Eligibility

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is for people who can’t afford to pay for food. When you apply for SNAP, you’ll need to provide details about how much income everyone in your house has. If you have more income than the program allows, you won't qualify for SNAP.

Income Limits for Households that Do Not Automatically Qualify

If you do not qualify automatically based on one of the benefits listed above, to qualify for SNAP, your household income will have to be below an income limit. The exact income limit depends on whether there is a member of the household who has a disability and how many people live in the household.

Income Limits for Households that Include People with Disabilities

Households that include at least one person with a disability can have more income than households without disabilities and still get SNAP. If your household includes a member who is elderly or has a disability, you have to meet meet a net income limit. That means that to see if you qualify, you take your gross income and subtract various deductions.

The most common deductions for households that include a disabled person or elderly person are:

• A standard $204 deduction
• 20% of gross earned income
• Dependent care costs
• Court-ordered child support for someone outside the household
• Unreimbursed medical expenses above $35 per month, and
• Deductions for rent, mortgage expenses, property taxes, home insurance, and utility costs. The eligibility worker calculates the amount of this deduction.

To figure out if you'll qualify, you can subtract these deductions from your household's gross income and compare the resulting number to the chart below. Make sure to compare it to the net income limit for a household your size. If you qualify, your net income amount will also impact how much you get in benefits.

There are some additional deductions, so if you aren't sure about how to figure out your net income, Chat with a Hub expert.

Note: Some people with disabilities have people who help them with buying and preparing food. You do not have to include them in your household when you apply for SNAP.

Income Limits for Households without Disabilities

If nobody in your household has a disability or is elderly, SNAP looks at your household's gross income to determine whether or not you qualify. Your gross income is your earned income plus your unearned income before taxes or other deductions are made.

Compare your family's gross income to the table below to see if you qualify. Make sure to compare it to the gross income limit for a household your size.

The Benefit Amount

SNAP has a chart of how much money is spent by households with low income on food each month. This amount is the maximum possible benefit you can get and depends on how many people are in your household:

If you have no monthly net income (gross income minus allowed deductions), the amounts shown above are what you’ll receive each month from SNAP.

The Benefit Amount If You Have Income

If your household has income after all deductions have been applied, the SNAP program estimates that you can afford to spend 30% of your income on food and your SNAP benefit will be reduced by that amount.

The minimum SNAP benefit for households of one or two people is $23 per month.

If you have any questions, Chat with a Hub expert.