SNAP income limits for fiscal 2027 by household size, and the two deductions that help households over 60

You are 64, your Social Security is about $1,900 a month, and someone told you that is too much for SNAP. For a household with a member 60 or older, they were probably reading the wrong line.

What are the SNAP income limits for fiscal 2027?

The fiscal 2027 figures apply from October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027; SNAP resets every October 1, not in January.¹

These are the monthly figures for the 48 states and the District of Columbia. Alaska, Hawaii, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands have their own tables.¹

Our SNAP by state dataset shows how participation and benefits differ by state.¹

Gross income is everything coming in before deductions; USDA counts all income unless a rule excludes it, including Social Security, SSI, pensions, VA and disability benefits and wages.² Net income is what is left after SNAP’s deductions. Most households must pass both tests.²

Which test applies when someone in the household is 60 or older?

Only the net test. USDA’s rule: a household with a member who is 60 or older, or who meets SNAP’s disability definition, does not have to meet the gross-income limit.² That is why $1,900 is not ruled out by the $1,729 gross line.¹

The resource limit also differs: $4,750 in countable resources for a household with a member 60 or older or disabled, against $3,000 for others; a home, most retirement accounts and the resources of SSI recipients are not counted.² Many states have raised or dropped these limits through broad-based categorical eligibility.²

From Next Chapter TodayThe Social Security PlaybookWhen to claim, how to protect a spouse, and the 75 questions people actually ask. By Kwame Kuadey.About the book →

Which two deductions help households with a member over 60?

Every household gets the standard deduction: for fiscal 2027, $217 a month for one to three people, $229 for four, $268 for five and $308 for six or more.¹ Any household can also claim the excess shelter deduction. Two things change with a member who is 60 or older or disabled: the excess medical expense deduction opens up, and the $769 cap on the shelter deduction is lifted.²

The excess medical expense deduction. For a member who is 60 or older or disabled, out-of-pocket medical costs above $35 a month are deducted; only the amount over $35 counts, and nothing paid by insurance or by someone outside the household.² Allowable costs include doctor, dental and hospital bills, prescriptions, doctor-approved over-the-counter medicine, dentures, nursing and attendant care, certain transportation and health insurance premiums, so Medicare Part B and Medigap premiums you pay yourself count (not a premium Medicaid pays for you).² Proof is required.²

The excess shelter deduction, with the cap lifted. Shelter costs (rent or mortgage, property tax, heat, electricity, water, one phone line) above half of your income after the other deductions are deducted too; many states use a standard utility allowance instead of your actual utility bills.² For most households the excess shelter deduction is capped at $769 a month.¹ For a household with a member 60 or older or disabled the shelter deduction has no cap.²

Fiscal 2027 example, 48 states, one person aged 64 with $1,900 in Social Security and no other income.¹ Subtract the $217 standard deduction: $1,683.¹ Subtract $165 of medical costs ($200 a month in premiums and prescriptions, minus $35): $1,518.² Rent and utilities are $1,000; half of $1,518 is $759, so the excess shelter deduction is $241.² Net income: $1,277, under the $1,330 net limit.¹ This household passes the net-income test; without the two deductions it would not. To qualify it must also meet the other conditions, including the resource limit and the work rules unless exempt: at 64 the reader is inside the time limit’s age range, which runs through 64, so an exemption has to apply (see our work-rules guide).⁶

How is the benefit calculated, and what is the minimum?

USDA expects a household to spend about 30 percent of its net income on food, so the benefit is the maximum allotment for your household size minus 30 percent of net income.³ For the reader above, 30 percent of $1,277 is $383.10, rounded up to $384.³ That exceeds the $306 maximum, so the result is below zero and an otherwise eligible one-person household gets the minimum instead.³

For fiscal 2027 the minimum monthly benefit for eligible one- and two-person households in the 48 states and D.C. is $25.¹ Small, and still worth filing for; SNAP enrollment can open the door to other assistance.

We covered the October reset in August on Benefits Insider.

What to do

1. Gather proof: Social Security award letter, Part B premium notice, pharmacy printouts, medical bills, housing and utility bills.
2. Apply through your state SNAP agency; USDA’s state directory at fns.usda.gov/snap/state-directory lists each office and hotline.⁴
3. At the interview, say that a household member is 60 or older and name both deductions.²
4. Some states use a standard medical deduction. In Massachusetts, costs between $35 and $190 a month earn a standard $155 deduction, and only costs above $190 are deducted at actual cost minus $35.⁵ Ask how your state’s rule works.
5. If you were denied on income before October 1, 2026, apply again; the fiscal 2027 limits are higher than the fiscal 2026 ones, though that does not guarantee approval.¹
6. If you are denied, request a fair hearing within 90 days of the decision.³ See our appeals guide and our recertification guide.