Texas Alimony Calculator 2026
See the most a Texas court can order as spousal maintenance (Tex. Fam. Code § 8.055) and for how long (§ 8.054). The cap is a ceiling, not a prediction; a judge decides whether maintenance is available and how much. Everything runs privately in your browser, with no sign-up.
Not legal advice — a court decides. Texas limits court-ordered maintenance by statute; the judge sets the amount at or below the maximum shown, and only for a spouse who qualifies.
Texas Alimony Formula & Factors
Texas caps spousal maintenance by statute. Under Texas Family Code, Chapter 8 (section 8.055), a court may not order a spouse to pay more each month than the lesser of $5,000 or 20% of that spouse's average monthly gross income. The cap is a ceiling: inside it the judge sets the amount from the factors in section 8.052, such as each spouse's ability to meet minimum reasonable needs, education and job skills, the length of the marriage, age and health, and marital misconduct.
Maintenance is also hard to qualify for. Section 8.051 allows it only when the spouse asking will lack enough property to provide for minimum reasonable needs and one of these is true: the marriage lasted 10 years or longer and the spouse cannot earn enough to meet those needs; the spouse has an incapacitating physical or mental disability; the spouse cares for a child of the marriage with a disability; or the other spouse was convicted of, or received deferred adjudication for, family violence within two years before filing or while the case was pending.
Texas Alimony Rules at a Glance
| Point | Texas rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly maximum | Lesser of $5,000 or 20% of the payor's average monthly gross income | Tex. Fam. Code § 8.055(a) |
| Who qualifies | Not enough property for minimum reasonable needs, plus a 10-year marriage and inability to earn enough, a disability, a disabled child, or family violence | Tex. Fam. Code § 8.051 |
| Marriage of 10 to 20 years | Up to 5 years | Tex. Fam. Code § 8.054(a)(1)(A) |
| Marriage of 20 to 30 years | Up to 7 years | Tex. Fam. Code § 8.054(a)(1)(B) |
| Marriage of 30 years or more | Up to 10 years | Tex. Fam. Code § 8.054(a)(1)(C) |
| Who decides | A judge, on the evidence in the case | Tex. Fam. Code §§ 8.051–8.055 |
| Federal income tax | Not deductible by the payer and not income to the recipient for agreements executed after 2018 | IRS Topic No. 452 |
Worked Example: Texas Alimony Calculator
Take a payor with average gross income of $8,000 a month. 20% of that is $1,600, which is less than $5,000, so the most a Texas court could order is $1,600 a month ($19,200 a year). The recipient's income does not enter the cap, but it matters for whether maintenance is available at all and how much of the cap the court uses.
A 12-year marriage falls in the 10-to-20-year band, so an order can last up to 5 years.
These are the figures the calculator shows when the page first loads. A real order depends on evidence a calculator cannot see.
Texas Alimony Duration Rules
Section 8.054 limits how long an order can last: 5 years when the marriage lasted at least 10 but not more than 20 years (or under 10 years on the family-violence ground), 7 years for 20 to 30 years, and 10 years for 30 years or more. Within those limits the court must choose the shortest reasonable period that lets the spouse earn enough for minimum reasonable needs.
The time limits do not apply to maintenance based on the spouse's own disability or the care of a disabled child, which can continue for as long as the condition lasts.
Is Alimony Taxable in Texas?
For federal income tax, alimony or separate maintenance paid under a divorce or separation agreement executed after 2018 is not deductible by the payer and is not included in the recipient's income. Payments under an agreement executed before 2019 are generally still deductible by the payer and taxable to the recipient, unless the agreement was later modified and the modification expressly adopts the new rule (IRS Topic No. 452). Child support is never deductible and is not income.
This page does not cover Texas state income tax. State rules are set separately and can differ from the federal rule, so check with the state tax agency or a tax adviser.
Modifying Texas Alimony
Whether an order can be changed depends on its wording and on the type of support. In most cases either spouse can ask the court to modify periodic payments after a substantial change in circumstances, unless the decree or the spouses' agreement makes the support non-modifiable.
Read the order itself and Tex. Fam. Code §§ 8.051–8.055 before relying on a general rule, and get advice from a family lawyer licensed in Texas about your own case. Nothing on this page is legal advice.
Last updated: October 2026. Sources: Texas Family Code, Chapter 8 (Texas Legislature); IRS Topic No. 452.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is alimony calculated in Texas?
Texas does not compute a set amount. Family Code § 8.055 caps court-ordered spousal maintenance at the lesser of $5,000 a month or 20% of the payor's average monthly gross income, and the judge sets the figure at or below that cap from the factors in § 8.052. The spouse must first qualify under § 8.051, which usually requires a marriage of at least 10 years and an inability to earn enough for minimum reasonable needs.
Does Texas use a formula for alimony?
Texas has a statutory cap, not a formula that produces the award. The maximum is the lesser of $5,000 a month or 20% of the payor's average monthly gross income (Family Code § 8.055). The court decides the amount within that limit and only for a spouse who meets the eligibility rules in § 8.051.
How long does Texas alimony last?
Family Code § 8.054 limits a maintenance order to 5 years when the marriage lasted at least 10 but not more than 20 years, 7 years for 20 to 30 years, and 10 years for 30 years or more. A marriage under 10 years qualifies only on the family-violence ground, also for up to 5 years. Maintenance based on a disability can last as long as the disability does.
Can Texas alimony be modified?
It depends on the order. In most cases either spouse can ask the court to modify periodic payments after a substantial change in circumstances, unless the decree or the spouses' agreement makes the support non-modifiable. Check the wording of your order and Tex. Fam. Code §§ 8.051–8.055 before relying on a general rule.
Is alimony taxable in Texas?
For federal income tax, alimony paid under a divorce or separation agreement executed after 2018 is not deductible by the payer and is not income to the recipient (IRS Topic No. 452). Agreements executed before 2019 generally keep the old treatment, deductible by the payer and taxable to the recipient, unless a later modification expressly adopts the new rule. This page does not cover Texas state income tax, which is set separately.