Alimony (also termed spousal maintenance or spousal support) provides court-ordered financial support paid by one spouse to the other following a legal separation or divorce. Unlike child support—which adheres to rigid federal mathematical formulas across all states—alimony awards are subject to substantial judicial discretion and state-specific statutory guidelines.

This calculator applies a standard preliminary mediation baseline formula (30% of gross income differential, awarded for approximately 50% of the marriage duration). **Please note that all outputs are informal estimates only.** Actual judicial determinations vary significantly depending on whether the state applies statutory formula caps, the marital standard of living, age and health of each party, custody arrangements, and marital property division.

### Worked Numeric Example Consider a divorcing couple who were **married for 12 years** where Spouse A earns **$120,000 annually** ($10,000/month) and Spouse B earns **$40,000 annually** ($3,333/month): 1. **Gross Income Differential:** $120,000 - $40,000 = **$80,000/year**. 2. **Estimated Annual Support (30% Rule):** $80,000 × 0.30 = **$24,000/year**. 3. **Estimated Monthly Support:** $24,000 / 12 = **$2,000/month**. 4. **Estimated Duration (50% Rule):** 12 years × 0.50 = **6 years (72 months)**. 5. **Estimated Total Payout:** $2,000 × 72 months = **$144,000** total spousal support over the multi-year duration.

### Statutory Caveat: Rules Vary by Jurisdiction State laws approach spousal support differently. For example, Texas strictly caps spousal maintenance at $5,000/month or 20% of gross income, Massachusetts scales duration strictly by marriage length tiers, and California generally treats marriages over 10 years as "long duration" with no predetermined termination date. Consult a qualified family law attorney licensed in your jurisdiction for binding legal analysis.

### Client-Side Privacy Note All spousal support estimations and duration calculations execute locally within your browser runtime. Zero income figures, marital histories, or personal details are uploaded to external servers.