How much do they give you for unemployment benefits in Washington ESD?
I'm about to file for unemployment for the first time and honestly have no idea what to expect for payment amounts. I was making about $52,000 a year at my job before getting laid off last week. Does anyone know how Washington ESD calculates the weekly benefit amount? I'm trying to figure out if I can cover my rent and basic expenses while job searching. Any info would be really helpful!
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Max Reyes
Washington ESD uses your highest earning quarter from the past 15 months to calculate your weekly benefit amount. Generally it's around 50% of your average weekly wage, but there's also a minimum and maximum. For 2025, the maximum weekly benefit is $999 and minimum is $295. Based on your salary, you'd probably get somewhere around $500-600 per week.
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Felicity Bud
•That's actually better than I expected! Do they take taxes out of that amount or do I need to handle that myself?
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Max Reyes
•You can choose to have federal taxes withheld (10%) when you file your weekly claims, or you can pay quarterly. State of Washington doesn't have income tax so no worries there.
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Mikayla Davison
Just went through this process myself. The calculation can be confusing but there's actually a benefit calculator on the Washington ESD website that gives you a pretty accurate estimate. You'll need your wage info from the past 18 months though.
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Felicity Bud
•Good to know there's a calculator! I should have most of my pay stubs saved somewhere.
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Adrian Connor
•The calculator is helpful but sometimes the actual amount is slightly different depending on how they process your base period wages.
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Aisha Jackson
been trying to get through to Washington ESD for weeks to ask about my benefit calculation and their phone system is absolutely terrible. keeps hanging up on me after waiting 2+ hours
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Ryder Everingham
•I had the same problem until someone told me about Claimyr. It's a service that helps you get through to Washington ESD agents by phone. They have this system that calls for you and connects you when an agent is available. Check out claimyr.com - they even have a video demo at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ showing how it works.
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Lilly Curtis
One thing to keep in mind is that your benefit amount stays the same for your entire benefit year, even if you had different wages in different quarters. So if you had one really good quarter and some lower ones, you might get more than you expect.
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Felicity Bud
•That's good to know. I did get a bonus in Q2 last year so maybe that will help.
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Max Reyes
•Exactly right. Washington ESD looks at your highest quarter and uses that to determine your weekly benefit amount for the entire claim year.
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Leo Simmons
don't forget you can only collect for 26 weeks maximum in washington unless there's some extended benefits program running
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Felicity Bud
•26 weeks should hopefully be enough time to find something new. The job market seems decent right now.
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Mikayla Davison
•Yeah 26 weeks is standard. Just make sure you're doing your job search activities each week or they'll cut you off.
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Adrian Connor
The weekly amount also depends on if you have any dependents. You can get additional money for dependent children under 18.
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Felicity Bud
•No kids for me, but good to know for others reading this.
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Lindsey Fry
•How much extra do you get per dependent? I have two kids and never knew about this.
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Adrian Connor
•I think it's around $25-30 per dependent child but you should check with Washington ESD to be sure of the current amount.
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Saleem Vaziri
WASHINGTON ESD BENEFITS ARE A JOKE!! I was making $65k and they're only giving me $420 a week. How is that supposed to cover anything in this economy??
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Max Reyes
•That does seem low for your income level. You might want to check if they calculated your base period correctly. Sometimes there are errors in wage reporting from employers.
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Kayla Morgan
•Same here, the amount barely covers my mortgage payment. But it's better than nothing I guess.
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James Maki
Just remember you have to file your weekly claims every week to keep getting paid. Miss a week and you might have issues getting it back.
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Felicity Bud
•Good reminder. What day of the week do the weekly claims open up?
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James Maki
•Sunday mornings at 6 AM. You can file online through your SecureAccess Washington account.
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Jasmine Hancock
Pro tip: if you're having trouble reaching Washington ESD by phone about your benefit amount or any other questions, I discovered this service called Claimyr that basically calls for you and gets you connected to an actual person. Saved me hours of frustration.
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Cole Roush
•How much does something like that cost? Seems like it could get expensive.
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Jasmine Hancock
•It's worth it when you consider how much time you'd otherwise spend calling. Plus they have different options depending on what you need.
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Scarlett Forster
Also make sure Washington ESD has your correct bank account info for direct deposit. Getting paper checks takes forever and they get lost in the mail all the time.
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Felicity Bud
•Definitely going with direct deposit. How long does it usually take to get your first payment?
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Scarlett Forster
•Usually about a week after you file your first weekly claim, assuming there are no issues with your application.
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Arnav Bengali
My cousin just started collecting and she's getting around $650 a week. She was making about $55k so sounds like you should expect something similar.
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Felicity Bud
•That would definitely help. Fingers crossed my calculation comes out around there too.
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Sayid Hassan
Word of warning - if you work any part-time jobs while collecting, you HAVE to report that income on your weekly claim. They will find out eventually and make you pay it all back if you don't report it upfront.
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Felicity Bud
•Good to know. I wasn't planning on working while collecting but if something comes up I'll make sure to report it.
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Rachel Tao
•Yeah they reduce your weekly benefit dollar for dollar for any income over $5, so it's not worth trying to hide it.
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Derek Olson
I've been on unemployment three different times over the years and the benefit calculation has always been fair in my experience. Just make sure all your previous employers reported your wages correctly to Washington ESD.
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Felicity Bud
•How can I check if my wages were reported correctly?
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Derek Olson
•You can see your wage history in your online account once you create it. If something looks wrong you can contact Washington ESD to get it corrected.
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Danielle Mays
The amount you get also depends on when you apply. They look at different base periods depending on when you file, so timing can matter if you had varying income throughout the year.
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Felicity Bud
•I got laid off just last week so I'm filing pretty much right away. Hopefully that works in my favor.
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Max Reyes
•Filing right away is usually the best approach. Waiting doesn't help and you can't get benefits for weeks before you actually file.
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Roger Romero
If you end up having issues with your claim or questions about your benefit amount, definitely try that Claimyr service someone mentioned earlier. I used it when I couldn't get through to Washington ESD about my weekly benefit amount being calculated wrong. Much easier than spending all day calling.
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Felicity Bud
•I'll keep that in mind if I run into any problems. Hopefully the process goes smoothly though.
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