How much can u get from NYS Department of Labor unemployment benefits in 2025?
hey everyone, just lost my job last week and trying to figure out what to expect from unemployment. does anyone know how much you can actually get from NYS Department of Labor? i was making about $55k a year at my last job in retail management. heard its based on your previous wages but not sure how they calculate it or what the max is these days. also wondering if theres a minimum amount too? any info would be helpful, thanks!
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Liam Murphy
The NYS Department of Labor calculates your weekly benefit rate using your highest quarter earnings from your base period. For 2025, the maximum weekly benefit is $504 and minimum is $116. Generally you'll get about 50% of your average weekly wage up to that max. With your salary, you'd probably qualify for close to the maximum amount depending on your work history.
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Sasha Ivanov
•oh wow thats actually better than i thought! so if i get the max thats like $2000 a month which would definitely help with rent and stuff
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Amara Okafor
You can also use the benefit calculator on the NYS Department of Labor website to get an estimate before you file. Just need your quarterly wage information from the past 18 months. Make sure to file your claim as soon as possible since there's a waiting week and benefits don't start until your claim is processed.
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CaptainAwesome
•I tried using that calculator but it kept giving me weird results. Had to call NYS Department of Labor to get my actual benefit amount figured out but good luck getting through on the phone these days.
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Yuki Tanaka
Just went through this myself after getting laid off from my warehouse job. I was making about $48k and ended up getting $463 per week. The whole process took about 3 weeks from filing to getting my first payment. One thing that helped was using claimyr.com when I needed to reach someone at NYS Department of Labor - they have this service that calls for you and gets you connected to an actual agent. There's a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Saved me hours of trying to get through myself.
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Esmeralda Gómez
•interesting, never heard of that service before. might have to check it out since ive been trying to call about my claim status for like 2 weeks now
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Liam Murphy
•That's actually pretty useful. The NYS Department of Labor phone lines are notoriously busy, especially right after layoff seasons. Good to know there are options when you really need to talk to someone.
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Klaus Schmidt
JUST A WARNING - they changed some of the rules recently and you HAVE to do job searches every week now. its not just getting the money anymore, you gotta prove youre looking for work or they'll cut you off. make sure you keep track of everything!!!
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Sasha Ivanov
•wait really? how many job searches do you have to do? and do they actually check or is it just self reporting?
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Klaus Schmidt
•Three job search activities per week minimum. And YES they do check sometimes! My friend got audited and had to provide proof of all his applications.
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Aisha Patel
good luck with that lol. took me 6 weeks to get my first payment and that was WITH calling every day. the system is totally broken
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