Generally, the court looks at both parties’ gross income and plugs the amounts into the South Carolina Child Support Calculator (click here for calculator) along with the cost of health insurance for the child(ren), daycare costs, alimony (if any), the number of nights the child(ren) is/are with each parent, and any extraordinary medical expenses for the child(ren). Judges usually use the amount that the calculator determines; however, a judge can take other factors into consideration when determining support as well. These other factors are listed in the South Carolina Child Support Guidelines. I’ll discuss these factors in upcoming posts.