Workers comp research guide
Workers comp payout calculator
Use this workers comp payout calculator to total known wage benefits, disability cash and medical buyout amounts. Check prior payments and the unpaid balance.
Cash benefit ledger · USD
Add benefit components and check the balance
Start with documented amounts for one covered period. Defaults are a worked example. This tool does not supply a legal benefit rate or convert a disability rating into an award.
Gross components = weekly benefit × covered weeks + permanent disability cash + medical buyout cash. Unpaid balance = gross components − prior payments − other credits. Amounts are rounded to cents.
Unpaid component balance
$40,000.00
Before fees, costs and medical reserves; scheduled payments may not be payable today.
Wage benefits for the period
$10,000.00
Gross cash components
$50,000.00
Already paid toward these components
$8,000.00
Other documented credits
$2,000.00
No state cap, injury valuation, tax, discounting or entitlement decision is applied. The balance does not determine whether a settlement can be approved.
How much is still unpaid? Add the cash benefit components documented in your award or agreement, then reconcile payments already made and separate credits. The gross total covers the benefit period you enter, including payments already received. It is not a new settlement offer or an estimate of what your injury is worth. Use the weekly-pay tool to research a benefit rate, the main calculator for an educational injury estimate, or the lump sum tool to break down an existing offer after fees.
U.S. cash-benefit reconciliation only. State rules and the injury date determine eligibility, rates and awards. Medical treatment paid directly to providers is excluded. An unpaid balance may be scheduled over time and is not necessarily a check payable today.
Example: $50,000 in components, $40,000 still unpaid
Hypothetical figures matching the default calculator. The 20 weeks include the weeks already paid; entering only remaining weeks and then subtracting prior wage payments would count them twice.
Payout and payment-ledger questions
- How do I calculate my total workers comp payout?
- For this ledger, multiply the confirmed weekly benefit by the covered weeks, add the documented permanent disability cash and any cash medical buyout, then subtract payments and separate credits applied to those same components. This reconciles known amounts; it does not determine eligibility, value an injury or predict a negotiated settlement.
- Is workers comp payout the same as weekly pay or a settlement?
- The terms describe different things. Weekly pay replaces qualifying lost wages. A permanent disability award may be paid over time. A settlement may resolve some or all disputed rights. A total of these cash components is a planning ledger, not proof that they can all be settled or paid immediately.
- Should I subtract benefits I already received?
- Yes, if they are payments toward the full benefit amounts entered above. If you entered only remaining weeks, do not subtract payments for earlier weeks again. Count permanent disability advances once and do not treat the same advance as both a prior payment and another credit.
- Are medical bills part of my cash payout?
- Care paid directly by the insurer to a provider is not cash to you and does not belong in this calculator. Enter only a cash medical buyout included in your written agreement. It may need to fund future care, including a Medicare set-aside; the balance shown is not unrestricted spending money.
- Does the unpaid balance include attorney fees or other deductions?
- No. It is a component balance before fees, costs, liens and restricted medical reserves. Use the lump sum offer calculator with an actual gross offer and the fee basis in your agreement to examine net cash. An approved credit can affect the balance, but the tool does not decide whether a disputed deduction is lawful.
- Why do payments and credits exceed the total?
- The ledger may mix different periods, count an advance twice, or include a payment unrelated to these components. The tool shows $0 remaining and the excess to reconcile. It does not establish a debt, overpayment recovery or a repayment duty.
Reconcile the claim before relying on the balance
- Confirm the covered period, weekly benefit rate and written permanent award. Enter the full amounts for that same period, including amounts already paid; omit overlapping benefits for the same wage loss.
- Compare prior payments with the carrier ledger. Enter only payments credited toward these components, then add separate documented credits once. Exclude provider bills, fees and any credit already included in prior payments.
- Check whether medical care stays open, whether a cash medical allocation is restricted, and when each benefit is payable. Use the actual closing statement to calculate take-home cash after fees and reserves.