How Is Child Support Calculated in Utah?

Whether you expect to pay child support or receive it, the number the court sets will shape your budget for years. Parents ask us how child support is calculated in Utah more than almost any other question, and the answer is more mechanical than most people expect. Utah uses an income shares formula. The court adds up both parents' incomes, looks up a figure in a statutory table, and splits that figure between the parents in proportion to what each one earns. A judge has less discretion over child support than over almost any other issue in a divorce.

The inputs to that formula are where cases are won and lost, especially for Utah County families where one or both parents earn well. A software engineer in Lehi with stock compensation, a dentist in Orem who owns the practice, and a sales manager in Provo paid mostly on commission will each have a real dispute over what counts as income before anyone opens the table. This guide walks through the formula the Fourth District Court in Provo applies, the income rules that matter most for higher earners, how joint custody changes the math, what gets added on top of the base number, and when an order can be changed.

How Is Child Support Calculated in Utah? The Income Shares Formula

Utah uses the income shares model. Under Utah Code § 81-6-204, the court combines both parents' adjusted monthly gross incomes, finds the matching base combined child support obligation in the table in Utah Code § 81-6-304, and then assigns each parent a share of that figure in proportion to income.

The guidelines are a rebuttable presumption under Utah Code § 81-6-202. A judge can deviate from them, but only with a written finding that the guideline amount would be unjust, inappropriate, or not in the child's best interest. In practice, deviations are uncommon. Most Utah County child support orders come straight off the worksheet.

The calculation runs in five steps. The court determines each parent's gross monthly income, subtracts any alimony or child support that parent already pays under a prior order for a different relationship, combines the two adjusted incomes, finds that combined figure in the table under the column for the number of children the parents share, and then applies the custody-specific calculation described below to arrive at the base child support award.

A worked example makes this concrete. Suppose a couple in American Fork has two children. One parent earns $9,000 a month and the other earns $6,000, for a combined $15,000. The table lists a base combined obligation of $2,163 for two children at that income level. The parent earning $9,000 accounts for 60 percent of the combined income, so in a sole custody arrangement that parent's base award would be 60 percent of $2,163, or about $1,298 per month. One detail that trips people up: the table figure is the total for all of the children, not an amount per child.

What Counts as Income for Utah Child Support?

Almost everything. Utah Code § 81-6-203 lets the court include salaries, wages, commissions, bonuses, royalties, rents, dividends, interest, capital gains, severance pay, pensions, trust income, annuities, and even gifts. If money comes in on a recurring basis, expect it to be on the worksheet.

For higher earners, the details matter more than the list. Income from earned sources is limited to the equivalent of one full-time, 40-hour job, so overtime and a second job count only if the parent normally and consistently worked those hours before the original order was entered. The court calculates gross income on an annual basis and divides by 12, which smooths out a year-end bonus or a commission-heavy quarter rather than letting either side pick a good or bad month. Stock compensation isn't named in the statute, but it is compensation, and the income definition is broad enough that a parent with restricted stock or annual equity grants should plan on the court asking about it.

Self-employment income gets its own rule. The court starts with gross receipts and subtracts only the expenses necessary to run the business at a reasonable level, and the statute says outright that this number may differ from the business income reported for tax purposes. A practice owner in Orem who shows a modest salary on paper but takes large distributions should expect the distributions to count.

Both parents must verify income with year-to-date pay stubs and at least the most recent year's tax returns. When a parent isn't working, or is working well below capacity, the court can impute income after a hearing, based on work history, education, qualifications, age, health, and prevailing local wages for someone with that background. A parent with no recent work history can be imputed at federal minimum wage for a 40-hour week. A parent with a professional license and a ten-year track record will be imputed at something closer to what that license earns.

A pattern we regularly see in Utah County consultations is a parent who scaled back a business or moved to a lower-paying job in the year before filing and assumes the court will use the new, lower number. Section 81-6-203 directs the court to look at historical earnings as well as current earnings when deciding whether a parent is underemployed. A judge in Provo who sees a sharp drop in income with no good explanation can, and often will, set support on the earlier figure.

How Does Joint Custody Change Child Support in Utah?

Joint physical custody reduces the paying parent's obligation through an overnight credit under Utah Code § 81-6-206, but it rarely eliminates it. Utah treats custody as joint physical custody when the child stays overnight with each parent more than 30 percent of the year, which works out to 111 or more overnights, under the definition in Utah Code § 81-9-101.

The credit is built on the number of overnights above 110. For overnights 111 through 130, the court multiplies the count by .0027 and then by the base combined obligation. For every overnight above 130, it multiplies the count by .0084 and again by the base combined obligation. Both products are subtracted from the paying parent's income-based share.

Take the American Fork couple again. If the parent earning $9,000 has the children 140 overnights a year, that parent's share starts at about $1,298. The first 20 credited overnights reduce it by roughly $117, and the next 10 reduce it by about $182, leaving a base award near $999 a month. In an equal parent-time arrangement the lower-earning parent is treated as having 183 overnights, so the higher earner's credit runs across 72 overnights and the base award drops to roughly $236 a month. That is still not zero. As long as one parent earns meaningfully more than the other, some support usually flows even on a 50/50 schedule.

Sole custody cases use Utah Code § 81-6-205, which sets a $30 minimum award and a separate low income table. When the children are divided between the parents, Utah Code § 81-6-207 handles the split custody calculation by netting each parent's obligation for the children living with the other parent. For how a Utah court decides which schedule applies in the first place, see our post on how child custody is determined in Utah.

What Happens When Parents Earn More Than the Utah Child Support Table Covers?

The base combined child support obligation table stops at a combined adjusted gross income of $100,000 per month. Above that level, Utah Code § 81-6-204(8) tells the court to order an appropriate and just amount on a case-by-case basis, and it may not order less than the highest figure in the table for the number of children involved.

Very few families clear $1.2 million a year in combined income, so for most Utah County professionals the table still controls. What changes as income climbs is the size of the numbers. At a combined $20,001 to $22,000 per month, the table lists $1,766 for one child and $2,754 for two. At $30,001 to $32,000, it lists $2,508 and $3,916. At the top row, $98,001 to $100,000, the figures are $5,908 for one child, $8,356 for two, and $9,751 for three. The percentage of income devoted to support falls as income rises, but the dollar amounts keep climbing.

Higher-income parents sometimes ask whether the court will cap support at what a child actually needs. Utah's answer is generally no. The statute says there is no maximum limit on a base award ordered from the tables, and a downward deviation requires written findings. When the court does deviate, Section 81-6-202(6) lists the factors it weighs, including the standard of living of the parties, their relative wealth and income, each parent's ability to earn, and the needs of the parents and the child. Child support and alimony also interact, since alimony ordered in the same case is not subtracted from income for child support purposes, a point we cover in our post on how alimony is determined in Utah.

What Gets Added on Top of Base Child Support in Utah?

Medical costs and work-related child care are handled separately from the base award, and both are generally split equally between the parents regardless of their income shares. For a family with young children in daycare, these add-ons can rival the base award itself.

Utah Code § 81-6-208 requires every child support order to address health care. The parents must provide health insurance for the child if it is available at a reasonable cost, and they share equally the child's portion of the premium actually paid, calculated as a per capita share of the total premium. Uninsured and unreimbursed medical and dental expenses, including co-pays, co-insurance, and deductibles, are also split equally. A parent who incurs one of those expenses must give the other parent written verification within 30 days, and a parent who ignores that rule can lose the right to reimbursement.

Child care works the same way. Under Utah Code § 81-6-209, each parent shares equally the reasonable work-related child care expenses. The statute was repealed and re-enacted in the 2026 General Session, and for orders entered or modified on or after January 1, 2027, it adds a minimal child care award that the paying parent owes each month, keyed to the parents' combined income and the age of each child under the table in Utah Code § 81-6-306. That award ends when the child turns 13. Our earlier post on Utah's child care support changes covers the background of these rules.

The tax exemption for the child is decided separately under Utah Code § 81-6-210. There is no presumption in favor of either parent. The primary factor is each parent's relative contribution to the cost of raising the child, and a parent who is behind on child support cannot be awarded the exemption at all.

How Long Does Child Support Last in Utah, and When Can It Change?

Child support in Utah continues until the child turns 18 or graduates from high school in the normal and expected year of graduation, whichever comes later. Utah Code § 81-6-213 treats that event as emancipation, and the base award automatically adjusts to the table amount for the remaining children without a new court order, provided the original order or worksheet lists the parents' incomes and did not deviate from the guidelines.

Before then, either parent can ask to change the amount under Utah Code § 81-6-212. There are two paths. The first requires a substantial change in circumstances, such as a material change in custody, a change of 30 percent or more in a parent's income, or a change in the child's medical needs, that produces a difference of 15 percent or more between the current order and the guideline amount. The second path opens once an order is at least three years old. At that point a parent can move to adjust support without showing any change in circumstances, and the court will conform the order to the guidelines if the difference is 10 percent or more and not temporary.

Modification is prospective, so a parent whose income has dropped should file promptly rather than falling behind and hoping to fix it later. A parent whose income has climbed should expect the other side to run the three-year calculation. If the other parent is already ignoring the support order, our post on what to do when your ex violates your divorce decree explains the enforcement options.

Frequently Asked Questions About Child Support in Utah

Q: Is there a Utah child support calculator I can use before I talk to a lawyer?

A: Yes. The Utah Office of Recovery Services publishes an online child support calculator that applies the current tables and shows how child support is calculated in Utah for your numbers. It's a useful starting point, but the output is only as good as the income figures you enter. Most disputes are about the inputs, not the arithmetic.

Q: Does 50/50 custody mean no child support in Utah?

A: Not unless the parents earn roughly the same amount. Under an equal parent-time schedule the lower-earning parent is credited with 183 overnights, and the overnight credit reduces the higher earner's obligation, but as long as there is a real income gap the higher earner will usually still pay something.

Q: Can we agree to a different child support amount?

A: You can agree to more. A stipulated amount is accepted under the guidelines if it equals or exceeds the base award the guidelines would require. Agreeing to less is possible only if the court makes written findings supporting a deviation, and Utah County judges are careful about approving that.

Q: Does my new spouse's income count toward child support in Utah?

A: No. Section 81-6-204(2) limits the base child support calculation to the income of the child's parents. A new spouse's income is not included, although a parent's own changed financial picture after remarriage can come up in a deviation argument.

Q: What if the other parent is self-employed and reports very little income?

A: The court is not bound by the tax return. Section 81-6-203 directs the court to start with gross receipts and deduct only the expenses needed to run the business at a reasonable level. Bank statements, merchant processing records, and business filings are routinely used to test a low reported income.

Talk to a Utah Family Law Attorney

Knowing how child support is calculated in Utah is the first step; the numbers that go into the formula are argued, not assumed. Getting the income figures right, documenting the overnight schedule accurately, and structuring the medical and child care provisions so they can actually be enforced are the differences between an order that works and one you'll be back in court to fix.

Fox Law Utah handles child support, custody, and divorce matters for parents in Provo, Orem, Lehi, American Fork, and the rest of Utah County, as well as Salt Lake and Summit Counties, with flat-fee options for many cases so you know the cost up front. Contact Fox Law Utah today at 801-251-6124 or through our contact form at https://www.foxlawutah.com/contact-us to schedule a consultation.

About the Author

Andrew Fox is a Utah family law attorney and the founder of Fox Law Utah. He represents clients in divorce, custody, and support matters across Salt Lake, Utah, and Summit Counties.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Every family law case is unique. Contact Fox Law Utah for guidance specific to your situation.