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Security deposit calculator
Know the rules before you pay. Every state sets different limits on how much a landlord can charge, when they must return it, and what happens if they don't. Enter your rent and state to see your rights instantly.
- All 50 states, D.C. and U.S. territories
- Updated for 2026
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How security deposits work
You pay at move-in
Your landlord collects a deposit — usually 1-2 months' rent — before you move in. State law limits the maximum amount.
It's held during your lease
The deposit covers potential damage or unpaid rent. Some states require it to be held in a separate account with interest.
It comes back after move-out
After you leave, your landlord must return the deposit (minus legitimate deductions) within the state deadline — or face penalties.
Security deposit limits by state
The maximum deposit, the return deadline and whether interest is owed, in every state, D.C. and the U.S. territories.
| State | Max deposit | Return deadline | Interest |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 1 month's rent (exceptions for pets, alterations, or increased liability; § 35-9A-201) | 60 days | No |
| Alaska | 2 months' rent (no statutory limit if rent exceeds $2,000/month), plus a pet deposit up to 1 month's rent (AS 34.03.070(h)) | 14 days (proper termination notice given and no damage deductions); 30 days if damages are deducted or tenant gave no proper notice | No |
| Arizona | 1.5 months' rent | 14 business days after the tenancy ends, possession is returned and the tenant asks for the deposit | No |
| Arkansas | 2 months' periodic rent, unless the landlord is exempt (Ark. Code §§ 18-16-303, 18-16-304) | 60 days after the tenancy ends (Ark. Code § 18-16-305, as amended by Act 559 of 2009) | No |
| California | 1 month's rent (2 months only for a natural-person or family-LLC landlord with no more than 2 properties and 4 units, never for a service member; Civ. Code § 1950.5(c)) | 21 days | No |
| Colorado | 2 months' rent (C.R.S. § 38-12-102.5), plus a separate pet deposit up to $300 (§ 38-12-106) | 30 days after the lease ends or the unit is surrendered, whichever is later (a lease may set up to 60 days) | No |
| Connecticut | 2 months' rent (1 month for tenants 62+) | 21 days after termination, or 15 days after the tenant provides a forwarding address, whichever is later | Yes |
| Delaware | 1 month's rent for leases of 1 year or more and for month-to-month tenancies after the first year; no cap for furnished units; pet deposit up to 1 month's rent (25 Del. C. § 5514) | 20 days | No |
| District of Columbia | 1 month's rent | 45 days after the tenancy ends; if the landlord sends written notice of withholding within 45 days, the balance is due 30 days after that notice | Yes |
| Florida | No statutory limit | 15 days after the lease ends if nothing is kept; to keep part, written notice of the claim within 30 days and the balance within 30 days after that notice | No |
| Georgia | 2 months' rent (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-30.1, effective July 1, 2024, for residential leases entered into or renewed on or after that date) | 30 days after the landlord gets possession of the unit back, with a written statement of the reasons for anything kept (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-34) | No |
| Hawaii | 1 month's rent (or 1 month's rent as security deposit plus an additional 1 month for pet deposit) | 14 days | No |
| Idaho | No statutory limit | 21 days (or up to 30 if specified in lease) | No |
| Illinois | No statutory limit | 45 days for full return; if withholding for damage, landlord must furnish an itemized statement of damages (with paid receipts) within 30 days of the tenant vacating the premises, or within 30 days of the end of the tenant's right of possession, whichever is later (765 ILCS 710/1; applies to all residential landlords since P.A. 103-224, Jan 1, 2024). | Yes |
| Indiana | No statutory limit | 45 days after the rental agreement ends and possession is returned (not owed until the tenant gives a mailing address in writing) | No |
| Iowa | 2 months' rent | 30 days after the tenancy ends and the landlord receives the tenant's mailing address | No |
| Kansas | 1 month's rent (unfurnished); 1.5 months' rent (furnished); plus a pet deposit up to half a month's rent | 30 days at most after the tenancy ends, possession is returned and the tenant asks (and within 14 days after the landlord determines deductions) | No |
| Kentucky | No statutory limit | No fixed statutory deadline. Only where the city or county adopted the landlord-tenant act (KRS 383.580, 383.500): a move-out damage list is required; the landlord may apply the deposit to a rent debt after 30 days if the tenant does not demand it, or keep an unclaimed refund 60 days after sending notice of it | No |
| Louisiana | No statutory limit | 30 days (one month) after the tenancy ends; an itemized statement of anything kept may follow up to 15 days later (Act 63 of 2026, eff. Aug 1, 2026); not when the tenant abandons the unit | No |
| Maine | 2 months' rent | 30 days for written leases; 21 days for tenancy-at-will | No |
| Maryland | 1 month's rent (effective Oct. 1, 2024; up to two months only under the narrow DHS-utility-assistance exception, Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-203(b); worded 'two months' because scan validation reads the first 'N month' figure) | 45 days | Yes |
| Massachusetts | 1 month's rent | 30 days | Yes |
| Michigan | 1.5 months' rent | 30 days after move-out for an itemized list of damages with the balance (the tenant must give a forwarding address within 4 days) | No |
| Minnesota | No statutory limit | 21 days after the tenancy ends and the landlord receives the tenant's mailing address (5 days if the building was condemned) | Yes |
| Mississippi | No statutory limit | 45 days after the tenancy ends, possession is returned and the tenant asks for the deposit | No |
| Missouri | 2 months' rent | 30 days | No |
| Montana | No statutory limit | 10 days if nothing is owed and the tenant shows no unpaid utilities; 30 days otherwise | No |
| Nebraska | 1 month's rent (no pets); 1.25 months' rent (with pets) | 14 days | No |
| Nevada | 3 months' rent, counting last month's rent and any surety bond (NRS 118A.242(1)) | 30 days | No |
| New Hampshire | 1 month's rent or $100, whichever is greater | 30 days after the tenancy ends (these deposit rules do not reach an owner of a single-family home with no other rental property, or of an owner-occupied building of 5 units or less, except a unit occupied by someone 60 or older) | Yes |
| New Jersey | 1.5 months' rent | 30 days after lease termination (5 business days if the tenant is displaced by fire, flood, condemnation, or evacuation; 15 business days if the lease terminates under the Safe Housing Act, N.J.S.A. 46:8-9.6, for domestic violence) | Yes |
| New Mexico | 1 month's rent (less than 1-year lease); no limit (1-year+ lease) | 30 days after the rental agreement ends or the tenant leaves, whichever is later | Yes |
| New York | 1 month's rent (exceptions for registered seasonal rentals, owner-occupied co-ops and some regulated or senior housing; Gen. Oblig. Law § 7-108(1-a)) | 14 days | Yes |
| North Carolina | 2 weeks' rent (week-to-week); 1.5 months' rent (month-to-month); 2 months' rent (longer term) | 30 days after the tenancy ends and possession is returned (final accounting up to 60 days if damages cannot be determined sooner) | No |
| North Dakota | 1 month's rent (up to 2 months' rent for a tenant convicted of a felony, or against whom a judgment has been entered for violating a previous rental agreement; pet deposit may not exceed the greater of $2,500 or 2 months' rent) | 30 days | Yes |
| Ohio | No statutory limit | 30 days | Yes |
| Oklahoma | No statutory limit | 45 days after the tenancy ends, possession is returned and the tenant asks in writing (a deposit not asked for within 6 months goes to the landlord) | No |
| Oregon | No statutory limit | 31 days | No |
| Pennsylvania | 2 months' rent (first year); 1 month's rent (subsequent years) | 30 days after the lease ends or the unit is surrendered, whichever comes first | Yes |
| Rhode Island | 1 month's rent (plus a separate furniture security deposit of up to 1 month's rent for furnished units where the landlord-supplied furniture has a replacement value of $5,000 or more at lease execution) | 20 days after the latest of the tenancy ending, possession being returned, or the tenant giving a forwarding address | No |
| South Carolina | No statutory limit | 30 days after the tenancy ends and possession is returned, or after the tenant asks, whichever is later | No |
| South Dakota | 1 month's rent (greater amounts allowed if special conditions exist) | 21 days after the tenancy ends and the landlord receives the tenant's mailing address (since July 1, 2026; it was 2 weeks) | No |
| Tennessee | No statutory limit | No fixed statutory deadline (Tenn. Code § 66-28-301, in counties covered by the landlord-tenant act). The deposit must be kept in a separate account at a regulated bank, and the tenant told where. On request, a move-out inspection is held on the day the tenant leaves or within 4 days, with a signed damage list. If a refund is due, the landlord sends notice to the tenant's last known address and may keep the money only if the tenant does not respond within 60 days. Damage found later can be charged only if discovered within 30 days of move-out or 7 days after a new tenant moves in, whichever is earlier. | No |
| Texas | No statutory limit | 30 days after the tenant surrenders the unit, once the tenant has given a forwarding address in writing | No |
| Utah | No statutory limit | 30 days | No |
| Vermont | No statutory limit | 14 days after the tenant moves out or the landlord learns of it (60 days for a seasonal rental) | No |
| Virginia | 2 months' rent | 45 days after the tenancy ends or the tenant moves out, whichever is later (15 more days to itemize damage that needs an outside contractor) | No |
| Washington | No statutory limit | 30 days | No |
| West Virginia | No statutory limit | 60 days after termination of tenancy, or 45 days after a new tenant occupies the premises, whichever is shorter | No |
| Wisconsin | No statutory limit | 21 days after the rental agreement ends if the tenant moves out on that date; if the tenant moves out or is evicted early, 21 days after the agreement's end date or, if the landlord re-rents the unit sooner, after the day the new tenant's tenancy begins; if the tenant moves out or is evicted after the end date, 21 days after the day the landlord learns the tenant has left (Wis. Stat. § 704.28(4); Wis. Admin. Code ATCP 134.06(2)) | No |
| Wyoming | No statutory limit | 30 days after the rental agreement ends, or 15 days after the landlord receives the renter's new mailing address, whichever is later (30 more days if there is damage) | No |
| Puerto Rico | No statutory limit | No statutory deadline | No |
| Guam | 1 month's rent (plus a reasonable pet deposit up to $500 per pet; landlord may not collect more than first month's rent and the deposit at lease signing) | 14 days (working days — weekends and Guam government holidays excluded) | No |
| US Virgin Islands | No statutory limit | No statutory deadline (see notes for the domestic-violence exception) | No |
| American Samoa | No statutory limit | No statutory deadline | No |
| Northern Mariana Islands | No statutory limit | 10 business days (likely — see notes) | No |
This calculator provides general information about state security deposit laws. It is not legal advice. Local ordinances may impose additional restrictions. For your specific situation, consult a licensed attorney or upload your lease for Honestkey analysis.
Your questions, answered.
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What is a security deposit?
A security deposit is a sum of money paid by a tenant to a landlord before moving in. It serves as protection for the landlord against property damage, unpaid rent, or lease violations. At the end of your lease, the landlord must return the deposit minus any legitimate deductions, within the timeframe set by your state's law.
How much can my landlord charge for a security deposit?
Security deposit limits vary widely by state. Some states cap deposits at 1 month's rent (like California and New York), while others allow up to 2-3 months' rent. Several states have no statutory limit at all, though the amount must still be reasonable. Use our calculator above to find your state's specific rules.
How long does my landlord have to return my security deposit?
Return deadlines range from 14 days to 60 days depending on your state. Most states require 30 days. Your landlord must typically provide an itemized list of any deductions. If they miss the deadline, many states impose penalties including double or triple the deposit amount.
Does my landlord have to pay interest on my security deposit?
Only some states require landlords to pay interest on security deposits. States like Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, and New York have interest requirements, though the rates and conditions vary. Most states do not require interest payments.
What can my landlord deduct from my security deposit?
Landlords can typically deduct for unpaid rent, damage beyond normal wear and tear, and cleaning costs to return the unit to its original condition. They cannot deduct for normal wear and tear, such as minor scuffs on walls or worn carpet. The deductions must be itemized and reasonable.
What should I do if my landlord won't return my deposit?
First, send a written demand letter (certified mail) citing your state's security deposit statute. If the landlord still doesn't comply, you can file a claim in small claims court. Many states allow you to recover double or triple the deposit amount plus attorney fees if the landlord wrongfully withheld your deposit.
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