§PlainStatute

Tools · Wage Garnishment

Wage Garnishment Calculator by State

See the most a creditor could take from your paycheck, and the pay the law protects. Pick your state, enter your disposable earnings, and read the 2026 limit applied to your own numbers, with the state rule and the federal ceiling shown side by side.

All 50 states. Each limit is cited to that state's statute. 5 states bar garnishment for ordinary consumer debt outright, and the calculator shows them honestly instead of inventing a percentage.

Pick your state

No-garnishment states first, then the states that protect more than the federal rule, then the federal-limit states. Each calculator uses that state's own figures.

No garnishment for consumer debt (5)

New Hampshire
Max on consumer debtNone
 Read the full New Hampshire law
North Carolina
Max on consumer debtNone
 Read the full North Carolina law
Pennsylvania
Max on consumer debtNone
 Read the full Pennsylvania law
South Carolina
Max on consumer debtNone
 Read the full South Carolina law
Texas
Max on consumer debtNone
 Read the full Texas law

More protective than federal (28)

Alaska
Max on consumer debt25%
 Read the full Alaska law
Arizona
Max on consumer debt10%
 Read the full Arizona law
California
Max on consumer debt20%
 Read the full California law
Colorado
Max on consumer debt20%
 Read the full Colorado law
Connecticut
Max on consumer debt25%
 Read the full Connecticut law
Delaware
Max on consumer debt15%
 Read the full Delaware law
Florida
Max on consumer debt25%
 Read the full Florida law
Hawaii
Max on consumer debtUp to 25%
 Read the full Hawaii law
Illinois
Max on consumer debt15%
 Read the full Illinois law
Iowa
Max on consumer debt25% weekly, capped per year
 Read the full Iowa law
Maine
Max on consumer debt25%, with a high wage floor
 Read the full Maine law
Maryland
Max on consumer debt25%with a higher protected floor
 Read the full Maryland law
Massachusetts
Max on consumer debt$750/week protected
 Read the full Massachusetts law
Minnesota
Max on consumer debtUp to 25%10% or 15% for lower earners
 Read the full Minnesota law
Missouri
Max on consumer debt25%10% head of family
 Read the full Missouri law
Nebraska
Max on consumer debt25%15% head of family
 Read the full Nebraska law
Nevada
Max on consumer debtUp to 25%18% if you earn $770 or less a week
 Read the full Nevada law
New Jersey
Max on consumer debt10%
 Read the full New Jersey law
New Mexico
Max on consumer debt25%
 Read the full New Mexico law
New York
Max on consumer debt10%
 Read the full New York law
North Dakota
Max on consumer debt25%
 Read the full North Dakota law
Oregon
Max on consumer debt25%
 Read the full Oregon law
South Dakota
Max on consumer debt20%
 Read the full South Dakota law
Vermont
Max on consumer debt15%
 Read the full Vermont law
Virginia
Max on consumer debt25%
 Read the full Virginia law
Washington
Max on consumer debt20%
 Read the full Washington law
West Virginia
Max on consumer debt20%
 Read the full West Virginia law
Wisconsin
Max on consumer debt20%
 Read the full Wisconsin law

Federal 25% limit (17)

Alabama
Max on consumer debt25%
 Read the full Alabama law
Arkansas
Max on consumer debt25%
 Read the full Arkansas law
Georgia
Max on consumer debt25%
 Read the full Georgia law
Idaho
Max on consumer debt25%
 Read the full Idaho law
Indiana
Max on consumer debt25%as little as 10% for good cause
 Read the full Indiana law
Kansas
Max on consumer debt25%
 Read the full Kansas law
Kentucky
Max on consumer debt25%
 Read the full Kentucky law
Louisiana
Max on consumer debt25%
 Read the full Louisiana law
Michigan
Max on consumer debt25%
 Read the full Michigan law
Mississippi
Max on consumer debt25%
 Read the full Mississippi law
Montana
Max on consumer debt25%
 Read the full Montana law
Ohio
Max on consumer debt25%
 Read the full Ohio law
Oklahoma
Max on consumer debt25%
 Read the full Oklahoma law
Rhode Island
Max on consumer debt25%
 Read the full Rhode Island law
Tennessee
Max on consumer debt25%
 Read the full Tennessee law
Utah
Max on consumer debt25%
 Read the full Utah law
Wyoming
Max on consumer debt25%
 Read the full Wyoming law

How the wage garnishment calculator works

For an ordinary consumer debt (credit cards, medical bills, personal loans), federal law caps garnishment nationwide at the lesser of 25% of your disposable earnings or the amount by which your weekly disposable pay tops $217.50 (30 times the $7.25 federal minimum wage). A state may only protect more, never less. Each state calculator runs both numbers, the state formula and the federal ceiling, and shows you the smaller one, which is the one that governs.

The calculator states the limits and the math; it does not decide whether a garnishment you are facing is correct. Child support, spousal support, taxes, and defaulted federal student loans follow their own, higher limits, and many state exemptions must be claimed by a short deadline. This tool is informational only and not legal advice. Open your state for the full rule and the official citation, or see the wage garnishment reference by state.