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Minnesota Child Support Calculator
Estimate Minnesota child support with the Chapter 518A guideline table, the parenting expense adjustment formula, child care, health coverage and the low-income reserve.
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How to Use the Minnesota Child Support Calculator
Enter what you know and press Calculate Estimate. The calculator follows Minnesota Statutes 518A.34 to 518A.42 (the 2025 statutes): the income shares guideline table, the parenting expense adjustment, child care and health coverage support, and the low-income ability-to-pay rules.
- Enter each parent's gross monthly income as Parent A and Parent B. Minnesota calls this parental income for determining child support (PICS).
- Choose the number of children (1 to 6) and the parent the children live with most of the time.
- Enter the overnights per year the children spend with the other parent. If there is no parenting time order, enter 0.
- Add monthly child care and the children's health coverage premium, and say which parent pays them.
Your numbers are sent with the form, not placed in the page address, and this site does not store them. This is a planning estimate. A Minnesota court or the county child support office decides the actual amount.
New Minnesota Child Support Laws and Changes for 2026
Looking for new child support laws in Minnesota for 2026? We did not find a new guideline table or formula that starts in 2026. In the 2025 statutes, the guideline table in section 518A.35 was last changed by Laws 2021, chapter 30, and the computation steps in section 518A.34 by Laws 2023, chapter 70. Recent amendments in 2024 touched the child care support rule for low-income obligors (518A.40, now tied to the basic sliding fee schedule published by the Department of Children, Youth, and Families), the minimum support exceptions (518A.42) and cross-references.
A change in the statutes does not automatically change an existing order. A parent generally has to ask the court or the county for a modification.
How Minnesota Calculates Child Support
Minnesota uses income shares with a parenting expense adjustment. The steps in section 518A.34 are:
- Find each parent's gross income and subtract the credit for children from other relationships (nonjoint children). The result is each parent's PICS.
- Divide each parent's PICS by the combined PICS to get each parent's percentage.
- Look up the combined basic support obligation in the guideline table for the combined PICS and the number of children.
- Multiply each parent's percentage by that obligation to get each parent's share.
- Apply the parenting expense adjustment to find the obligor and the basic support amount.
- Add child care support and medical support, each divided by PICS share. The order must list basic, child care and medical support separately.
The guideline is a rebuttable presumption. The court can deviate for the reasons in section 518A.43.
The Minnesota Guideline Table
Section 518A.35 sets the combined basic support obligation in $100 bands of combined PICS, for one to six children. A sample (the figure is the same for every income inside the band):
| Combined monthly PICS (row starting at) | 1 child | 2 children | 3 children |
|---|
| $2,000 | $170 | $200 | $235 |
| $4,000 | $625 | $845 | $954 |
| $6,000 | $988 | $1,383 | $1,577 |
| $8,000 | $1,106 | $1,548 | $1,765 |
| $10,000 | $1,230 | $1,722 | $1,963 |
| $15,000 | $1,539 | $2,155 | $2,457 |
| $20,000 | $1,839 | $2,575 | $2,935 |
Below $1,400 of combined income the table amounts are the $50 to $100 minimums. For combined PICS of $20,000 a month or more the amount for $20,000 is used. A court can order more only for a child's disability or other substantial demonstrated need. With more than six children, the court may derive an order without following the table exactly.
Parenting Expense Adjustment in Minnesota (the Cubed Formula)
Minnesota adjusts basic support for the time each parent spends with the children. Parent A is the parent with the fewer overnights, and Parent B the parent with the more. The formula in section 518A.36 is:
- Cube A's overnights and B's overnights.
- Multiply A's cubed overnights by B's share of the combined obligation.
- Multiply B's cubed overnights by A's share.
- Subtract the second result from the first and divide by the sum of both cubed numbers.
A negative result means Parent A is the obligor and the positive amount is basic support. A positive result means Parent B is the obligor. Because the numbers are cubed, support shrinks gradually as the other parent's time grows. If time and PICS are both equal, no basic support is paid unless expenses are unequal. The adjustment applies only when a parenting time order exists, and the percentage of time is averaged over two years. Overnight equivalents can count when a parent has significant daytime care without overnights.
Child Care and Health Coverage in Minnesota
- Child care support: work-related or education-related child care costs are divided by each parent's share of combined PICS. The amount is reduced by the estimated federal and state child care credit. A low-income obligor may pay only the child care assistance co-payment (518A.40).
- Health coverage: the cost of private coverage and uninsured medical expenses are divided by each parent's share of combined PICS. If one parent carries the coverage, the other contributes their share (518A.41). Dependent coverage is presumed affordable if the child's marginal cost is at most 5% of combined PICS.
- Child care and medical support are part of child support but are not adjusted by the cost-of-living adjustment.
Ability to Pay: Self-Support Reserve and Minimum Support
Section 518A.42 presumes that an order should not exceed the obligor's ability to pay. The court first subtracts a self-support reserve of 120% of the federal poverty guideline for one person from the obligor's PICS. For 2026 the guideline is $15,960 a year, so the reserve is about $1,596 a month. If the income left is smaller than the guideline total, support is reduced in this order: medical support, then child care, then basic support. If the income left is at or below the minimum, or if gross income is below the reserve, the minimum applies:
| Children | Minimum basic support |
|---|
| 1 | $50 |
| 2 | $60 |
| 3 | $70 |
| 4 | $80 |
| 5 | $90 |
| 6 or more | $100 |
An obligor who pays the minimum is presumed unable to pay child care and medical support. The minimum does not apply to an incarcerated obligor, an obligor receiving general assistance, SSI or a TANF or MFIP grant, or an obligor with no income and no ability to earn. It also does not apply when the parenting expense adjustment lowers basic support below the minimum.
Minnesota Child Support Examples
In each example the children live with Parent A, and Parent B is the other parent. Amounts are monthly.
Example 1: Two children, no parenting time order
A earns $3,000 and B earns $5,000. Combined PICS is $8,000, and the table gives $1,548 for two children. B's 62.5% share is $967.50 a month.
Example 2: 90 overnights with B
Same incomes. A's share is $580.50 and B's share is $967.50. B has 90 overnights (cubed: 729,000) and A has 275 (cubed: 20,796,875). The formula gives (729,000 × $580.50 − 20,796,875 × $967.50) ÷ 21,525,875, which is negative, so B is the obligor and basic support is $915.08 a month.
Example 3: 146 overnights with B
Same incomes. With B's time at 146 overnights, support falls to $613.67 a month.
Example 4: Child care and health coverage paid by A
Same incomes and 90 overnights. A pays $600 of child care and $100 of health coverage. B's 62.5% share of $700 is $437.50. Total: $915.08 + $437.50 = $1,352.58 a month.
Example 5: Self-support reserve
A earns $4,000 and B earns $1,700 with one child and no parenting time order. B's share of the $937 table amount would be $279.46, but B has only $104 left above the reserve, so support is limited to $104.00 a month.
Example 6: Minimum support
A earns $4,000 and B earns $1,500, one child. B's income is below the reserve, so the minimum for one child applies: $50.00 a month.
These are illustrations produced from the statutes, not court rulings.
What Counts as Income in Minnesota
Minnesota starts with gross income under section 518A.29, which includes any form of periodic payment to an individual: salaries, wages, commissions, bonuses, self-employment income, dividends, pensions, Social Security and veterans benefits, unemployment and workers' compensation benefits, and similar income. It does not include child support received or most means-tested public assistance. If a parent is voluntarily unemployed or underemployed, the court can use potential income. PICS is gross income minus the credit for nonjoint children.
What This Minnesota Estimate Does Not Include
- The credit for nonjoint children and other deductions from gross income.
- The child care tax credit reduction to child care costs.
- Split custody, public health coverage contributions, and unreimbursed or uninsured medical expenses.
- Deviations, and combined incomes above $20,000 a month beyond the table cap.
Minnesota Child Support Terms
- PICS
- Parental income for determining child support: gross income minus the credit for nonjoint children.
- Obligor
- The parent who pays support.
- Obligee
- The parent who receives support.
- Parenting expense adjustment
- The formula that reduces basic support for parenting time.
- Self-support reserve
- 120% of the federal poverty guideline for one person.
Frequently Asked Questions About Minnesota Child Support
Is this the official Minnesota child support calculator?
No. ChildSupportCalculator.xyz is an independent tool and is not affiliated with the State of Minnesota. It applies Minnesota Statutes sections 518A.34 to 518A.42. Courts and county child support offices decide actual amounts.
How is child support calculated in Minnesota?
Minnesota divides a table amount for the combined income of both parents between them by income share, then applies a parenting expense adjustment based on overnights, and adds child care and medical support divided by income share.
Are there new child support guidelines in Minnesota in 2026?
We did not find a new table or formula for 2026. The table was last changed in 2021 and the computation steps in 2023. Some 2024 amendments changed child care support for low-income obligors and the minimum support exceptions.
Does Minnesota use gross or net income?
Gross income. Minnesota uses parental income for determining child support (PICS), which is gross income minus a credit for children from other relationships.
How does parenting time affect Minnesota child support?
The parenting expense adjustment multiplies each parent's share by the cube of the other parent's overnights, so support falls steadily as the other parent's time grows. It applies when a parenting time order exists.
Is there a Minnesota child support calculator for 50/50 custody?
Yes. Enter about 182 overnights for the other parent. With equal time and equal incomes no basic support is paid; with unequal incomes the higher earner usually pays a reduced amount.
What is the maximum income in the Minnesota guideline table?
$20,000 of combined monthly PICS. Above that the $20,000 amount is used unless a court finds a child's disability or substantial demonstrated need.
What is the minimum child support in Minnesota?
$50 for one child up to $100 for six or more, subject to the exceptions in section 518A.42.
What is the self-support reserve in Minnesota?
120% of the federal poverty guideline for one person, about $1,596 a month in 2026. Support is limited so the obligor keeps that amount, except for the minimum.
Does the Minnesota calculator need my personal details or a login?
No. This site needs no login and does not store your numbers.
Official Minnesota Child Support Resources
Published: October 13, 2026
Last reviewed: October 13, 2026
Researched and reviewed by Eric John, founder and editor, using official state statutes and guidance. How we build and check our calculators · Corrections
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