Weekly benefit amount and weeks in Massachusetts

The weekly benefit

Weekly benefit

up to $1,154

Maximum: new claims with a benefit year starting on or after October 4, 2026 (the maximum is reset each year on the first Sunday of October)

How it is figured

Your weekly benefit is about half of your average weekly wage. DUA adds your wages from the two highest-paid quarters of your base period and divides by 26 to get your average weekly wage (if you had wages in only one or two quarters, it uses your highest quarter divided by 13). Your weekly benefit is half of that, rounded to a whole dollar, up to the maximum.

Dependents

$25 a week for each dependent child you mainly support: under 18, under 24 and a full-time student, or 18 or older and unable to work because of a disability. Only one parent can get it for the same child. The dependency allowance can be paid on top of the maximum.

Official

Official table or notice

Law: M.G.L. c. 151A, secs. 1(w), 29(a), 29(c)

The wage test

You must have earned at least $6,300 in your base period, and your base-period wages must be at least 30 times your weekly benefit amount.

Your base period is the last four completed calendar quarters before your claim starts. If you do not qualify that way, DUA uses an alternate base period: the last three completed quarters plus the weeks of the current quarter up to the date you apply. You can also ask for the alternate base period if you can show it would raise your total benefits by at least 10%.

The state's wage tests

• At least $6,300 in the base period and base-period wages at least 30 times your weekly benefit amount — The $6,300 minimum is raised each January when the state minimum wage goes up.

Law: M.G.L. c. 151A, secs. 1(a), 24(a)

Official source: Source page

Estimate your weekly benefit

Enter the gross wages (before taxes) you were paid in each quarter of your base period. We apply the state's own formula to your numbers.

The state's formula: the total of your two highest quarters × 50% ÷ 26, rounded to the nearest dollar (a .50 rounds down); at most $1,154

How long it lasts

Currently 30 weeks (it changes with the unemployment rate).

In your benefit year you can get up to 30 times your weekly benefit amount or 36% of your total base-period wages, whichever is less. Divide that total by your weekly benefit amount to see how many weeks you can collect. The most is 30 weeks.

The usual limit is 30 times your weekly benefit amount. If the 12-month average unemployment rate is 5.1% or lower in every one of the state's 10 metropolitan areas, new claims get up to 26 times the weekly benefit amount instead. DUA says the maximum duration is 30 weeks (checked October 2026).

Extra weeks and training

Through the Training Opportunities Program (TOP) you can collect benefits while in approved full-time training, and get up to 26 extra weeks if your regular benefits run out before training ends. You must apply within the first 20 weeks you are paid benefits.

Law: M.G.L. c. 151A, sec. 30(a), (c)

Official source: Source page

Waiting week

The first week you file a weekly claim is an unpaid waiting week. You must still request benefits and meet all rules for that week. Your first payment is for the second week you claim.

Law: M.G.L. c. 151A, sec. 23(a)

Official source: Source page

Working part time

You can work part time and still collect. Report your gross pay for the week you did the work. Earnings up to one-third of your weekly benefit amount are not counted; DUA takes anything above that out of your payment. For example, with a $270 weekly benefit you can earn $90; if you earn $120, you get $240. You cannot be paid for a week you work more than 35 hours.

Law: M.G.L. c. 151A, sec. 29(b)

Official source: Source page

What applies in every state

• You must have earned enough wages, or worked enough, during a period called the base period. In most states it is the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters before you file.
• It generally takes two to three weeks after you file to get your first payment. Some states require a one-week waiting period, so the second week you claim is the first week paid.
• Unemployment benefits count as income for federal income tax. You must report them on your federal tax return.

  Law: 26 U.S.C. 85(a)

Free help

Call 1-877-626-6800. Legal aid and other free help in Massachusetts → Official sources →