What are the current gross and net income limits for SNAP by household size in 2025?
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Executive summary
SNAP uses two federal income tests for eligibility in FY2025: a gross monthly limit set at 130% of the federal poverty level and a net monthly limit set at 100% of the poverty level; the official FY2025 income tables are published by USDA/FNS (effective Oct. 1, 2024 – Sept. 30, 2025) [1] [2]. State rules (e.g., broad-based categorical eligibility, higher Alaska/Hawaii standards, special rules for elderly/disabled households) can raise or alter how these limits apply in practice [3] [1] [4].
1. What the two limits are and where to find the exact numbers
SNAP requires households to meet both a gross-income test and a net-income test: gross monthly income must be ≤130% of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) for the household size, and net monthly income (gross minus allowable deductions) must be ≤100% of FPL. The USDA/FNS posts the official numeric tables for FY2025 (effective Oct. 1, 2024 – Sept. 30, 2025) listing the monthly dollar amounts by household size [1] [2].
2. How to read the tables: gross = 130%, net = 100%
The policy is straightforward: take the federal poverty guideline for the household size, multiply by 1.30 for the gross limit and by 1.00 for the net limit. The SNAP Cost-of-Living Adjustment page and the FY2025 Income Eligibility Standards document provide the applied dollar figures and explain that net income equals gross minus allowable deductions [1] [2].
3. Deductions and why net limits matter
Net income can be substantially lower than gross because SNAP allows deductions — a 20% earned income deduction, a standard deduction (noted as $209 for 1–3 person households in USDA guidance), and other deductions such as shelter, medical for elderly/disabled households, and dependent care. Those deductions are what let many households with gross income above 100% FPL still meet the net test [3].
4. Special rules for elderly/disabled households and assets
Households that include someone age 60+ or with a disability are generally exempt from the gross-income test and only must meet the net income limit; they also face different asset considerations (for example, many state notices reference an asset threshold like $4,500 for such households) [1] [5] [4]. Available sources do not mention any FY2025 federal change to that basic exemption rule [1].
5. State-level variation and categorical eligibility
States may adopt broad-based categorical eligibility (BBCE) and other flexibilities that effectively raise income/resource limits or relax asset counting; USDA notes that SNAP gross/net limits are higher in Alaska and Hawaii and that most state agencies use BBCE to align SNAP with their TANF or MOE rules [3] [1]. For precise monthly dollar cutoffs in your state, consult the USDA FY2025 tables and your state SNAP office because printed federal tables are a baseline and states can extend eligibility [2] [3].
6. Practical example and where people get confused
Media and assistance organizations sometimes report “income limits by household size” as a single number, which causes confusion: the correct approach is to check two numbers (gross and net) and then apply deductions to see which test binds. Consumer guides and state pages illustrate this with examples (e.g., a two-person household’s net limit is shown as 100% of poverty on FY2025 tables), but users must apply deductions to their actual gross pay to know if they pass the net test [2] [6].
7. Recent and upcoming adjustments — context and caveats
USDA adjusts these tables annually for cost-of-living; FY2026 adjustments take effect Oct. 1, 2025, and sources note modest increases in 2026 limits and benefits [1] [7]. Separately, major legislative changes in 2025 affected program rules (for example, work requirement enforcement and some eligibility pathways) and may change who remains eligible even if income thresholds are unchanged; summaries of those reforms are covered by policy analysts [8]. For FY2025 limits themselves, the authoritative numeric tables are the USDA FY2025 Income Eligibility Standards [2].
Limitations: this report cites USDA/FNS FY2025 guidance and related state summaries in the provided sources; it does not publish the full numeric table text here. For the exact dollar amounts by household size, consult the USDA FY2025 Income Eligibility Standards PDF and the SNAP eligibility pages linked above [2] [3].