What percentage of your income do you get on unemployment - NYS Department of Labor calculation confused

NYS Department of Labor doesn't use a simple percentage of your income. They calculate your weekly benefit rate based on your highest quarter of earnings in your base period (usually the first 4 of the last 5 completed quarters). The maximum weekly benefit amount in 2025 is $504, and you get roughly half of your average weekly wage during that highest quarter, but it's capped at the maximum. So if you were making $52k consistently, you'd probably get somewhere around $450-500 per week depending on your exact wage history.

You definitely should file! Even if you're job hunting, having that income coming in helps so much. When you apply on the NYS Department of Labor website, they'll pull up your wage history and show you exactly what quarters they're using for the calculation. The whole 'percentage of income' thing is misleading because it depends on how consistent your wages were and when you worked.

Be prepared for the application process to be confusing though. NYS Department of Labor asks for so much information and the wage calculation part wasn't clear to me at all. I spent forever trying to figure out if I was reporting my gross or net income correctly. Also make sure you have all your employment dates exact because they verify everything.

I was in a similar situation when my company downsized. The hardest part was actually getting through to someone at NYS Department of Labor to ask questions about my claim. If you need to talk to an actual person about your benefit calculation or have issues with your application, I had good luck using Claimyr (claimyr.com). They help you get through to NYS Department of Labor agents when the phone lines are always busy. There's a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Made the whole process much less stressful than trying to call for hours.

The percentage thing is basically a myth because it depends on so many factors. Your benefit rate, how long you worked, what you earned in different quarters, whether you had any gaps in employment. NYS Department of Labor makes it seem simple but there's a lot of variables. I'd say just file and see what they offer you, you can always decline benefits if it's not worth it but you need to apply to find out your actual amount.

Just went through this exact process last month after losing my retail management job. The NYS Department of Labor calculation isn't straightforward at all - it's definitely not just "50% of your salary" like people say. What helped me was understanding that they look at your base period wages, which is basically your earnings from about 15 months ago up to 3 months ago (not your most recent quarter). So if you had any periods where you made more or less, that affects everything. For a $52k salary, you're probably looking at around $400-480 per week if your wages were consistent, but the only way to know for sure is to file. The application walks you through it and shows you exactly which quarters they're using. Definitely worth filing even if you're job searching actively - you can collect benefits while looking for work.

I went through this same confusion when I lost my job earlier this year! The percentage thing really threw me off too because everyone gives different numbers. What I learned is that NYS Department of Labor uses a formula based on your highest earning quarter in your "base period" - they take about 50% of your average weekly wage from that quarter, but it's capped at the state maximum. For someone making $52k consistently, you're looking at roughly $1000 per week in gross income, so half of that would put you around $500 weekly in benefits (which is close to the current cap anyway). The key thing is you won't know your exact amount until you file because they need to look at your actual wage records. I'd definitely recommend filing even while job hunting - the benefits can last up to 26 weeks in NY and having that financial cushion makes job searching way less stressful. You can always stop collecting if you find work quickly, but at least you'll have the safety net.

Just want to add another perspective as someone who recently went through this process in NY. The calculation can be tricky because NYS Department of Labor also considers if you had multiple jobs during your base period. If you worked any side gigs or part-time jobs alongside your restaurant management position, those wages get included too, which could actually bump up your benefit amount. Also, one thing that caught me off guard - if you had any unpaid time off or were temporarily laid off during your base period, that can affect the calculation since they're looking at actual wages reported, not just your annual salary. The system is pretty automated once you get all your employment info entered correctly, so don't stress too much about doing the math yourself. At your income level, you're likely looking at close to the maximum benefit amount anyway. I'd say definitely file sooner rather than later since there's a waiting period, and you want to get the process started even while you're job hunting.