Which pays the highest unemployment benefits in NYS Department of Labor system?
I'm trying to figure out which unemployment program through NYS Department of Labor actually pays the most. I've been working part-time for the last 18 months after getting laid off from my full-time marketing job in 2023. My base period wages were pretty decent - around $52,000 total across four quarters. I'm wondering if I should file for regular UI or if there's some other benefit type that might pay more? I keep seeing different weekly benefit amounts mentioned online but can't find a clear breakdown of what actually pays the highest. Has anyone compared the different programs?
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Oliver Becker
Regular unemployment insurance (UI) through NYS Department of Labor is going to be your main option. Your weekly benefit amount is calculated based on your highest quarter earnings during your base period. With $52k total, you're probably looking at somewhere around $400-450 per week depending on how your wages were distributed across quarters. There aren't really different 'programs' that pay more - it's all the same UI system with benefits calculated the same way.
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Amina Bah
•That's helpful, thanks. So there's no way to get a higher amount than what the standard calculation gives you?
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CosmicCowboy
i think theres partial unemployment too if your still working part time? that might give you something extra on top of wages but not sure if it pays more overall
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Oliver Becker
•Partial UI can supplement part-time wages but it doesn't pay more than regular UI. If you're working part-time, you report those earnings on your weekly claim and NYS Department of Labor reduces your benefit accordingly. It's designed to help bridge the gap, not maximize payments.
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Natasha Orlova
The maximum weekly benefit amount in NY is $504 as of 2025. To get that, you'd need to have earned at least $11,088 in your highest quarter during the base period. Based on your $52k total, you'd need to check how your earnings were distributed. If most of that was concentrated in one or two quarters, you might be closer to the maximum.
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Amina Bah
•I think my highest quarter was around $15,000 when I was still full-time, so I might actually hit close to that maximum!
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Javier Cruz
UGH the whole NYS Department of Labor system is so confusing! I spent HOURS trying to figure out my benefit amount and the online calculator they have barely works. Plus good luck actually getting through to someone on the phone to ask questions. The whole system seems designed to make it as hard as possible to understand what you're entitled to.
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Emma Thompson
•I had the same problem with getting through to NYS Department of Labor. If you really need to talk to someone about your specific calculation, I used Claimyr recently and it was a game changer. They got me connected to an actual agent who walked through my benefit calculation step by step. Check out claimyr.com - they have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows exactly how it works.
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Malik Jackson
just file and see what you get! worrying about maximizing it wont change the calculation anyway
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Isabella Costa
This reminds me of when my sister was trying to figure out her benefits after she got laid off from her teaching job. She was so stressed about whether she was getting the right amount, spent weeks researching different scenarios. Turns out the NYS Department of Labor calculation is what it is - there's really no gaming the system to get more than you're entitled to based on your work history.
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