You can sell food from your home in every state, but only certain foods and only under the rules of that state’s cottage food law. These laws create a legal shortcut for small-scale food sellers: skip the commercial kitchen, the health inspections, and most of the licensing, in exchange for accepting limits on what you make, how much you earn, and who you sell to. The specifics vary so much between states that the first real step is looking up your own state’s program through its health department.
What You Can Make and What You Can’t
Cottage food laws cover shelf-stable foods that stay safe at room temperature. If a product’s low moisture or high acidity keeps bacteria from growing on a shelf, it usually qualifies. If it needs refrigeration to stay safe, it usually doesn’t.
Foods commonly permitted:
- Breads, cookies, brownies, muffins, and fruit pies (no cream, custard, or meat fillings)
- Jams, jellies, and fruit butters
- Candy, fudge, and chocolate
- Dried herbs, roasted coffee beans, dry baking mixes, and granola
Foods that are almost universally off-limits:
- Cheesecakes, cream-filled pastries, and custard pies
- Jerky, smoked meats, and anything containing meat or fish
- Cooked vegetables, salsa that needs refrigeration, and most canned goods
Homemade pet treats are a common assumption that doesn’t hold. Pet food falls under separate commercial feed laws administered by state agriculture departments, not health departments, so dog biscuits need their own license and labeling even when the ingredients look like human food.
Where You’re Allowed to Sell
Cottage food laws are built for direct-to-consumer sales. You sell to the person who eats the food. That typically covers selling from your home, at farmers’ markets, from roadside stands, and at community events like craft fairs and church bazaars.
Wholesale is where most states draw a hard line. Selling to a grocery store or restaurant that will resell your product is generally not allowed under a cottage food permit. A few states are opening narrow exceptions, but the default rule stands: if someone else is reselling it, you’ve left cottage food territory.
Selling Online and Shipping
Online sales are getting easier. More states now let cottage food operators take orders through a website or social media, with conditions. The most common one is that you or someone in your household personally delivers the product rather than shipping it. Some states require the same information that appears on your label to appear on your website before checkout. A handful allow shipping within state borders, and many of those require you to keep records of shipped orders for at least a year.
No state allows shipping cottage food across state lines. Crossing a state border triggers federal food safety requirements that cottage food operations aren’t built to meet. Keep every sale inside your state.
How Much You Can Earn
Most states cap annual revenue for cottage food businesses. The range is wide: some caps start as low as $2,500, others reach $250,000, and the common middle sits between $25,000 and $75,000. About a dozen “food freedom” states set no cap at all.
The cap is on gross revenue, not profit. Every dollar a customer pays counts, no matter what you spent on ingredients. A baker who sells $50,000 of bread but spent $35,000 on flour and packaging has still hit a $50,000 ceiling. Check your state’s number before you build a business plan on projected sales, because hitting the cap means moving into a commercially licensed and inspected kitchen.
Labeling Your Products
Every state requires labeling. The specifics vary, but most states require at minimum:
- The name and physical address of your operation (some states now accept a registration number instead)
- A complete ingredient list in descending order by weight
- A statement that the food is homemade, usually phrased something like “Made in a home kitchen not inspected by the state”
Allergen Disclosure
Federal law requires packaged food labels to identify nine major allergens: milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, soybeans, and sesame. Sesame was added as the ninth in 2023 under the FASTER Act.1U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The FASTER Act – Sesame Is the Ninth Major Food Allergen
You can meet the requirement by naming the allergen in parentheses after the ingredient that contains it, or by adding a “Contains:” statement right after your ingredient list.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 21 U.S. Code 343 – Misbranded Food If your cookies contain wheat flour, butter, and eggs, someone scanning for allergens should be able to see that at a glance. This is both a labeling rule and a safety issue.
Permits, Training, and Inspections
Permit requirements vary widely. Some states require you to register with the health department and get a permit before your first sale. Others require nothing beyond following the labeling and sales rules. A few states explicitly bar local governments from requiring their own cottage food permits or fees.
Where registration exists, it usually involves giving your name and address, listing the products you plan to sell, and sometimes submitting sample labels for review. Fees range from nothing to a few hundred dollars, and most states charging anything charge under $50 for annual or biennial registration.
Most states also require a basic food handler safety course covering food handling, temperature control, and sanitation. These run online and typically cost under $10.
Separate from the cottage food permit, you may need a general business license from your city or county and a sales tax permit from your state’s revenue agency if your state taxes food sales.
Home kitchens are generally exempt from routine health inspections under cottage food laws. The exemption has limits, though. If a customer reports a foodborne illness, or the health department has cause to believe unsafe food is being produced, most states authorize an investigation. Clean practices aren’t optional just because no inspector is on the calendar.
Zoning and HOA Rules Can Override State Permission
A state cottage food permit doesn’t guarantee your neighborhood allows a food business. Local zoning and HOA rules operate independently, and either can shut you down.
Many residential zones allow home-based businesses only under strict conditions: no outside employees, no signage, no customer traffic that disrupts neighbors, no exterior alterations, and limits on how much of the home is used for business. A cottage food operation with a Saturday-morning line at the front door can violate these rules even when the food itself is fully legal.
HOA restrictions can be tighter. Covenants limiting properties to “residential use only” are routinely enforced by courts against commercial activity. If your governing documents contain that language, producing food for sale can violate your agreement no matter what state law says. Read your local zoning code and your HOA covenants before you spend on supplies and marketing.
Paying Taxes on Cottage Food Income
Cottage food income is taxable. The IRS treats you as a self-employed sole proprietor, so you report business income and expenses on Schedule C.3Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Schedule C (Form 1040)
If your net profit reaches $400 or more in a tax year, you also owe self-employment tax at 15.3%, which covers Social Security and Medicare.4Internal Revenue Service. Self-Employment Tax (Social Security and Medicare Taxes) On $20,000 of net profit, that’s roughly $3,060 before regular income tax. Setting aside 25 to 30% of your profits for taxes is a reasonable starting point.
Ordinary business expenses reduce your taxable income. Common deductions for cottage food operations include ingredients and packaging, equipment like a stand mixer or dehydrator, farmers’ market fees, business insurance premiums, and mileage driven for deliveries and supply runs. If you use a dedicated part of your home only for the business, you can also claim the simplified home office deduction of $5 per square foot, up to 300 square feet, for a maximum of $1,500.5Internal Revenue Service. Simplified Option for Home Office Deduction Keep receipts. A basic spreadsheet of income and expenses by date is enough for most operations, but you need the documentation behind it.
Insurance You Probably Need
Standard homeowners policies typically exclude business activities at home. If a customer gets sick from your product, or a farmers’ market visitor trips on your display, your homeowners insurer will likely deny the claim. A single foodborne illness complaint can generate legal costs that dwarf a year’s cottage food revenue.
Product liability policies written for cottage food businesses fill this gap. A typical policy provides $1 million per occurrence and $2 million aggregate, with annual premiums for small operations starting around $300. Many farmers’ markets require proof of liability insurance before letting you set up a booth, and naming the market as an additional insured usually adds $50 to $100 a year. Insurance won’t protect you from selling prohibited foods or skipping label rules, but it’s a financial backstop for the risks that come with feeding people even when you’re doing everything right.