Colorado Family Law Tools
Colorado Child Support Calculator
Estimate child support using Colorado guidelines effective March 1, 2026 in just a few minutes.
Then learn what can affect your payment and what your estimate could mean for your family.
This calculator provides an estimate based on Colorado’s child support guidelines effective March 1, 2026. It isn’t legal advice or a guarantee of what a court will order and is for informational purposes only. Every family’s circumstances are different, and factors such as parenting time, healthcare costs, childcare expense, variable income, or existing court orders may affect the final amount. Using this calculator does not create an attorney-client relationship. If you have any question about your specific situation, speak with a Colorado family law attorney.
Need a More Personalized Estimate?
An online calculator can’t account for every detail that affects child support. Share a few details, and a Colorado family law attorney will help you understand what your estimate could mean for your situation.
Beyond the number
What Can Change Your Colorado Child Support Estimate
Your estimate is based on the information you enter. Changes or added details involving income, parenting time and child-related expenses may affect the final child support amount. Courts usually begin with the guideline amount, but judges can order more or less child support when the facts of the case make a different amount more appropriate. Here are some of the most common factors.
Income isn't always a regular paycheck. Overtime, bonuses, commissions, and seasonal income may all affect child support, depending on your circumstances.
If you're self-employed, calculating income can be more complicated. Business expenses, fluctuating earnings, and other financial factors can affect the amount used to calculate child support.
Work-related childcare expenses are included in Colorado's child support calculation. These costs are generally shared between parents based on their incomes.
If one parent pays for the child's health insurance, that cost may affect each parent's share of child support.
Parenting time affects child support under Colorado law. Starting March 1, 2026, Colorado counts every night a parent spends with their child when calculating parenting time. In the past, those overnights only counted after a parent reached a certain minimum number of nights. Because of this change, even relatively small differences in parenting schedules may affect the calculation.
Colorado courts generally begin with the statutory guideline calculation but may deviate when applying the guidelines would be unjust or inappropriate based on the evidence in a particular case.
What Does This Mean for Your Case?
Your result is a useful starting point, but it may change if income is disputed, a parent is self-employed, the parenting schedule changes, or another support order applies. A Colorado family law attorney can review the details behind your estimate and explain what may affect the final amount.
Common questions
Frequently Asked Questions
Attorney-reviewed answers to what we hear most often about Child Support in Colorado.
Colorado uses a formula that looks at each parent's income, the number of overnights each parent has with the child, healthcare costs, childcare expenses, and other required financial information. This calculator uses those same guidelines to provide an estimate. If you'd like to see the official worksheet Colorado courts use, you can find it on the Colorado Judicial Branch website.
Child support is generally based on each parent's gross income, including wages, self-employment income, bonuses, commissions, rental income, and some other sources of income. Determining income can be more complicated for parents who are self-employed or have variable earnings.
Yes. Parenting time is one of the most important factors in Colorado's child support calculation. Under current Colorado law (effective March 1, 2026), every overnight is considered when calculating child support. The previous 93-overnight threshold has been eliminated, so each additional overnight can gradually affect the amount of support owed.
No. Equal parenting time does not automatically mean that no child support will be ordered. The calculation also considers each parent’s income and child-related expenses. Learn more about 50/50 parenting time in Colorado.
This calculator uses Colorado's current child support guidelines to provide an estimate. While it's a reliable starting point, it can't account for every detail that may affect your case, so the final amount ordered by a court may be different.
Yes. Child support can often be modified if there's a substantial change in circumstances, such as a significant change in income, parenting time, or the child's needs. For information about state child support services, enforcement, and payment processing, visit Colorado Child Support Services.
The March 1, 2026 changes to Colorado’s child support law include:
- Parenting time calculation updated
- Every overnight counts
- Income table expanded
- Updated low-income adjustments
These changes were enacted through Colorado House Bill 25-1159 and took effect March 1, 2026.
No. A child support order doesn't automatically change when the law changes. If you want to update an existing order, you'll generally need to ask the court for a modification and meet Colorado's legal requirements.
Tools & Resources
Explore More Colorado Family Law Calculators
Child support is just one part of the financial picture. Explore our other Colorado calculators to better understand spousal maintenance, attorney fees, property division, and more.
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Whether you’re planning for divorce, negotiating child support, or requesting a modification, understanding your options can help you make informed decisions for your family.
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