How much does unemployment insurance pay in NY - confused about weekly benefit amounts
I'm trying to figure out how much unemployment insurance pay will be if I file a claim. I've been working at my warehouse job for 2 years making about $18.50 an hour, usually 35-40 hours per week. My friend said it's like half your pay but I can't find clear info on the NYS Department of Labor website about exactly how they calculate it. Does anyone know the actual formula or can tell me roughly what to expect? I need to know if it'll be enough to cover my basic expenses while I look for another job.
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Payton Black
The NYS Department of Labor calculates your weekly benefit amount using your highest quarter of earnings from your base period (usually the first 4 of the last 5 completed quarters before you file). They take 1/26th of that highest quarter amount. The maximum weekly benefit for 2025 is $504, and minimum is $104. With your wage history, you're probably looking at somewhere between $300-400 per week depending on your exact earnings pattern.
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Angel Campbell
•Thanks! So if I made like $12,000 in my best quarter, that would be around $460 per week? That's actually better than I thought it would be.
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Harold Oh
yeah its definitely not half your pay like people say. i was making about the same as you and got $380 a week when i was laid off last spring. but you gotta remember you still have to pay taxes on it too unless you have them take it out
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Amun-Ra Azra
•Good point about taxes. You can have 10% federal tax withheld automatically when you file your weekly claims on the NYS Department of Labor website, or you'll owe it when you file your return next year.
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Summer Green
The calculation can be tricky because they look at your base period earnings, not just your recent pay. If you've had any gaps in employment or wage increases recently, your benefit might be lower than expected. You can actually see an estimate of your potential benefits by logging into your my.ny.gov account and checking your unemployment insurance statement before you even file a claim.
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Angel Campbell
•I didn't know you could check that ahead of time! I'll definitely log in and see what it shows for my wage history.
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Gael Robinson
Just went through this whole process myself. Getting through to someone at NYS Department of Labor to ask questions about benefit amounts was impossible with their phone system. I kept getting hung up on after waiting forever. Finally used claimyr.com to get through to an actual agent who explained everything clearly. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Made the whole process so much easier than trying to navigate the system alone.
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Edward McBride
•How much did that cost though? Seems like you should be able to get this info without paying extra.
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Gael Robinson
•It was worth it for me since I had some complicated questions about my benefit calculation. Much faster than spending hours trying to get through on their regular lines.
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Darcy Moore
also dont forget you can only collect for 26 weeks max in ny unless theres some special program going on. and you have to do the work search stuff every week or they'll cut you off
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