The SNAP ceiling for four people in the 48 contiguous states and Washington, DC is $1,023 a month for fiscal year 2027, which runs from October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027. That’s $29 more than the $994 that applied through Sept. 30, 2026, and only a household with zero net income gets all of it. SNAP subtracts 30% of the household’s net income from that maximum, so a family of four with $1,500 of net monthly income gets $573, and one sitting right at the $2,750 net income limit gets $198.
All of the FY 2027 figures here come from the FY 2027 cost-of-living adjustment memo dated Aug. 21, 2026, from the USDA’s Food and Nutrition Administration, which was the Food and Nutrition Service until June 1, 2026.
SNAP maximum benefits by household size, FY 2027
In the 48 states and DC, the monthly maximums are $306 for one person, $562 for two, $808 for three, $1,023 for four, $1,217 for five, $1,463 for six, $1,616 for seven and $1,841 for eight. Each person past eight adds $225, up to a cap of $3,887 for households of 18 or more.
Alaska, Hawaii, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands use their own tables. For a family of four, Alaska ranges from $1,306 in urban areas to $2,027 in its most remote rural zone. Guam is $1,507 and the Virgin Islands $1,315. Hawaii is $1,655, and it’s the one place where the four-person maximum actually went down for FY 2027.
What are the SNAP income limits for a family of 4?
Most households have to pass two tests. Gross income, everything coming in before deductions, has to be at or below 130% of the poverty line: $3,575 a month for four people in FY 2027, or $42,900 over a year. Net income, what’s left after SNAP’s deductions, has to be at or below 100% of poverty: $2,750 a month, or $33,000 a year. Alaska and Hawaii set both limits higher.
Under the federal rules, a family of four grossing $3,600 a month fails the gross test by $25, however high their rent is. The exception is broad-based categorical eligibility. The USDA’s SNAP eligibility page says most states use it to line up SNAP income and asset limits with their TANF-funded programs, so a family just over $3,575 may still qualify depending on the state. The 30% formula below still sets the amount.
Households with a member who is 60 or older or disabled only need to meet the net limit, and their FY 2027 asset limit is $4,750 instead of $3,000. Your home doesn’t count.
How the 30% formula works
SNAP expects a household to spend about 30% of its own net income on food. Your benefit is the maximum for your household size minus 30% of net monthly income, rounded up to the dollar. The FY 2027 deductions that get you from gross to net, for the 48 states and DC:
- 20% of earned income (wages and self-employment).
- A standard deduction of $229 for a household of four, $217 for one to three people, $268 for five and $308 for six or more.
- Dependent care paid so you can work, train or go to school.
- Child support you pay (in some states) and medical costs over $35 a month for elderly or disabled members.
- Excess shelter: rent or mortgage plus utilities above half your income after the other deductions, capped at $769 unless someone is elderly or disabled. Homeless households get a flat $205.66.
At $1,000 of net income a family of four gets $723; at $2,000, $423. The $25 minimum benefit only applies to one and two person households, so it never comes into play for four people.
Two parents, two kids, one paycheck
In this family, one parent works and earns $2,400 a month before taxes, there’s no other income, the family pays $200 a month for after-school care so that parent can work, and rent plus utilities come to $1,400 a month. They live in one of the 48 contiguous states.
Gross income of $2,400 is under the $3,575 limit, so they move on. Twenty percent of earnings is $480, which brings them to $1,920. The $229 standard deduction drops that to $1,691, and the $200 of child care takes it to $1,491. Half of $1,491 is $745.50. Their $1,400 of housing costs is $654.50 more than that, which is under the $769 cap, so the whole $654.50 comes off. Net income is $836.50, comfortably below $2,750.
Thirty percent of $836.50 is $250.95, rounded up to $251. Subtract that from $1,023 and the family gets $772 a month.
Raise their rent and utilities to $1,700 and the shelter cap starts to bite. Their excess cost would be $954.50, but only $769 counts. Net income lands at $722, 30% of that rounds to $217, and the benefit is $806. That’s $300 more in housing costs for $34 more in food help. In a high-rent city, that cap is the line on the worksheet to watch.
What changed in SNAP work requirements in 2025?
SNAP has two layers of work rules. The general ones cover most adults: register for work, don’t quit or cut hours voluntarily, take a job if offered, and join an employment and training program if the state assigns one. On top of that, able-bodied adults without dependents (ABAWDs) can get SNAP for only 3 months in a 36-month period unless they work or join a work program at least 20 hours a week.
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed July 4, 2025, changed who that time limit covers. According to the USDA’s implementation memo on ABAWD exceptions, the changes took effect on enactment and include these:
- The age range rose from 18 through 54 to 18 through 64.
- The exception for parents and other household members caring for a child now covers only children under 14. It used to cover children under 18.
- Exceptions added in 2023 for people experiencing homelessness, veterans, and former foster youth 24 or younger were removed.
- New exceptions were added for people who meet the Indian, Urban Indian or California Indian definitions in the Indian Health Care Improvement Act.
People 60 and older are still exempt from the general work requirements, and states can’t require 60 to 64 year olds to join employment and training programs. A separate memo on ABAWD waivers says states can now waive the time limit only for areas with unemployment above 10%, with a different test for Alaska and Hawaii. For a family of four, the child age is the change to watch: parents whose youngest is 14 to 17 can now fall under the time limit unless another exception applies.
Applying: state office, interview, EBT card
You apply in the state where you live, on that state’s form. The USDA keeps a directory of state SNAP agencies with websites and hotline numbers, and USA.gov notes that depending on the state you can apply online, in person, by mail or by fax.
The state has 30 days to decide. In that window you’ll do an eligibility interview, usually by phone or in person, and prove what you reported. Approved benefits count from the date you submitted the application, so file as soon as you can instead of waiting until every document is in hand. Households with under $100 in liquid resources and under $150 of monthly gross income, or whose income and liquid resources together are less than rent or mortgage plus utilities, can get benefits within 7 days.
Benefits load each month onto an Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) card that works like a debit card at authorized grocery stores. You’ll get a notice to recertify before your certification period ends.
Before you apply
- Add up one month of gross income for everyone who buys and cooks food with you, and compare it with $3,575 for four people.
- Pull together pay stubs, your lease or mortgage statement, utility bills and child care receipts. Each one feeds a deduction that raises your benefit.
- Find your state agency in the USDA directory and file the application so your start date is locked in.
- Keep your phone on for the interview call and send verification by the date on the state’s request.
- If the amount looks wrong, ask the office how it figured your net income. You have 90 days from the decision to request a fair hearing.
Related reading
- Government Money Programs for Low-Income Households
- Benefits You Can Claim When You’re Unemployed With No Income
- Rental Assistance for the Unemployed and How to Apply
Nothing here is legal or benefits advice. SNAP amounts and deductions reset every October 1, and your state office makes the final calculation.
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