For 2026, the 100% federal poverty level is $15,960 a year for a single person and $33,000 for a family of four in the 48 contiguous states and Washington, D.C. The Department of Health and Human Services publishes these figures each year, and dozens of federal programs use them to decide who qualifies for help. Alaska and Hawaii use higher numbers to reflect the cost of living there.
2026 Dollar Amounts by Household Size
HHS publishes three tables. In the contiguous states and D.C., each additional household member adds $5,680 to the threshold.
48 Contiguous States and Washington, D.C.
- 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
For households larger than eight, add $5,680 per additional person.1U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. 2026 Poverty Guidelines
Alaska
- 1 person: $19,950
- 2 people: $27,050
- 3 people: $34,150
- 4 people: $41,250
Each additional person adds $7,100.1U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. 2026 Poverty Guidelines
Hawaii
- 1 person: $18,360
- 2 people: $24,890
- 3 people: $31,420
- 4 people: $37,950
Each additional person adds $6,530.1U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. 2026 Poverty Guidelines
These are gross annual figures. If a program asks for monthly income, divide by 12. A single person in the contiguous states sitting exactly at 100% FPL earns $1,330 per month before taxes.
How Your Income Is Measured Against the Line
Most programs that use the FPL compare it to your Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI). MAGI is not a line on your tax return. You calculate it by taking your adjusted gross income (line 11 of Form 1040) and adding back any untaxed foreign income, non-taxable Social Security benefits, and tax-exempt interest.2HealthCare.gov. What’s Included as Income
What counts: federal taxable wages, tips, self-employment income after business expenses, capital gains, investment income, rental and royalty income, retirement or pension distributions, unemployment compensation, Social Security benefits including the non-taxable portion, and alimony from divorces finalized before January 1, 2019.2HealthCare.gov. What’s Included as Income
What doesn’t: child support you receive, Supplemental Security Income, gifts, loan proceeds, Veterans’ disability payments, workers’ compensation, and alimony from divorces finalized on or after January 1, 2019. The child support exclusion matters. A parent receiving $500 a month in child support does not add that $6,000 to MAGI, which can keep income below the 100% line.2HealthCare.gov. What’s Included as Income
How Household Size Is Counted
Your household size decides which row of the table applies. For most FPL-based programs, it follows your tax household: the primary filer, a spouse filing jointly, and everyone claimed as a dependent. A dependent child away at college still counts.
Roommates and adult children are where mistakes happen. A roommate who files their own return and isn’t claimed as your dependent is a separate household, even at the same address. An adult child age 19 or older living at home but not claimed on your return is likewise a separate household of one (plus their own spouse or minor children, if any). In shared custody, the parent who claims the child as a tax dependent includes that child; the other parent doesn’t, even for months the child stays with them.
What the 100% FPL Line Actually Triggers
The 100% mark works as an on-off switch for several major programs. Landing just above or just below it can change what you qualify for.
Marketplace Premium Tax Credit
To get help paying for a Marketplace health plan, your household income must be at least 100% of the FPL. That floor is written into the statute.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 36B – Refundable Credit for Coverage Under a Qualified Health Plan The credit slides with income, with larger subsidies at lower incomes.4Internal Revenue Service. Eligibility for the Premium Tax Credit
For 2026, the enhanced credits from the American Rescue Plan Act and Inflation Reduction Act have expired. The standard rules are back: the credit is available only between 100% and 400% of the FPL, and required premium contributions as a share of income are higher than during 2021–2025.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 36B – Refundable Credit for Coverage Under a Qualified Health Plan
The Medicaid Coverage Gap
The 100% floor for Marketplace subsidies creates a gap in roughly ten states that never adopted the ACA’s Medicaid expansion. Congress wrote the law assuming every state would expand Medicaid up to 138% FPL, so subsidies were set to start at 100%. When expansion became optional and some states declined, adults below 100% FPL in those states often qualify for neither program: traditional Medicaid there may reach only parents, pregnant women, and people with disabilities at very low income levels, and subsidies require at least 100% FPL. An estimated 1.6 million people fall in this gap. Options are limited to state-funded programs, community health centers, and charity care.
SNAP
SNAP applies two income tests tied to the poverty guidelines. The gross monthly income limit is 130% of the FPL: for 2026, $1,696 for a single person and $3,483 for a family of four. The net income test, applied after deductions for housing, dependent care, and other expenses, sits at 100% of the FPL.5Food and Nutrition Service. SNAP Eligibility A household can pass the gross test and still fail on net, or vice versa.
WIC
WIC’s income cutoff is 185% of the FPL, and federal rules bar states from setting the WIC limit below 100% of the guidelines.6Food and Nutrition Service. WIC Income Eligibility Guidelines Anyone at 100% FPL who is pregnant, postpartum, breastfeeding, or caring for a child under five meets the income test.
Lifeline
Lifeline, which discounts phone or internet service, uses 135% of the FPL. Survivors of domestic violence or human trafficking qualify up to 200%. Enrollment in SNAP, Medicaid, or SSI qualifies you automatically regardless of income.7Universal Service Administrative Company. How to Qualify
Poverty Guidelines vs. Poverty Thresholds
Two similar-sounding numbers get confused. The poverty guidelines are the HHS figures above, used to decide program eligibility. The poverty thresholds are a separate Census Bureau set used mainly for statistics, like counting how many Americans live in poverty, and they vary by family composition in ways the guidelines don’t. When someone talks about qualifying at “100% FPL,” they mean the HHS guidelines.8U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Prior HHS Poverty Guidelines and Federal Register References
When the Numbers Change
Federal law requires HHS to revise the guidelines at least once a year.9U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. 2025 Federal Poverty Level Standards The update multiplies the prior year’s figures by the change in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers, and the new numbers usually appear in the Federal Register in January.10Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 USC 9902 – Definitions
Programs adopt the updated figures on different clocks. The Marketplace generally uses new guidelines starting with the next plan year. Medicaid and SNAP typically switch within weeks of publication. WIC updates each July and runs from July 1 through June 30 of the following year.6Food and Nutrition Service. WIC Income Eligibility Guidelines If your income sits close to the line, the timing of when you apply can matter as much as the income itself.