Federal Poverty Level 2026: The Chart, and Which Year's Numbers Each Program Uses

The federal poverty level for 2026 is $15,960 a year for one person and $33,000 for a family of four in the 48 contiguous states and D.C. Each extra person adds $5,680. Alaska and Hawaii have their own, higher figures.

That one table decides who qualifies for Medicaid, SNAP, WIC, Lifeline, heating help and ACA premium credits. But each program multiplies it by a different percentage, and they don’t all switch to the new numbers at the same time. A few still use guidelines from 2024.

The 2026 poverty guidelines

2026 HHS poverty guidelines by household size for the 48 states, Alaska and Hawaii

HHS published the 2026 guidelines in the Federal Register on January 15, 2026, and they took effect January 13. The full tables are on the ASPE poverty guidelines page.

For the lower 48 states and D.C., the yearly figures are:

1 person: $15,960
2 people: $21,640
3 people: $27,320
4 people: $33,000
5 people: $38,680
6 people: $44,360
7 people: $50,040
8 people: $55,720

Alaska starts at $19,950 for one person and adds $7,100 per person. Hawaii starts at $18,360 and adds $6,530. A family of four is at $41,250 in Alaska and $37,950 in Hawaii.

Compared with 2025, the single person line went up $310, about 2%. For four people it rose $850, from $32,150.

To get a monthly number, divide by 12. One person is $1,330 a month. Four people is $2,750.

What each program uses

Income limits by program as a percentage of the 2026 federal poverty level

Almost no program cuts off at exactly 100%. They use a multiple of it, and the multiple is what you need to know.

SNAP has two tests for most households. Gross income has to be at or below 130% of poverty, about $1,729 a month for one person or $3,575 for four. Net income, after SNAP’s deductions, has to be at or below 100%. Our SNAP guide for a family of four walks through the deductions.

Medicaid for adults in expansion states stops at 138%, which is $22,025 a year for one person or $45,540 for four. In the ten states that haven’t expanded, the limits for parents are often far below the poverty line, and childless adults usually can’t qualify on income at all. Details are in our Medicaid income limits post.

WIC goes up to 185%, or $61,050 for a family of four. Reduced price school meals use the same line. Free school meals use 130%.

Lifeline, the phone and internet discount, uses 135%. For four people that’s $44,550.

LIHEAP heating and cooling help can go up to 150%, or $49,500 for four, though states can set a different line based on state median income. Our LIHEAP guide has the state figures.

Medicare Savings Programs use 100%, 120% and 135%, each with a $20 monthly disregard built in. For one person in 2026, QMB tops out around $1,350 a month. The Medicare Savings Program limits post has all three tiers.

ACA premium tax credits run from 100% to 400%. For 2027 coverage that’s $15,960 to $63,840 for one person and $33,000 to $132,000 for four. Above 400%, there’s no credit at all.

Which year’s numbers apply

This is the part that trips people up. A new table comes out every January, but programs adopt it on their own schedules.

SNAP switches every October 1. The year that started October 1, 2026, uses the 2026 guidelines. WIC and school meals switch on July 1, so the 2026 to 2027 school year runs on the 2026 table. LIHEAP’s federal fiscal year 2027 limits, which started October 1, also come from 2026.

Medicaid and CHIP usually move to the new figures within a few months of HHS publishing them. Most states have been on 2026 numbers since the spring.

The ACA works a year behind. Marketplace plans for 2027, which you’re shopping for in open enrollment right now, are measured against the 2026 guidelines. Plans for 2026 used the 2025 table.

Pell Grants are two years behind. The 2026 to 2027 FAFSA uses 2024 income and the 2024 guideline of $31,200 for a family of four. Our Pell Grant income limit post shows the math.

So if a website gives you a limit, check which year it’s based on. A number from the wrong year can be off by several hundred dollars, enough to change an answer when you’re close to the line.

One family, five programs

Take a single mother with two children under 5 who earns $2,400 a month, or $28,800 a year. The 2026 guideline for three people is $27,320, so she’s at about 105% of poverty.

SNAP: 130% for three is $35,516 a year, so she passes the gross test easily.
WIC: 185% is about $50,542. The children qualify, and so would she during pregnancy or after a birth.
Medicaid: 138% for three is about $37,702. In an expansion state she qualifies. Her children almost certainly do in every state, since limits for kids are higher.
Lifeline: 135% is about $36,882. She qualifies on income, and also automatically through SNAP or Medicaid.
ACA credit: she’d only need it if her state didn’t expand Medicaid. At 105%, she’d be inside the 100% to 400% range.

If she got a raise to $3,500 a month, or $42,000 a year, she’d be at about 154%. In a state that uses the standard 130% line, SNAP would be gone on gross income. Many states raise that line through a rule called broad based categorical eligibility, so check yours. Her own Medicaid in an expansion state would end, though the children would likely stay covered, and WIC would continue. A raise can take away more in benefits than it adds in pay, so it’s worth checking each line before taking on extra hours.

Programs that don’t use the poverty level

Some of the biggest programs use different measures.

Section 8 and public housing use area median income, set county by county by HUD. A family can be well above the poverty line and still qualify. See our guide to the Housing Choice Voucher.

SSI pays a fixed federal benefit and counts income its own way. The SSI payment for 2027 post covers that.

The earned income tax credit has its own income limits set in the tax code, adjusted for inflation each year. Our EITC amounts and limits page lists them.

Poverty guidelines vs. poverty thresholds

You’ll sometimes see two different numbers called the poverty line. The Census Bureau publishes poverty thresholds, used to count how many Americans are poor. They vary by the age of the household head and the number of children.

HHS takes those thresholds and turns them into the simpler guidelines, one number per household size. Benefit programs use the guidelines. If an application says “federal poverty level” or “FPL,” it means the HHS guidelines in the table above.

Questions people ask

Does household size include everyone who lives with me?

It depends on the program. SNAP counts the people who buy and cook food together. Medicaid and the ACA generally follow your tax household, the people you claim on your return. A roommate usually doesn’t count for either.

Is it based on gross or net income?

Usually gross, before taxes. SNAP’s net test is the main exception. Medicaid and the ACA use modified adjusted gross income, which starts from your tax return and adds back a few items such as untaxed Social Security.

When will the 2027 guidelines come out?

HHS normally publishes them in mid to late January. Expect the single person figure to rise by roughly the rate of inflation over 2026.

Why are Alaska and Hawaii different?

Living costs in both states are higher than on the mainland, and the government has kept separate tables for them for decades. The difference is fixed at roughly 25% more for Alaska and 15% more for Hawaii.

Federal Poverty Level 2026: The Chart, and Which Year’s Numbers Each Program Uses