For stay-at-home parents
A prenup is not only for the higher earner
If you are the partner stepping back from paid work to raise children, a prenup can work in your favor too. It can set a support floor, recognize what a career pause actually costs, and put terms in place before you need them, instead of negotiating from behind later. Neptune is the lawyer-led online prenup service: both partners get their own lawyer for one flat fee.
Flat fee of $5,000 per couple. No payment to get started.
What a career pause actually costs
Stepping back from work costs more than the paychecks you miss
Caregiving is real work, but it usually does not come with a paycheck, a 401(k) match, or a line on a resume that reads cleanly to an employer. A prenup is a place to put a number and a plan on what that pause costs, before it becomes an argument later.
Income does not pause, it resets
Time away from paid work does not just mean missed paychecks. Skills and professional networks can fade the longer someone is out, which can make the return to work slower and the starting pay lower than before the pause.
Retirement contributions stop too
A 401(k) match, a pension credit, and Social Security earnings history all depend on a paycheck. A partner who steps back for a few years can end up with a real gap in retirement savings that a court cannot simply undo later.
The resume gap is a real cost
Employers weigh a gap in work history, fairly or not. Rebuilding a career after years focused on a family can take longer, and the first job back may pay less than the job left behind.
The part worth naming
A support floor means you are not starting from zero
Without a prenup, spousal support is usually worked out later, often based on factors like the income gap between partners and how long the marriage lasted. That leaves the caregiving partner negotiating from a weaker position at the hardest possible moment.
A prenup can set a floor in advance: a minimum level of support tied to things like the length of the marriage or the years spent caregiving, agreed on by both of you before either person is under pressure. It does not guarantee a specific dollar figure, since rules differ from state to state and your attorney can review what applies where you live, but it means the conversation does not start from nothing.
In the agreement
What your prenup can actually cover
- A spousal support floor, so support does not start from zero if the marriage ends after years of one partner focused on the home
- A formula tied to length of marriage or years spent caregiving, instead of leaving the amount to be argued later
- Contributions to a retirement account in the caregiving partner’s name to help offset years without a 401(k) match
- Funding for job retraining, continuing education, or a licensing renewal to support getting back to paid work
- How the decision to step back is documented, so it is treated as a shared choice rather than something one partner did alone
A shared decision
This works best as a decision you make together
A prenup that addresses caregiving is not about doubting the relationship. It is about naming a real tradeoff out loud instead of leaving it unspoken. Talking through what a career pause means for both of you, and putting terms around it while you are both feeling good about the decision, tends to go better than working it out for the first time during a separation.
How Neptune works
A guided conversation, with your own attorney on each side
Neptune's AI-guided intake walks through your income, savings, and plans for work and caregiving in plain language, for both of you. You enter the details once, and both attorneys receive a clear summary to work from.
Each partner works with a separate, licensed attorney from the Neptune network for a free consultation. Independent counsel on each side matters most exactly when one partner earns and the other does not, so both of you have someone in your corner.
Transparent pricing
One flat fee. Two independent attorneys.
$5,000
per couple, total
Rush pricing applies when the wedding is within 45 days. No payment required to get started.
Start your prenupRead more before you talk
Guides before you begin
A complete guide to spousal support waivers
What a prenup can and cannot do around spousal support, and how a waiver is typically structured.
Read the guideHow to talk to your partner about a prenup with care
Practical ways to open the conversation so it feels collaborative, not adversarial.
Read the guideShould I be offended by a prenup? Think again
Why being asked for a prenup is not a verdict on the relationship, and how to reframe the conversation.
Read the guideGuides for you
Guides on the prenup conversation
Start with the guides other couples read before they begin, then take the next step when you are ready.
Common questions from stay-at-home parents
Is a prenup only useful for the higher earner?
No. A prenup can work the other way, and increasingly does. For a partner who is stepping back from paid work, whether for a few years or indefinitely, a prenup can set a support floor and put concrete terms in place in advance, rather than leaving the non-earning partner to negotiate from a weaker position later. It is a way to make caregiving visible in the agreement, not just in conversation.
What happens to spousal support if I stop working to raise children?
It depends on your state and the specifics of your situation, and rules differ from state to state. Without a prenup, spousal support is usually decided later, often based on factors like income difference and length of the marriage. A prenup lets you and your partner agree on a framework in advance, such as a support floor or a formula tied to years of marriage, so the caregiving partner is not starting the conversation from scratch during a separation. Your attorney can review what applies where you live.
Can a prenup account for lost retirement savings?
Yes, this is one of the more practical things a prenup can address. Years spent out of paid work usually mean years without a 401(k) match or similar retirement contributions. A prenup can set out a plan for retirement contributions in the caregiving partner’s name, or address how retirement accounts are handled if the marriage ends, so that time is not simply written off.
Does stepping back from work always mean a career reset?
Not always, but it is a real possibility worth planning for. The longer someone is away from paid work, the more a return can take: rebuilding skills, restarting a professional network, or accepting a lower starting salary than before. A prenup cannot guarantee a specific outcome, but it can include support for retraining or continuing education, which can make the return to work more manageable.
What does it cost and how long does it take?
Neptune charges a flat fee of $5,000 per couple, which covers two independent attorneys, one for each partner. No payment is required to get started. Turnaround is typically around 3 to 4 weeks when both partners use Neptune attorneys. Rush pricing applies when the wedding is within 45 days.