Texas Unemployment Calculator
As of October 19, 2026, regular Texas unemployment pays $75 to $605 a week for 10 to 26 weeks. That range is for claims effective from October 5, 2025. Claims from October 4, 2026 get a new range, with a maximum of no more than $619, which TWC had not posted when we checked. Enter your wages for the four quarters of your base period to estimate your weekly benefit, your maximum total benefit and which rule capped it.
Maintained by Archie Chang · Formulas and sources checked October 19, 2026 · Methodology & sources
Weekly benefit range (October 19, 2026)
$75 to $605
Effective October 5, 2025
Maximum weeks
10 to 26
Regular state benefits only
State income tax on benefits
Not taxed by the state
Federal income tax applies in every state
Texas unemployment benefit calculator
Which months are my four quarters?
The standard base period is the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters before you file. The quarter you file in, and the one just before it, are left out. Enter the quarters in order, oldest first. Each quarter is three calendar months: January to March, April to June, July to September, October to December.
| If you file in | Your base period is |
|---|---|
| January to March 2026 | October 2024 to September 2025 |
| April to June 2026 | January to December 2025 |
| July to September 2026 | April 2025 to March 2026 |
| October to December 2026 | July 2025 to June 2026 |
Use gross wages (before taxes) from every covered job, in the quarter they were earned. If your wages are too low under this period, many states test an alternate base period made of the last four completed quarters.
Enter your wages above to see your Texas estimate.
The state also runs its own estimator: TWC Unemployment Benefits Estimator.
How much does unemployment pay in Texas?
The weekly benefit amount is one twenty-fifth of your wages in the highest base period quarter, rounded to the nearest dollar (50 cents rounds up).
The result is held between the state minimum and maximum. For claims effective from October 5, 2025, Texas Workforce Commission lists $75 to $605; TWC resets the range each October, and the October 2026 amounts were not yet on its table when we checked. The maximum is 47.6 percent of the state average weekly wage and the minimum is 7.6 percent, reset every October.
The maximum that applies on the day your claim starts stays in force for the whole benefit year.
Texas uses the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters. If those wages do not qualify, the Texas Workforce Commission can use the last four completed quarters.
Texas unemployment eligibility: the wage tests
These are the monetary tests only. Texas also decides whether you lost your job through no fault of your own and whether you are able and available to work.
- Wages in at least two base period quarters, and
- total base period wages of at least 37 times your weekly benefit amount.
Maximum weeks and maximum benefit amount
The maximum benefit amount is the lower of 26 times the weekly benefit amount and 27 percent of base period wages, with any cents raised to the next dollar. That gives claims of about 10 to 26 weeks.
Working part time while collecting
Texas adds the greater of $5 or 25 percent of your weekly benefit amount to that amount and subtracts the wages you earned that week. The payment never exceeds the weekly benefit amount. Example: a $100 benefit and $40 of wages pays $85.
Are Texas unemployment benefits taxable?
Unemployment benefits are taxable income on your federal return in every state. Texas has no state income tax, so unemployment benefits are taxed only on your federal return.
How to apply in Texas
Apply online with TWC Unemployment Benefit Services. TWC also publishes its own benefits estimator.
Apply for unemployment benefits at the Texas Workforce Commission
When this changes: Texas resets the minimum and maximum every October for claims effective on or after the first Sunday of the month. TWC resets the minimum and maximum every October (claims effective on or after the first Sunday of October).
Frequently asked questions
How much does unemployment pay in Texas?
Regular Texas unemployment pays between $75 and $605 a week as of October 19, 2026. That range is for claims effective from October 5, 2025. Claims from October 4, 2026 get a new range, with a maximum of no more than $619, which TWC had not posted when we checked. Your amount depends on the wages you were paid in your base period. The weekly benefit amount is one twenty-fifth of your wages in the highest base period quarter, rounded to the nearest dollar (50 cents rounds up).
How is the Texas weekly benefit amount calculated?
The weekly benefit amount is one twenty-fifth of your wages in the highest base period quarter, rounded to the nearest dollar (50 cents rounds up). The result is held between the state minimum and maximum. For claims effective from October 5, 2025, Texas Workforce Commission lists $75 to $605; TWC resets the range each October, and the October 2026 amounts were not yet on its table when we checked. The maximum is 47.6 percent of the state average weekly wage and the minimum is 7.6 percent, reset every October. The maximum that applies on the day your claim starts stays in force for the whole benefit year.
How long can I collect unemployment in Texas?
The maximum benefit amount is the lower of 26 times the weekly benefit amount and 27 percent of base period wages, with any cents raised to the next dollar. That gives claims of about 10 to 26 weeks.
Are unemployment benefits taxable in Texas?
Texas has no state income tax, so unemployment benefits are taxed only on your federal return.
Can I work part time and still get Texas unemployment?
Texas adds the greater of $5 or 25 percent of your weekly benefit amount to that amount and subtracts the wages you earned that week. The payment never exceeds the weekly benefit amount. Example: a $100 benefit and $40 of wages pays $85.
When does the Texas maximum change?
Texas Labor Code 207.002 has the Commission recompute the minimum and maximum by October 1 each year, and an increase takes effect in October. The annual rise in the maximum is limited to $14 and the minimum to $1. So the maximum for claims from October 2026 can be at most $619, $14 above the $605 that applies to claims from October 5, 2025.
Sources for Texas
- Texas Labor Code Chapter 207 (Texas Legislature)Primary statute link; its text only renders in a browser
- Texas Labor Code 207.002 (FindLaw copy)1/25 formula, rounding, 47.6 and 7.6 percent limits
- Texas Labor Code 207.003, 207.005, 207.006, 207.021 (FindLaw copies)Partial benefits, maximum benefit amount, rounding, qualifying wages
- TWC: Eligibility and benefit amounts$75 and $605 for claims effective October 5, 2025 (archived copy updated July 7, 2026)
- U.S. DOL, Significant Provisions of State UI Laws (July 2026)Cross-check of minimum, maximum, weeks and the partial-benefit disregard
Sources checked October 19, 2026.
Verification note: The TWC website could not be opened from our build environment, so the $75 and $605 figures come from an archived copy of the TWC benefit amounts table (last updated July 7, 2026), matching the July 2026 DOL table, and the statute text comes from FindLaw copies rather than the Legislature site. For claims from October 2026, check the TWC table for the new range.