Prejudgment interest is interest on a damages award for the time before judgment, usually simple interest: amount x annual rate x days / 365. This prejudgment interest calculator uses the official 2026 rates and start-date rules for Florida, California, New Jersey, New York, Illinois, Texas, Nevada, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Minnesota and North Carolina, and takes your own rate for federal cases and other states. It shows the interest period by period, with the rate used for each one.
The start date and the damages that qualify move the result as much as the rate. Florida's rate changes every quarter, New Jersey and Louisiana set a new rate each year, Texas and Nevada use one rate tied to the judgment date, and Massachusetts (12%), New York (9%), North Carolina (8%) and Illinois personal injury cases (6%) use a fixed rate.
Leave out amounts your state excludes, such as future damages.
Interest = amount x annual rate x days / 365
Variable-rate states: add up (amount x rate for each period x days in that period / 365)
Texas law says prejudgment interest is simple interest and does not compound. Where the official rate changes during the case, the calculation runs period by period: Florida applies the rate the Chief Financial Officer sets to the time periods for which interest is due, Louisiana sets judicial interest by the period a lawsuit is pending, and New Jersey publishes one rate per calendar year. Florida's published daily rates divide the annual rate by 366 in leap years, and the calculator does the same.
| State | Rate (effective date) | Interest starts | Key rules and limits |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | 7% on tort damages (Civil Code 3288, CACI 3935); 10% after a plaintiff's 998 offer is beaten (Civil Code 3291) | Date each loss was incurred; for 3291, the first 998 offer the judgment exceeds | Jury discretion; past economic loss only, not noneconomic damages; 3291 not against public entities; Civil Code 3287 gives interest on damages certain from the day the right vests |
| Florida | 8.44% (Jan 1, 2026), 8.25% (Apr 1), 8.06% (Jul 1), 7.87% (Oct 1, 2026) | Set by the court for your claim | The CFO sets each quarter's rate: 12-month average New York Fed discount rate plus 400 basis points |
| Illinois | 6% (personal injury, wrongful death) | Date the action is filed | No more than 5 years; only the part above the highest written offer made within 12 months and not accepted within 90 days, none if the judgment does not exceed it; no interest against governmental entities |
| Louisiana | 7.50% for 2026 (8.25% for 2025) | Date of judicial demand | Set each year: discount rate on the first business day of October plus 3.25 points |
| Massachusetts | 12% | Date the action is commenced | Added by the clerk even above a statutory maximum liability |
| Minnesota | 10% over $50,000; published rate, at least 4%, at $50,000 or less | Suit, arbitration demand or written notice of claim, whichever is first | No interest on future or punitive damages; comparing offers can cut interest |
| Nevada | 8.75% (prime rate of 6.75% on July 1, 2026, plus 2%) | Service of the summons and complaint | Future damages earn interest only from judgment |
| New Jersey | 4.5% for 2026, 4.0% for 2027; add 2% if the judgment exceeds $20,000 | Later of filing or 6 months after the cause of action arises | Tort actions; none on future economic losses; may be suspended in exceptional cases |
| New York | 9% | Contract and property claims: earliest date the claim existed; any action: verdict to judgment | 2% for consumer debt judgments against a person |
| North Carolina | 8% (legal rate) | Date the action is commenced | Compensatory damages in non-contract actions |
| Texas | 6.75% (judgments rendered in September or October 2026) | Earlier of the 180th day after written notice or the date suit is filed | Ends the day before judgment; simple interest; none on future damages; set monthly from the prime rate, 5% floor, 15% cap |
| Federal courts | No general rate; 28 U.S.C. 1961 sets the post-judgment rate | Depends on the law governing the claim | No prejudgment interest against the United States under the FTCA |
Florida publishes the next quarter's rate before it starts, Texas publishes each month's rate after the 15th of the month before, and Louisiana, New Jersey and Nevada publish once or twice a year. The calculator warns you when your dates run past the last published rate.
Seven quarterly rates apply, from 9.38% down to 8.06%. The first quarter is 90 days x 9.38% / 365 on $100,000, or $2,312.88, which matches the CFO's published daily rate of 0.000256986 within one cent. The total for 637 days is $15,165.10.
Written notice reached the defendant on March 1, 2024 and suit was filed on November 1, 2024. The 180th day after notice (August 28, 2024) comes first, so interest runs from then through October 14, 2026: $250,000 x 6.75% x 778 / 365 = $35,969.18.
The accident was on March 10, 2023 and suit was filed on January 15, 2024, the later date, so interest starts then. With 2% added because the judgment is over $20,000: 2024 at 5.5% for 352 days ($7,956.16), 2025 at 7.5% ($11,250.00) and 2026 at 6.5% for 180 days ($4,808.22), a total of $24,014.38.
Suit was filed May 1, 2023, judgment entered May 1, 2026, and the defendant made an unaccepted $300,000 written offer within 12 months of filing. Interest runs only on the $200,000 difference: $200,000 x 6% x 1,096 / 365 = $36,032.88. A judgment of $300,000 or less would get no prejudgment interest.
In Texas, if the judgment is not more than the defendant's written settlement offer, interest does not accrue on the judgment while the offer could be accepted; if it is more, interest does not accrue on the amount of the offer during that period. Illinois uses the highest written offer made within 12 months of filing, as the example above shows. In California, a plaintiff's own 998 offer that the defendant rejects can start 10% interest if the plaintiff then does better at trial, and Minnesota compares both sides' offers to the verdict. Before you answer an offer, see should I accept the first settlement offer and settlement vs trial.
Under 28 U.S.C. 1961, interest on a federal civil money judgment runs from the date the judgment is entered, at the weekly average 1-year constant maturity Treasury yield for the calendar week before the judgment, computed daily and compounded annually. For the time before judgment, choose "Federal court" and enter the rate that applies to your claim. The Federal Tort Claims Act says the United States is not liable for interest prior to judgment, Illinois exempts governmental entities, and California's 3291 interest does not apply to public entities. See our guide to a personal injury claim against a government entity.
Usually, yes. IRS Publication 4345 says interest on any settlement is generally taxable as interest income and is reported on line 2b of Form 1040, even when the damages themselves are not taxable. See our settlement tax calculator and the guide to IRS Publication 4345.
Prejudgment interest is interest added to a damages award for the time before judgment. CACI 3935, the California jury instruction, describes it as the amount of interest the law provides to compensate for the loss of the ability to use the funds. Each state sets the rate, the start date and which damages qualify.
Multiply the amount that earns interest by the annual rate and the number of days, then divide by 365. Where the official rate changes during the case, as in Florida (quarterly), New Jersey and Louisiana (yearly), calculate each period at its own rate and add the results. Texas law says prejudgment interest is simple interest and does not compound.
The Florida Chief Financial Officer set 8.44% for January 1, 2026, 8.25% for April 1, 8.06% for July 1 and 7.87% for October 1, 2026. Florida Statutes 687.01 applies the section 55.03 rate whenever interest accrues without a contract rate.
For tort damages under Civil Code 3288, the CACI 3935 directions say the rate is seven percent as a matter of law, and the jury decides whether to award it on past economic loss. After a plaintiff's unaccepted 998 offer is beaten at trial, Civil Code 3291 adds 10 percent per year from the date of the first offer the judgment exceeds.
In a wrongful death, personal injury or property damage case, interest starts on the earlier of the 180th day after the defendant receives written notice of the claim or the date suit is filed, and ends the day before judgment. The rate equals the post-judgment rate at the time of judgment, 6.75% for judgments rendered in September or October 2026. It is simple interest and does not apply to future damages.
The New Jersey Courts table lists 4.5% for 2026 and 4.0% for 2027, and tort prejudgment interest uses the same rates, with 2.0% added when the judgment exceeds $20,000. Interest starts on the later of the filing date or 6 months after the cause of action arose.