California Spousal Support Calculator
California has two different spousal support regimes, and this page keeps them apart. Temporary support (also called pendente lite support) is ordered while the case is still pending, and courts commonly use a county guideline for it. Long-term support is decided at judgment, and it has no formula at all — the court weighs the fourteen circumstances in Family Code section 4320 and orders an amount that is just and reasonable. The calculator below covers temporary support only, as a labelled illustration. Nothing on this page calculates a long-term support amount, because no such calculation exists in law.
Temporary support illustration calculator
Read before entering anything: enter net monthly incomes only, after child support has been allocated. This illustration does not compute child support and does not convert gross pay to net pay. If you do not know each party's net monthly income (after tax, FICA, mandatory retirement and health insurance), do not guess a gross figure into these boxes — ask the court's family law facilitator or self-help centre, which can help calculate the temporary amount a court could order.
Formula — the Santa Clara county guideline (not a statute)
Family Code section 3600 gives the court discretion to order temporary support during the case in an amount necessary for support, consistent with sections 4320 and 4325. It contains no formula. There is no statewide statutory temporary spousal support formula in the Family Code. The formulas in everyday use are county guidelines run through Judicial Council-certified software. The most widely used county guideline, described in multiple secondary sources as the dominant one and used in Santa Clara County and adopted by many other counties, is:
Temporary spousal support illustration = 40% of the payor's net monthly income − 50% of the recipient's net monthly income, applied to income not already allocated to child support. If the result is negative, the illustration is $0 (no payment).
“Net” here is not take-home pay and not gross pay. In the certified programs, gross incomes are tax-effected — federal and California income tax at the applicable filing status, FICA, mandatory retirement contributions and health-insurance premiums are deducted — to produce net disposable income, and child support is allocated first. That gross-to-net conversion lives inside certified software and cannot be replicated from public sources, which is why this calculator takes net incomes as inputs only. A judge may depart from the guideline figure in any event, and your county may use a different guideline.
Worked illustrations
- Payor net monthly income $10,000; recipient net monthly income $2,000: 40% × $10,000 = $4,000, minus 50% × $2,000 = $1,000 → $3,000/month illustration.
- Payor net $4,000; recipient net $4,000: $1,600 − $2,000 = −$400 → $0 illustration (floored at zero; a negative result means no payment).
These are pure arithmetic from the printed formula, not court outputs.
How to use this calculator
Enter each party's net monthly income after child support has been allocated — that is, the income picture that remains once guideline child support has been determined (see the child support section below, and the California child support calculator). Do not enter gross pay: the calculator cannot tax-effect it, and a gross-pay input will overstate the illustration. The result is a temporary-support illustration only. It is not the court's figure, it is not a long-term support amount, and it does not apply to any county other than as a Santa Clara-guideline illustration.
Long-term support — guide only, no calculator
At judgment, the court orders support under Family Code section 4330(a): an amount, for a period of time, that the court determines is just and reasonable, based on the standard of living established during the marriage, taking into consideration the section 4320 circumstances. There is no formula, and no page on this site calculates a long-term amount.
The fourteen section 4320 circumstances
| Factor | What the court considers |
|---|---|
| (a) Earning capacity vs. marital standard of living | Whether each party's earning capacity can maintain the marital standard of living, considering the supported party's marketable skills, the job market for them, the time and expense to acquire education, training or retraining, and impairment of earning capacity from time spent on domestic duties during the marriage |
| (b) Contribution to the other's career | How far the supported party contributed to the supporting party's education, training, career position or licence |
| (c) Ability to pay | The supporting party's ability to pay, considering earning capacity, earned and unearned income, assets and standard of living |
| (d) Needs | The needs of each party based on the marital standard of living |
| (e) Obligations and assets | The obligations and assets, including separate property, of each party |
| (f) Duration of the marriage | How long the marriage lasted |
| (g) Employment vs. childcare | Whether the supported party can engage in gainful employment without unduly interfering with the interests of dependent children in their custody |
| (h) Age and health | The age and health of the parties |
| (i) Domestic violence | All documented evidence of any history of domestic violence, including nolo contendere pleas, emotional distress, violence against either party, protective orders and court findings in pending proceedings |
| (j) Tax consequences | The immediate and specific tax consequences to each party |
| (k) Balance of hardships | The balance of the hardships to each party |
| (l) Self-support goal | The goal that the supported party be self-supporting within a reasonable period of time — generally one-half the length of the marriage, except in a marriage of long duration; the court may order a greater or lesser period on the other factors |
| (m) Abusive spouse's criminal conviction | A criminal conviction of an abusive spouse, considered in reducing or eliminating an award under section 4324.5 or 4325 |
| (n) Catch-all | Any other factors the court determines are just and equitable |
Section 4320 was last amended in 2018 (effective 1 January 2019), and no verified change to the factors was found for 2024–2026.
Duration — the half-marriage guide and the 10-year rule
Section 4320(l) gives a general guide, not a cap: in a marriage that is not of long duration, the reasonable period for the supported party to become self-supporting is generally one-half the length of the marriage — so a 6-year marriage gives a general reasonable period of 3 years as an illustration, and the court may order a longer or shorter period on the other factors.
Section 4336 deals with marriages of long duration. There is a presumption that a marriage of 10 years or more, from the date of marriage to the date of separation, is a marriage of long duration, and except on written agreement to the contrary or a court order terminating support, the court retains jurisdiction indefinitely in such a case. A court may also find a marriage of less than 10 years to be of long duration, and nothing in the section limits the court's discretion to terminate support later on a showing of changed circumstances. What 10 years does not mean: it does not guarantee lifetime or permanent support, it does not create a formula or an amount, and it does not set an automatic end date. A 12-year marriage, for example, attracts the long-duration presumption and indefinite jurisdiction — but the amount, if any, is still a section 4320 judicial determination, and support can still be reduced, modified or terminated on changed circumstances. An order also ends at the end of the period provided unless the court retains jurisdiction in the order or under section 4336.
When support ends or changes
- Death or remarriage (section 4337): except as otherwise agreed by the parties in writing, the support obligation terminates on the death of either party or the remarriage of the supported party.
- Cohabitation (section 4323): except as otherwise agreed in writing, there is a rebuttable presumption of decreased need if the supported party cohabits with a nonmarital partner, and on a finding of changed circumstances the court may modify or terminate. Cohabitation does not automatically terminate support. A supporting spouse's new spouse or partner's income is not considered in determining or modifying support.
- Domestic-violence conviction (section 4325): a rebuttable presumption against awarding temporary or permanent support to an abusive spouse convicted within the statutory window (2001 chaptered text; the current text was not re-opened during research).
- Gavron warning (section 4330(b)): when making a support order, the court may advise the recipient that they should make reasonable efforts to provide for their own support needs, taking into account the section 4320 circumstances — unless, in a marriage of long duration, the court decides the warning is inadvisable. The warning is discretionary, not mandatory: it does not itself reduce or terminate support, but it preserves the payor's later ability to seek reduction or termination if the recipient fails to make reasonable efforts.
Tax — SB 711 changes the California deduction for new instruments
Senate Bill 711 (Chapter 231, Statutes of 2025, approved 1 October 2025) conforms California's tax treatment of spousal support to the federal treatment. For divorce or separation instruments executed after 31 December 2025 (on or after 1 January 2026), the paying spouse cannot deduct spousal support on the California return and the recipient does not include it as California income. For instruments executed on or before 31 December 2025 that are later modified, the new treatment applies only if the modification expressly adopts it; otherwise the prior California treatment continues. This ends the 2019–2025 split under which California still allowed a state deduction while the federal deduction had already been eliminated for post-2018 instruments. Because section 4320(j) makes immediate and specific tax consequences a support factor, the change can affect negotiated amounts. Do not describe the California deduction as still available for new agreements.
Certified software — Dissomaster is discontinued
California courts may use only Judicial Council-certified software for support calculations. Dissomaster was discontinued on 31 March 2025 and was not recertified; from 1 April 2025 courts transitioned to other certified programs. XSpouse is one certified program, not “the” statewide program — the Judicial Council certifies a list of programs, and claims that any single program was adopted statewide should not be repeated. Do not ask a court, a facilitator or a lawyer for a “Dissomaster printout” as current practice.
Child support comes first
Guideline child support is determined first under the statewide uniform guideline (Family Code section 4055), and the temporary spousal illustration then runs on income not allocated to child support. The statute treats spousal-support tax effects asymmetrically: under section 4059(a), unless the parties stipulate otherwise, the tax effects of spousal support are not considered when determining net disposable income for child support, but they are considered when determining spousal support itself. Spousal support actually received from a person who is not a party to the proceeding counts as income for child support; support paid to the other party in the same case is not a deduction from the payor's income in that case's child support computation. Use the California child support calculator for the guideline child support figure, then run this illustration on the remaining income picture. This page does not publish a combined child-plus-spousal total from a single set of inputs.
What this page cannot tell you
- A definitive long-term or permanent spousal support amount — there is no formula, and the amount is a section 4320 judicial determination.
- Any county's exact certified-software output — the Santa Clara illustration is a guideline illustration, not a certified-program result, and counties may use different guidelines.
- A gross-to-net conversion — the tax-effecting step lives inside certified software; this page takes net incomes only.
- Any Alameda or other county-specific figure beyond the Santa Clara illustration.
- The effect of any single section 4320 factor in isolation — factors are weighed together, not priced one by one.
Common mistakes
- Entering gross pay. The illustration takes net monthly income only. Gross-pay inputs overstate it, because the tax-effecting step is missing.
- Calling the Santa Clara illustration “the California formula.” There is no statutory formula. The result is a county-guideline illustration for temporary support only.
- Treating 10 years as lifetime support. Ten years is a presumption for retaining jurisdiction indefinitely, not a guarantee of any amount or duration.
- Treating half the marriage as a duration cap. Section 4320(l) is a general guide for the reasonable self-support period; the court may order longer or shorter.
- Asking for a current Dissomaster calculation. Dissomaster was discontinued on 31 March 2025.
- Assuming the California deduction survives for new agreements. For instruments executed after 31 December 2025 there is no California spousal-support deduction (SB 711).
- Expecting a permanent amount from this calculator. It calculates a temporary-support illustration only; long-term support is factor-based.
When to hire a lawyer
An illustration is a starting point, not a strategy. Talk to a licensed California family-law attorney before you rely on a figure if any of these apply: the case involves a business, professional practice or complex property; either party's income is disputed, imputed or largely non-cash; the marriage is of long duration and jurisdiction, duration or termination is in dispute; domestic violence or a criminal conviction is involved; tax treatment under SB 711 is contested; or the other party already has a lawyer. A lawyer can also advise on deviation from the guideline, section 4320 arguments and enforcement — none of which a guideline illustration can decide. This site cannot recommend a specific lawyer and does not take referral fees.
Frequently asked questions
These questions are shown on the page in full. They are not marked up as FAQ structured data.
Is there a California spousal support formula?
For temporary support, courts commonly use a county guideline — the Santa Clara illustration on this page is 40% of payor net minus 50% of recipient net, on income not allocated to child support. For long-term support there is no formula: the court weighs the fourteen section 4320 factors.
Why does this calculator ask for net incomes only?
Because the gross-to-net conversion (tax, FICA, mandatory retirement, health insurance) happens inside Judicial Council-certified software and cannot be replicated from public sources. Entering gross pay would produce a wrong illustration.
Does a 10-year marriage mean lifetime support?
No. Ten years creates a presumption that the marriage is of long duration, so the court retains jurisdiction indefinitely. The amount and any termination still turn on the section 4320 factors and changed circumstances.
Can I still deduct spousal support on my California return?
For instruments executed after 31 December 2025, no — SB 711 ended the California deduction (and the recipient's inclusion) for new instruments. Older instruments keep the prior treatment unless a modification expressly adopts the new rules.
Is Dissomaster still used?
No. Dissomaster was discontinued on 31 March 2025 and was not recertified. Courts use other Judicial Council-certified programs.
Sources: Family Code section 4320 (leginfo, last amended 2018, effective 1 January 2019) §4320 text; section 4330 (leginfo, amended 2019, effective 1 January 2020) §4330 text; SB 711 (Chapter 231, Statutes of 2025) SB 711 bill page; California Courts Self Help Guide spousal support; section 4059 §4059 text; section 4336 §4336 text (mirror); section 4323 §4323 text (mirror). The Santa Clara guideline itself is reported by multiple secondary sources; no official county rule was opened, so it is labelled on this page as a county-guideline illustration, not a statute. Two statute pages could not be opened directly during research — the current section 3600 page, and the section 4336 leginfo page, which returned an access error — so their substance is stated from the chaptered text and concordant mirrors, and this page flags that rather than presenting them as directly verified from leginfo. SB 711's exact Revenue and Taxation Code sections were not read in full; the dates and effects stated here are as corroborated by the bill page and secondary sources.
Change log
| Date | Change |
|---|---|
| November 2026 | Initial build: Santa Clara temporary-support illustration (net incomes only, child support first) and section 4320 long-term guide, dated November 2026. No permanent-support amount is calculated on this page. |
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