What pays the most unemployment benefits in NYS - maximum weekly amounts?
I'm trying to figure out what the highest unemployment payment you can get in New York State right now. My friend said she's getting like $504 a week but I thought the max was lower than that. I made about $75k last year before I got laid off from my marketing job and I'm wondering if I'll qualify for the maximum amount. Does anyone know what pays the most unemployment benefits through NYS Department of Labor? Also wondering if there are any other programs that might pay more than regular UI.
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Samuel Robinson
The maximum weekly benefit rate in New York for 2025 is $504 per week for regular unemployment insurance. This is based on your highest quarter of earnings in your base period. To qualify for the max, you typically need to have earned around $52,000+ in your highest earning quarter. Since you made $75k last year, you might qualify for close to the maximum depending on how your earnings were distributed throughout the year.
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Victoria Brown
•Thanks! That's helpful. Do you know if there are any other benefits that stack on top of the $504 or is that pretty much it for regular unemployment?
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Camila Castillo
Your friend is probably getting the max then. I was making about $65k and I get $487 per week. The NYS Department of Labor calculates it based on your earnings history in their system. Just make sure you're filing your weekly claims on time because missing even one can mess up your payments.
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Brianna Muhammad
•Wait, can you lose benefits for missing one weekly claim? I thought you could just file late and explain why.
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Camila Castillo
•You can sometimes file late but it's risky and can delay everything. Better to just file on time every week.
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JaylinCharles
i think there might be other programs that pay more but regular UI is capped at $504. maybe if you have dependents or something? not sure about the details though
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Eloise Kendrick
I've been trying to reach someone at NYS Department of Labor for weeks about my benefit calculation because I think it's wrong. The phone system is absolutely impossible - either busy signals or I get disconnected after waiting forever. Has anyone found a way to actually talk to a real person there?
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Lucas Schmidt
•I had the same problem until someone told me about this service called Claimyr that helps you get through to NYS Department of Labor agents. You can check it out at claimyr.com - they have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Basically they handle the calling and waiting for you, then connect you when an agent picks up. I used it last month to resolve a similar issue with my benefit amount.
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Freya Collins
The $504 maximum is for regular unemployment but there are some special circumstances that might affect your total benefits. Like if you're on standby status or have certain types of part-time work, the calculations can be different. But yeah, $504 is the standard max for most people on regular UI.
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Sophie Footman
Just wanted to confirm that $504 is indeed the current maximum weekly benefit rate for regular unemployment in NY. I'm getting $498 per week myself after being laid off from a tech job where I was making around $70k. The calculation is based on your highest quarter of earnings during your base period (the first 4 of the last 5 completed quarters before you filed). One thing to note is that you also get a dependent allowance if you have dependents - it's about $25 per dependent per week, which can add to your total benefit amount. So technically you could get more than $504 total if you qualify for dependent benefits.
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Cole Roush
•Thanks for clarifying about the dependent allowance! I didn't know about that extra $25 per dependent. That's really helpful information. Do you know if there are any other additional benefits or programs that might supplement the regular UI payments? I'm a single parent with two kids so every little bit helps.
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