is $443.53, matching fixture ga-006 and the sequence confirmed by the Commission Schedule C training example.

The steps above follow the calculation method described on our methodology page.

Georgia guideline history

  1. Georgia moved from a percentage of the paying parent’s income to the income shares model with a BCSO table, and created the Child Support Commission and its calculator.source
  2. SB 454 phase one: a new BCSO table, the first dollar update since 2006, with the income axis extended to $40,000 a month and a credit added for VA disability benefits.source
  3. SB 454 phase two: the discretionary parenting time deviation became a mandatory formula using days raised to the power 2.5, and the low-income deviation became the Low-Income Adjustment table.source

Georgia child support examples by weekly income

These scenario tables keep the paying parent’s weekly income fixed, then show how the other parent’s income and the number of children change the guideline result. They are examples, not a substitute for the full calculator above.

Georgia child support FAQs

Does Georgia child support use gross or net income?

Gross. O.C.G.A. 19-6-15(f) counts income from all sources before taxes, so the number to enter is bigger than take-home pay. The only tax-flavored break is for the self-employed, who deduct one-half of self-employment taxes on Schedule B. There is no deduction for regular payroll income tax or FICA.

What did SB 454 actually change?

Two waves of change. On July 1, 2024, Georgia got its first new BCSO dollar table since 2006, reaching to $40,000 a month, plus a credit for VA disability benefits. On January 1, 2026, the discretionary parenting time deviation became a mandatory formula and the low-income deviation became a published table. Both waves are in force now.

How do parenting days change the amount in 2026?

The adjustment weights each parent court-ordered days by raising them to the power 2.5, applies the paying parent’s share of those weights to the BCSO, and subtracts that amount from the paying parent base share. The Commission January 2026 Schedule C training example confirms that sequence.

Is there really a $2,394 self-support reserve in Georgia?

No. That figure circulates in articles and marketing pages, usually described as 180 percent of the federal poverty guideline, but the enacted SB 454 text contains no self-support reserve dollar amount and no poverty guideline reference at all. The real low-income protection is the Low-Income Adjustment table, which we implement exactly as printed in the Act.

What happens above $40,000 a month in combined income?

The court sets the basic obligation at the $40,000 table row, the highest published amount, and may add more in the child’s best interest as a deviation. SB 454 raised this high-income line from $30,000. This tool applies the table maximum and leaves any upward deviation to the judge.

Does Georgia have an official calculator?

Yes. The Georgia Child Support Commission runs a free online calculator, rebuilt in 2025, and courts expect its worksheets in support cases. It requires creating a login account. Use our page for a quick no-signup estimate with visible math, then confirm the number in the official tool before relying on it.

How does the credit for other children in my home work?

The paying parent can enter 1 to 6 qualified other children living in that home. The tool finds the BCSO at that parent income for those children, multiplies it by 75 percent, and subtracts the credit from gross income under 19-6-15(f)(5)(C). The credit is discretionary and hardship-based, so a court can decline it. This is different from support actually paid under a preexisting order, which this form does not collect.

What if the paying parent earns under $1,500 a month?

The 2026 Low-Income Adjustment applies automatically. At or below $1,500 of adjusted gross income, the table amount is a flat percentage of income, from 19 percent for one child to 28 percent for six. The parent pays the lesser of that and the regular formula amount. Above $1,500 the table continues in dollar rows until it phases out, at $2,450 for one child up to $3,950 for six.

Good to know in Georgia

  • The Commission online calculator requires a free account, and its worksheets attach to the final order. The retired Excel calculator still floating around produces pre-2024 numbers; the Commission warns against it.
  • The parenting-time sequence is supported by the Commission January 2026 Schedule C training example: 102 paying-parent days, a $1,576 BCSO, and a $134.98 adjustment reproduce the days-to-the-power-2.5 weighting exactly.
  • Georgia publishes the official code through LexisNexis, which blocks automated retrieval, so our statute text comes from the signed Act PDF on the Governor site. The Act is the law as passed, which is why we transcribe from it row by row.

How to use this estimate

Enter each parent’s gross monthly income, straight off the pay stub before any withholding. Mark the self-employment toggle if the paying parent works for themselves, pick the number of children, and add court-ordered parenting days if an order sets them.

The result walks the worksheet order: Schedule B adjustments, the BCSO table row, the pro rata split, the parenting time step, Schedule D add-ons, then the low-income comparison. Every line names its statute subsection.

If qualified other children live with the paying parent, enter their count only when the hardship-based theoretical-order credit is being requested. The tool supports 1 to 6 because those are the published BCSO columns; it does not calculate a separate receiving-parent credit.

Deviations stay with the judge. Schedule E lets a court move the presumptive number for high income, travel costs, mortgage payments, extraordinary expenses, and more, always with written findings.

What this estimate includes

  • The full 785-row BCSO table from the signed SB 454 Act, $800 to $40,000
  • The Schedule B self-employment tax adjustment (7.65 percent of gross)
  • The 2026 parenting-time adjustment for 0 to 182 paying-parent days
  • The payer-side 75 percent theoretical-order credit for 1 to 6 qualified other children
  • Health insurance and work-related child care splits with direct-payer credits
  • The complete 2026 Low-Income Adjustment table, flat band and dollar rows
  • The $40,000 high-income cap with the table maximum applied

What it leaves out

  • Schedule E deviations, which need a judge and written findings
  • Preexisting-order deductions (subtract those from gross income yourself)
  • A theoretical-order credit for qualified other children living with the receiving parent
  • Social Security and VA disability benefit offsets for the child
  • Split-parenting cases where each parent is custodian of different children

Official sources

Official sources last verified: .

Reviewed by SupportDecode Editorial Team Page content reviewed Sources Methodology Update log

Changelog: page first published with the full SB 454 obligation table and the flagged 2026 parenting time formula. Material changes are dated in the update log.