Connecticut Spousal Support Calculator
Estimate alimony under Conn. Gen. Stat. § 46b-82: need, ability to pay, the statutory factors, cohabitation and modification

Connecticut has no alimony formula and no duration table. At the time of the decree the Superior Court may order either party to pay alimony to the other. In deciding whether to award alimony, and its duration and amount, the court must consider the evidence presented by each party and the length of the marriage, the causes for the annulment, dissolution or legal separation, each party's age, health, station, occupation, amount and sources of income, earning capacity, vocational skills, education, employability, estate and needs, and the property award, if any, under § 46b-81 (Conn. Gen. Stat. § 46b-82(a)).

Yes, to a degree. Unlike many states, § 46b-82(a) lists the causes for the dissolution of the marriage among the factors the court must consider. The statute does not say how much weight fault carries, and Connecticut courts have said they must consider all of the statutory criteria but are free to give each whatever weight they decide is appropriate. Conduct that wasted or concealed money can also affect the financial picture directly.

The statute does not define types. In practice, courts order periodic alimony for a stated period (sometimes called time-limited or durational alimony), rehabilitative alimony to help a spouse get education or training, or periodic alimony with no end date other than death or the recipient's remarriage. When the court, after a trial or hearing on the merits, enters an order that by its terms ends only on death or remarriage, it must articulate with specificity the basis for that order (§ 46b-82(b)). Pendente lite (temporary) alimony can be ordered while the case is pending and is modifiable like other orders (§ 46b-86(a)).

Connecticut courts look at need and ability to pay within the statutory factors. The calculator measures the recipient's monthly need (counted expenses minus income) and the payor's ability to pay (income minus expenses and child support). The illustrative amount is the smaller of the two. The Connecticut Appellate Court has held that a party's income at the time of the decree is relevant even if it rose after separation (R.D. v. G.D., Conn. App. 2026), so enter current income.

Not automatically. Under § 46b-86(b), the court may, in its discretion and after notice and hearing, modify the judgment and suspend, reduce or terminate periodic alimony if the recipient is living with another person under circumstances the court finds should result in a change because the living arrangements cause such a change of circumstances as to alter the recipient's financial needs. The payor must show the effect on financial need, not just that the recipient lives with someone. Unless the decree says otherwise, periodic alimony ends on the death of either party or the recipient's remarriage.

Unless and to the extent that the decree precludes modification, a final periodic alimony order, a pendente lite order, or an order to maintain life insurance may be continued, set aside, altered or modified at any time on a showing of a substantial change in the circumstances of either party (§ 46b-86(a)). If the court finds a substantial change, it determines what modification, if any, is appropriate using the § 46b-82 criteria. The party seeking modification has the burden. An increase in income alone, after the decree, is not enough by itself (Dan v. Dan, 315 Conn. 1 (2014)). Modifications of periodic alimony cannot reach back before the date the motion was served on the other party.

Connecticut appellate courts have held that, under §§ 46b-81(c) and 46b-82(a), the length of the marriage does not include prior marriages or cohabitation before the marriage, so enter only the time you were legally married.

For divorce or separation agreements executed after December 31, 2018, alimony is not deductible by the payor and not taxable income to the recipient for federal income tax purposes, under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. Instruments executed on or before December 31, 2018 keep the old federal treatment unless a later modification expressly adopts the new rules. Ask a tax professional how your Connecticut return treats alimony.

Because Connecticut has no formula, the calculator illustrates the two practical building blocks of an award, the recipient's need and the payor's ability to pay, and lists your answers against the factors in § 46b-82(a). It also indicates whether rehabilitative, time-limited or indefinite alimony looks more likely. Those indicators are screening thresholds chosen for this tool, not Connecticut law.

It does not predict an award. A judge may weigh the factors, the property division and credibility very differently.