Child support · Mississippi
Mississippi child support calculator
Mississippi uses one of the simplest models in the country: child support is a flat percentage of the non-custodial parent’s adjusted gross income, set only by the number of children — 14% / 20% / 22% / 24% / 26% for one to five. This calculator applies Miss. Code Ann. § 43-19-101 and shows every step.
Calculate guideline support
Enter both parents’ annual gross income. Add annual child care and the children’s health-insurance cost if any. Parenting-time overnights are optional.
Method & source
Show the work Step-by-step calculation
Adjusted gross income
The percentage applies to adjusted gross income, which the statute defines as gross income from all sources — wages, self-employment, commissions, investment and retirement income, and most benefits — minus federal and state income tax, Social Security (FICA), mandatory retirement contributions, and any child support already being paid for other children under a prior order. Enter that adjusted monthly figure; the calculator applies the percentage to it.
Miss. Code Ann. § 43-19-101(3).
The $10,000–$100,000 range
The flat percentages are a rebuttable presumption when the paying parent’s adjusted gross income is between $10,000 and $100,000 a year. Below or above that range the court must make specific written findings about whether the percentage is reasonable, so a very low or very high earner’s order may differ from the flat number. The calculator flags when your figure falls outside the range.
Miss. Code Ann. § 43-19-101(2), (4).
Deviations and shared custody
Mississippi’s statute has no built-in parenting-time formula. A court applies the flat percentage and then may deviate — up or down — for reasons it puts in writing under § 43-19-103: shared or split physical custody, a child’s extraordinary medical or educational needs, independent income of the child, the paying parent’s other legal dependents, seasonal income, and similar factors. Because those adjustments are discretionary, this calculator shows the guideline percentage and leaves the deviation to the court.
Miss. Code Ann. § 43-19-103.
A number with the method attached is the honest form of the same figure.
What this calculator does not do
It computes the guideline percentage of adjusted gross income. It does not calculate the adjusted-gross-income deductions for you, decide a deviation, handle shared or split custody, add health-insurance or child-care costs (which a Mississippi court addresses separately), or set an amount for income outside the $10,000–$100,000 range. For a figure you can file, use the Mississippi worksheet or consult an attorney.
Common questions
How is child support calculated in Mississippi?
A flat percentage of the non-custodial parent’s adjusted gross income by the number of children — 14/20/22/24/26% for one to five — under Miss. Code Ann. § 43-19-101. Only the paying parent’s income is used, and the result is a rebuttable presumption.
What are the Mississippi child support percentages?
14% (1 child), 20% (2), 22% (3), 24% (4), and 26% (5+) of adjusted gross income.
What is adjusted gross income?
Gross income minus income tax, Social Security, mandatory retirement, and any pre-existing child-support order. The percentage applies to that figure.
Can a court change the amount?
Yes — the percentages are presumptive for income of $10,000–$100,000 a year; a judge can deviate with written findings (§ 43-19-103) and must make findings outside that range.
Is child support taxable in Mississippi?
No — federally it’s not taxable to the recipient or deductible by the payer, the same in Mississippi as everywhere.
Sources
- Miss. Code Ann. § 43-19-101 — child-support award guidelines: 14% / 20% / 22% / 24% / 26% of the non-custodial parent’s adjusted gross income for one to five or more children, a rebuttable presumption for adjusted gross income of $10,000–$100,000 a year: § 43-19-101.
- Miss. Code Ann. § 43-19-103 — the criteria and written findings needed to rebut the guideline amount: § 43-19-103.
- Mississippi Department of Human Services — Division of Child Support Enforcement: mdhs.ms.gov.
Percentages per Miss. Code Ann. § 43-19-101, verified — July 2026 · educational, not legal advice