PA Child Support Chart: Income, Custody Time, and Add-Ons

Pennsylvania’s child support chart, formally the Basic Child Support Schedule in Rule 1910.16-3, is a grid that sets a base monthly obligation based on the parents’ combined monthly net income and the number of children. You find the row that matches the combined income, read across to the column for the number of children, and that dollar figure is the starting point. The two parents then split that amount in proportion to what each of them earns, with adjustments for custody time and certain shared expenses.¹

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court publishes the schedule statewide, so a family with a given income and number of children faces the same presumptive number regardless of which county hears the case.² The dollar amounts reflect what intact families at each income level typically spend on their children, covering everyday costs like food, clothing, and housing.

Reading the Chart

Combined monthly net income runs down the left side of the schedule. The number of children, one through six, runs across the top. Under the schedule effective January 1, 2026, parents with a combined monthly net income of $5,000 see a base obligation of $1,080 for one child. At $10,000 combined, it’s $1,661 for one child. At $15,000 combined, the amounts are $2,036 for one child, $2,945 for two, and $3,480 for three.¹

The schedule is reviewed at least every four years to keep pace with inflation and updated data on child-rearing costs. Both federal regulations and 23 Pa.C.S. § 4322 require that periodic review.³

Figuring Each Parent’s Monthly Net Income

You can’t use the chart until you have a “combined monthly net income” figure, and that number is defined narrowly. Under Rule 1910.16-2, income is broad: wages, salaries, bonuses, commissions, interest, rent, dividends, pensions, Social Security benefits, and workers’ compensation all count. Gross income is ordinarily based on at least a six-month average.⁴

Only a short list of deductions comes off gross to reach net:

Federal, state, and local income taxes
FICA (Social Security and Medicare)
Unemployment compensation taxes and Local Services Taxes
Non-voluntary retirement payments
Mandatory union dues
Alimony paid to the other party

Voluntary 401(k) contributions, life insurance premiums, and other elective payroll deductions do not reduce net income for support purposes. The court is looking at what a parent actually has available, not what they choose to redirect.⁴

Add the two net figures together. That total is the row you use on the chart.

If a Parent Isn’t Working, or Is Underemployed

A parent who quits, is fired for misconduct, or chooses not to work doesn’t escape the calculation. Under Rule 1910.16-2(d)(4), the court will impute income equal to that parent’s earning capacity, based on employment history, job skills, education, age, health, criminal record, the local job market, and prevailing wages. The court won’t assume someone can earn more than they could from a single full-time position, and it accounts for child care costs the parent would actually incur if working.⁵

Splitting the Base Obligation Between the Parents

The chart produces a single total for the family, not the amount one parent owes. Rule 1910.16-4 divides that total in proportion to each parent’s share of the combined income. If Parent A earns $6,000 a month and Parent B earns $4,000, Parent A carries 60% of the base obligation and Parent B carries 40%.⁶

The custodial parent is presumed to spend their share directly on the child through day-to-day costs. The non-custodial parent’s share is what actually gets transferred as a support payment.

Custody-Time Adjustments

When the paying parent has the child for 40% or more of annual overnights, a rebuttable presumption of reduction applies. The formula subtracts 30 percentage points from the obligor’s overnight percentage and reduces the obligor’s share of the base obligation by that difference. A parent with exactly 40% of overnights gets a 10-point reduction (40 minus 30).⁷

At exactly 50/50 custody, a separate rule takes over. Support can only flow from the higher-income parent to the lower-income parent. If the standard formula would flip that result and leave the lower earner with a larger combined share of income than the higher earner, the court adjusts the obligation to equalize.⁷

Add-Ons on Top of the Base

The chart covers ordinary living costs. Some predictable expenses ride on top of it. Rule 1910.16-6 requires parents to share:

Health insurance premiums covering the children
Reasonable work-related child care
Unreimbursed medical expenses above $250 per person per year

These are split by the same income percentages used for the base obligation. A parent responsible for 60% of the base carries 60% of premiums and qualifying medical costs. The amounts are then added to or subtracted from the base to produce the final order.⁸⁹

Combined Income Above $30,000 a Month

The chart itself stops at $30,000 in combined monthly net income. Above that, Rule 1910.16-3.1 sets a formula: start with the obligation at $30,000, then add a percentage of income over the cap. For one child, that’s $3,749 plus 4.0% of the excess. For two children, $4,981 plus 4.0%. The percentages rise with family size, up to $7,750 plus 6.3% for six children.¹⁰

In these cases, the court also performs a “reasonable needs” analysis, weighing the child’s actual standard of living, deviation factors, and each parent’s expense statements. The calculated amount can move up or down from there, but it cannot fall below the presumptive minimum tied to the $30,000 combined income level.¹⁰

The Self-Support Reserve at the Low End

At the bottom of the income range, the chart is capped by the self-support reserve. The SSR protects the paying parent’s ability to cover basic living expenses by keeping at least $1,255 per month in their pocket. If a standard calculation would push the obligor’s remaining income below that floor, the court reduces the obligation.⁴

The SSR doesn’t zero out the obligation when both parents have income. It just prevents an order that would leave the paying parent unable to meet their own basic needs.

When a Judge Can Depart From the Chart

The chart amount is presumptive, not automatic. Rule 1910.16-5 lets a judge deviate when the guideline number would be unjust. The nine factors are:

Unusual needs or fixed obligations, such as a child with significant medical needs
Other support obligations, including support for children from a different relationship
Other household income, such as a new spouse’s earnings
The child’s age
Relative assets and liabilities, including significant debt or inherited wealth
Uncovered medical expenses
Standard of living the family was accustomed to before separation
Duration of the marriage (in spousal support cases)
Any other relevant factors, including the child’s best interest

A judge who deviates has to put on the record the guideline amount, the reason for departing, the factual findings supporting the deviation, and the actual deviation amount.¹¹

When the Chart Stops Applying

Under 23 Pa.C.S. § 4321, parents are liable for the support of unemancipated children who are 18 or younger. Basic support typically ends when the child turns 18 or graduates from high school. If a child becomes emancipated earlier through marriage, the court cannot order continued support.¹²

College costs are handled separately from the chart. Under 23 Pa.C.S. § 4327, a court can order parents to contribute to postsecondary educational expenses up to age 23, and only in exceptional circumstances beyond that. The court cannot order contributions toward graduate school or where doing so would cause undue financial hardship.¹²

1
Pennsylvania Code. 231 Pa Code Rule 1910.16-3 – Support Guidelines Basic Child Support Schedule
2
Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. Rule 1910.16-1 Amount of Support – Support Guidelines
3
Pennsylvania Code and Bulletin. 231 Pa Code Rule 1910.16-1 – Support Obligation Support Guidelines
4
Pennsylvania Code and Bulletin. 231 Pa Code Rule 1910.16-2 – Support Guidelines Calculation of Monthly Net Income
5
Pennsylvania Code and Bulletin. 231 Pa Code Rule 1910.16-2 – Support Guidelines Calculation of Monthly Net Income
6
Pennsylvania Code and Bulletin. 231 Pa Code Rule 1910.16-4 – Support Guidelines Calculation of Support Obligation
7
Legal Information Institute. 231 Pa Code Rule 1910.16-4 – Support Guidelines Calculation of Support Obligation
8
Legal Information Institute. 231 Pa Code Rule 1910.16-6 – Support Guidelines Basic Support Obligation Adjustments
9
Pennsylvania Code. 231 Pa Code Rule 1910.16-6 – Support Guidelines Basic Support Obligation Adjustments Additional Expenses Allocation
10
Pennsylvania Code. 231 Pa Code Rule 1910.16-3.1 – High Income Child Support Cases
11
Pennsylvania Code. 231 Pa Code Rule 1910.16-5 – Support Guidelines Deviation
12
Pennsylvania General Assembly. Title 23 Domestic Relations – Chapter 43