How Workers' Comp is Calculated
If you've ever tried to figure out what your workers' comp claim is worth, you've probably run into one of two problems. Either you found a tool that gave you a number with no explanation, or you found a wall of legal text that made things more confusing than when you started.
This page tries to do neither. Here's how workers' compensation benefits are actually calculated — in plain terms, with real numbers.
The Starting Point: Your Average Weekly Wage
Every workers' comp calculation starts with your Average Weekly Wage, usually shortened to AWW. This is your gross weekly earnings before taxes, averaged over the year before your injury. It includes overtime, bonuses, and in some states, the value of benefits like housing or a company vehicle.
Your AWW matters because most benefits are calculated as a percentage of it. Get this number wrong and everything downstream is wrong too. If you're not sure what yours is, your pay stubs or W-2 from the year before your injury are the best place to start.
Temporary Total Disability (TTD): When You Can't Work
If your injury kept you completely out of work, you were likely receiving Temporary Total Disability benefits. These are wage replacement payments — not your full wage, but a portion of it.
Most states pay 66.67% of your AWW, which works out to roughly two-thirds of what you were making. But every state caps this at a maximum weekly amount. New York's current maximum is $1,222.42 per week. Illinois is the highest in the country at $2,008.60. Pennsylvania maxes out at $1,394.00. California sits at $1,764.11.
So if you were earning $2,000 per week in New York and got hurt, your TTD benefit would be $2,000 × 66.67% = $1,333.40 — but New York's cap brings it down to $1,222.42. The cap matters more than you might think for higher earners.
TTD continues until you return to work, reach Maximum Medical Improvement (MMI), or hit your state's maximum duration. California caps TTD at 104 weeks for most injuries. Other states have different limits.
Permanent Partial Disability (PPD): When the Injury Lasts
Once you've reached MMI — meaning your doctor says you've healed as much as you're going to — the question becomes whether you have any permanent impairment. If you do, you may be entitled to Permanent Partial Disability benefits.
This is where state formulas diverge significantly.
Scheduled Loss States (NY, IL, PA)
New York, Illinois, and Pennsylvania use what's called a Scheduled Loss of Use system for injuries involving specific body parts. The state assigns a maximum number of weeks to each body part — a full arm, a hand, a finger, an eye. Your benefit is calculated based on what percentage of that body part you've lost.
In New York, a fully functional arm is worth 312 weeks of benefits. If a doctor rates your arm at 35% loss of use, you're entitled to 35% of 312 weeks = 109.2 weeks × your weekly benefit rate.
The body part schedule is set by statute. It doesn't change based on your job, your age, or your employer. Same formula, same result, every time — which is exactly why it can be calculated in advance.
California's WPI System
California does it differently. Instead of a body part schedule, your treating physician assigns a Whole Person Impairment (WPI) rating based on the AMA Guides, 5th Edition. That rating then goes through an adjustment process — modified for your occupation and your age at the time of injury — to arrive at a Permanent Disability percentage.
That PD percentage then maps to a number of weeks using the state's Permanent Disability Rating Schedule (PDRS), and those weeks are paid at a flat rate of $290 per week for most ratings.
It's the most complex system in the country. An identical injury can result in a different benefit amount depending on your job classification, which is why California workers' comp cases benefit most from attorney involvement.
Settlement vs. Weekly Checks
Workers' comp benefits can be paid two ways: as ongoing weekly checks, or as a lump-sum settlement that closes your case.
A settlement is not automatically better. When you settle, you typically give up your right to future medical treatment through the workers' comp system for that injury. For injuries that may need ongoing care — a bad back, a damaged knee — settling too early can leave you paying out of pocket for treatment you thought was covered.
That said, settlements offer certainty. You get a defined amount, you close the case, and you move on. Most workers' comp cases do eventually settle, often years after the initial injury.
What This Calculator Does
This calculator takes your AWW, your state, your injury type, and for scheduled loss states your body part and impairment percentage — and runs the actual statutory formula. Every step is shown so you can verify the math yourself.
It won't tell you whether to settle. It won't account for disputed liability, future medical costs, or attorney fees. But it gives you the formula result — which is the starting point for any serious conversation about your claim.