If you’re living in a shelter or without stable housing, you can get free phones through the federal Lifeline program, which pays a $9.25 monthly service discount that many wireless carriers use to cover an entire basic plan and a smartphone at no cost to you.1https://www.usac.org/lifeline/ Not having a permanent address adds a few steps, but the program is built to work for people in your situation.
Who Qualifies
There are two paths in. You either meet the income limit, or you already receive certain federal benefits.
The income limit is 135% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines. For 2026 in the 48 contiguous states, D.C., and U.S. territories, that means $21,546 for one person, $29,214 for two, $36,882 for three, and $44,550 for four. Alaska and Hawaii use higher figures — a single person qualifies at $26,933 in Alaska and $24,786 in Hawaii.
The faster path is program-based. You automatically qualify if you or anyone in your household receives Medicaid, SNAP, Supplemental Security Income, Federal Public Housing Assistance, or the Veterans Pension and Survivors Benefit. Medicaid and SNAP matter most here because neither requires a permanent address to enroll, and if you’re already on either one, the National Verifier can usually confirm you through federal databases without extra paperwork.
One rule catches people in shared living situations: Lifeline is limited to one benefit per household, but a household is defined as people who live together and share income and expenses. USAC’s own example is a 30-person assisted-living facility counting as 30 households. The same logic applies in a shelter. If you manage your own money, you’re your own household, regardless of how many people sleep at the same address.
The Address Question
You do have to give Lifeline an address, but it doesn’t have to be a home. Two options work:
- A shelter’s address, if the facility agrees to receive mail for you.
- A descriptive location, such as the cross streets where you stay.
Whichever you use, the name on every document you submit has to match the name on the application exactly. Misspellings and mismatched birth dates are the most common reason automated eligibility checks fail. Fix those before you send anything in.
Documents to Gather First
Having your paperwork ready before you start prevents the delays that stall most applications. You need three things.
Identity. A document showing your date of birth — a driver’s license, U.S. passport, birth certificate, or any unexpired government-issued photo ID. You also need something showing your name and the last four digits of your Social Security number, or a Tribal ID number.
Eligibility. If you qualify through a program, bring a benefit award letter, statement of benefits, or verification letter that shows your name, the program name, the issuing agency, and a date within the last 12 months. A screenshot from an online benefits portal counts. If you qualify through income, bring last year’s federal or state tax return, or documents showing three consecutive months of income (such as pay stubs) dated within the past year.
Address. Whatever shelter address or cross-street description you plan to use.
How to Apply
There are three routes, and the best one depends on what you have access to.
Through a Participating Carrier
For most people without stable housing, this is the easiest option. Staff at a Lifeline carrier can walk you through the application in person or by phone and fix problems as they come up. Use USAC’s Companies Near Me tool at cnm.universalservice.org to search by zip code and see which carriers operate where you are. National providers like SafeLink Wireless and Q Link Wireless cover most of the country, but availability varies. If a carrier is going to ship you a phone, use the zip code where you can actually pick up mail.
Online
The National Verifier at lifelinesupport.org runs an automated check against federal databases as soon as you enter your information. If it confirms you, approval can come quickly. If it can’t, you’ll be asked to upload digital copies of your documents for manual review.
By Mail
You can download FCC Form 5629 from lifelinesupport.org or request a paper copy by calling the Lifeline Support Center at 1-800-234-9473. Mail the form and copies of your documents to USAC’s Lifeline Support Center in Horseheads, New York. Mail adds weeks to the timeline but works when internet access isn’t reliable.
What You Get
The federal subsidy is $9.25 a month, which the carrier must pass through to you in full. Several national wireless carriers build free plans around that subsidy: a basic smartphone plus a monthly allotment of talk, text, and data at no cost to the subscriber. For 2026, the FCC requires mobile Lifeline plans to include at least 1,000 voice minutes and 4.5 GB of data each month. Some carriers offer more to attract subscribers.
If you live on federally recognized Tribal lands, the benefit is larger — up to $34.25 a month, and a separate program called Link Up can add a one-time credit toward starting service. Ask the carrier whether they participate in Link Up before you assume it’s available.
Keeping the Phone Active
Two rules can cost you the service if you don’t watch for them.
The 30-day usage rule. If your plan has no monthly fee (which describes most free-phone plans), you have to use the service at least once every 30 days. A call, a text, or any data use counts. Go 30 days without using it and the carrier sends a 15-day warning. Ignore that window and your account is terminated. A single text resets the clock, so if you tend to go stretches without using your phone, set a reminder.
Annual recertification. Once a year, USAC checks whether you still qualify. If federal databases confirm you automatically, you do nothing. If they can’t, you’ll get a recertification form and have 60 days to respond with proof. Miss the 60 days and you’re de-enrolled — service cut off, and you’d have to start the whole application over.
Switching Carriers or Replacing a Phone
You can move your Lifeline benefit to a different carrier whenever you want. Contact the new provider, give them your name, date of birth, last four of your Social Security number, and consent to end service with the old one. In most cases there’s no gap in coverage.
Lifeline pays for service, not device insurance. If your phone is lost, stolen, or broken, replacement policy is up to the carrier. Some sell a replacement at a reduced price; others will send a new SIM card if you can supply a compatible phone. There’s no standard national fee, so ask your carrier what they do before you need to know.