PDF worksheet2 pagesUpdated 2026-08-02
Child support worksheet
A two-page worksheet listing every figure your state's guideline formula asks for, in the order it asks, grouped by which of the four guideline models your state uses. The second page links each verified state's own official calculator, because that is the figure of record and this sheet only gets you there prepared.
There are only four guideline models in use across the United States, and which one your state uses decides what the worksheet asks for. A percentage-of-income state does not ask about the other parent's earnings at all. An income shares state asks about both, and about overnights. The Melson states start by reserving a self-support allowance for each parent. California writes the whole thing as algebra.
The worksheet is generated from the same verified rule packs the calculators on this site read, so it names the model each state actually uses and cites the statute the site cites. A state whose pack is not yet verified earns no row on the paper either — the same rule the state pages follow, applied to print.
The definitions matter more than the arithmetic. Net resources in Texas is a term the Family Code defines with a closed list of deductions, and it is not your take-home pay. Net disposable income in California is defined by a different code section again. Filling in the wrong figure produces a confident answer to the wrong question, which is why each prompt names the definition rather than only the label.
What's inside
The complete contents, listed in full — this is not a preview.
- Input prompts grouped by guideline model, so you fill in only what your state's formula uses
- The statutory income definition named beside each income prompt, because a payslip figure is rarely the right input
- Prompts for the add-ons guidelines apportion separately: health insurance, childcare, extraordinary medical
- A parenting-time prompt, since overnights drive the math in every state that adjusts for them
- A page linking each verified state's own official calculator or worksheet, with the statute and the date it was verified
- The court-discretion note verbatim, because a guideline figure is presumptively correct rather than an order
Who this is for
- Parents gathering figures before opening their state's official child support calculator
- Anyone comparing what a guideline produces against what has been proposed
- People preparing for a first consultation who want the income and parenting-time figures already assembled
Free by email
Child support worksheet
Enter your email and confirm the double opt-in link — the document is sent straight back. You are also added to Change Alerts — one email when a state revises a guideline, cap, or deadline. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Free, no payment and no account. Confirm the double opt-in link and the worksheet arrives by email; you are also added to Change Alerts, one message when a state revises a guideline this site publishes. Unsubscribe anytime.
Official sources this resource draws on
Calculators that go with it
Child Support
Every state sets child support with a published guideline formula — income shares, percentage of income, or the Melson formula. Pick your state to run its own math step by step, see which figures the statute actually uses, and open the official worksheet it comes from.
Custody Planner
Build a parenting schedule from the standard rotations courts see most — 2-2-3, 2-2-5-5, 3-4-4-3, week-on-week-off, or every other weekend — then count the overnights exactly. The percentage carries straight into your state’s child support calculator, and the calendar exports and prints.
Educational reference material — not legal, tax, financial, or benefits advice, and not an application or a determination. The agencies linked above decide every actual outcome.