Washington ESD unemployment weekly benefit amount - how much is unemployment per week?

Washington ESD calculates your weekly benefit amount based on your highest earning quarter in your base period. For 2025, the maximum weekly benefit is $999 and minimum is $295. They take your highest quarter earnings, divide by 26, then you get about 3.85% of that amount per week. So if you earned $15,000 in your highest quarter, your weekly benefit would be around $577.

The benefit calculator on the Washington ESD website is pretty accurate if you can find your quarterly earnings. You'll need to look at the wages from about 15-18 months ago since that's your base period. At $55k annually you're probably looking at somewhere between $450-650 per week depending on how your earnings were distributed.

Just went through this process myself. One thing to keep in mind is that your benefit amount also depends on having enough wages in your base period to qualify. You need at least $7,000 total and earnings in at least two quarters. If you're close to those minimums, calling Washington ESD to verify your eligibility might be worth it, though getting through can be tough with their phone system.

be prepared for it to take longer than expected to get your first payment. mine took almost 6 weeks because of some verification issues even though i qualified. the amount was what i expected based on the calculator though

The Washington ESD benefit year maximum is also important to know - you can collect up to 26 weeks of benefits in a benefit year, and the total can't exceed 30% of your base period wages. So even if your weekly amount is high, there's still a cap on total benefits you can receive.

Your timing might affect things too. If you're filing now in 2025, make sure your base period includes some of your higher earning quarters. Sometimes it's worth waiting a few weeks to file if it means a better base period calculation.

I'm in a similar situation and have been trying to get through to Washington ESD for days to ask about my benefit amount. Their phone system is absolutely terrible - I either get busy signals or get hung up on after waiting for hours. Has anyone found a better way to reach them?

Don't forget about taxes! Your unemployment benefits are taxable income, so you might want to have taxes withheld or set aside money for tax season. Washington ESD can withhold 10% federal tax if you request it when filing your weekly claims.

also make sure you understand the difference between your weekly benefit amount and what you actually receive. if you do any part time work while on unemployment, they'll reduce your weekly payment. i think they subtract dollar for dollar after the first $5 or something like that

The whole system is so confusing. I've been on unemployment for 3 months and I'm still not 100% sure I understand how they calculate everything. The Washington ESD website has all this information but it's scattered across different pages and hard to follow.

Update: I found my quarterly wage information and used the calculator. Looks like I'll be getting about $523 per week, which is actually better than I expected! Thanks everyone for the help understanding the system.

For anyone else reading this thread, the Washington ESD payment schedule is also worth knowing. They typically process payments on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and if you're on direct deposit it usually hits your account within 1-2 business days after processing.

I wish I had known about all these details when I first filed. Ended up making some mistakes with my weekly claims that delayed my payments. The job search requirements especially caught me off guard - I thought just applying online was enough but they want more detailed records.

Just wanted to follow up - I tried Claimyr and it actually worked! Got through to a Washington ESD agent within 30 minutes and got all my benefit questions answered. Definitely worth it if you're stuck like I was.

One more thing to consider - if you have a pension or retirement income, that might affect your unemployment benefits. Washington ESD has specific rules about how other income impacts your weekly benefit amount.