Theft becomes a felony at different dollar amounts depending on where it happens. State thresholds run from $200 at the low end to $2,500 at the high end, with most states landing somewhere between $1,000 and $1,500. Federal law sets its own lines: $1,000 for stealing government property and $5,000 for transporting stolen goods across state lines. And in every jurisdiction, certain kinds of theft are felonies no matter what the property was worth. So how much theft is a felony is really two questions stacked on top of each other: what’s the dollar cutoff in your state, and does something about the theft push it into felony territory on its own?
State Felony Theft Thresholds
Every state draws its own line, and the spread is dramatic. At the low end, one state treats any theft over $200 as felony-level. A handful of others set the bar between $300 and $750. The majority of states fall in the $1,000 to $1,500 range. The highest threshold in the country sits at $2,500.
Those numbers reflect decades of legislative choices, and many haven’t kept pace with inflation. A threshold set at $500 in 1990 would need to be roughly $1,200 today to represent the same purchasing power. States that haven’t updated their laws are effectively criminalizing smaller thefts as felonies each year. Some have periodically raised their thresholds; others haven’t touched them in decades.
The practical stakes are real. Stealing a $900 phone is a misdemeanor in a state with a $1,000 threshold but a felony in one with a $750 cutoff. That distinction can mean the difference between a fine with probation and years in prison with a permanent record.
Federal Felony Theft Thresholds
State law handles most theft prosecutions, but federal charges apply in two common situations: stealing government property and moving stolen goods between states.
Theft of federal government property becomes a felony when the value exceeds $1,000. Below that, the maximum penalty is one year in jail. Above it, a conviction carries up to ten years in federal prison. The statute reaches equipment, records, and money, and courts determine value using whichever measure is highest: face value, market value, or cost price.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 641 – Public Money, Property or Records
Transporting stolen goods across state lines triggers a separate federal statute when the value hits $5,000 or more. The law targets people who knowingly move stolen property in interstate commerce and carries a fine, up to ten years in prison, or both.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 2314 – Transportation of Stolen Goods, Securities, Moneys, Fraudulent State Tax Stamps, or Articles Used in Counterfeiting
When Theft Is a Felony Regardless of Value
The dollar amount isn’t always what matters. Several factors can push a theft into felony territory even when the item’s value falls well below the state threshold.
What Was Stolen
Certain categories of property trigger automatic felony treatment. Stealing a firearm is a felony in nearly every state because of the downstream risk of violence. Motor vehicle theft carries felony charges regardless of what the car is actually worth. Other categories that commonly get this treatment include livestock, government-issued identification documents, and controlled substances.
Who the Victim Was
Many states increase the severity of theft charges when the victim is elderly or has a disability. A theft that would normally be a misdemeanor can become a felony solely because the victim falls into a protected category.
In federal sentencing, a related concept applies when the person committing the theft held a position of trust over the victim. Under the federal sentencing guidelines, a defendant who abused a position of public or private trust can receive a two-level sentencing enhancement, which meaningfully increases the prison term.
Prior Theft Convictions
A person’s record can transform an otherwise minor theft into a felony. Most states escalate charges when someone has prior theft convictions. A second or third shoplifting offense that would be a misdemeanor on its own may be charged as a felony based on the pattern.
These escalation rules come with lookback periods that limit how far back prosecutors can reach. In some states, only convictions within the last five years count. Others use a ten-year window, and some exclude time the person spent incarcerated from the calculation. A prior that falls outside the lookback window won’t trigger the enhancement.
Force, Threats, or a Weapon
Using force, threats, or a weapon during a theft changes the crime entirely. What would have been larceny or shoplifting becomes robbery, which is always a felony regardless of the value of what was taken. The distinction is straightforward: theft involves taking property without the owner’s knowledge or consent; robbery involves taking property directly from a person through intimidation or violence.
The penalty jump is severe. A simple theft of a $50 item might result in a misdemeanor fine. That same $50 theft committed while brandishing a weapon could carry five to twenty-five years in prison, depending on the state and whether anyone was injured. Some states impose mandatory minimums for armed robbery that leave judges no discretion to go lighter.
How Courts Value Stolen Property
When the charge turns on whether the stolen goods meet the felony threshold, valuation becomes the central battleground. Courts use “fair market value,” which the Supreme Court has defined as the price a willing buyer would pay a willing seller, with neither under pressure and both having reasonable knowledge of the relevant facts.3Legal Information Institute (LII). Fair Market Value
For new merchandise taken from a store shelf, fair market value is usually the retail price tag. Used goods are messier. A two-year-old laptop isn’t worth what it sold for new, and courts must account for age, wear, and depreciation at the time of the theft. This is not the same as replacement cost, which is what it would take to buy a new version of the item. Defense attorneys know the distinction, and it’s often where misdemeanor and felony charges live or die.
For unique items like artwork, jewelry, or collectibles, both sides may hire expert appraisers who testify to different valuations. If the prosecution’s appraiser says a stolen painting is worth $2,000 and the defense expert says $800, the jury decides which number is right. In federal cases involving government property, the statute specifies that value means face value, market value, or cost price, whichever is greatest.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 641 – Public Money, Property or Records
Combining Multiple Thefts Into One Felony
A person can face felony theft charges even if no single stolen item meets the dollar threshold. Prosecutors use a doctrine called aggregation to combine the value of multiple smaller thefts into one total. If that combined figure crosses the felony line, the defendant faces a single felony count instead of several misdemeanors.
Aggregation requires the thefts to be part of a single scheme or ongoing course of conduct. An employee who skims $100 from the register every week for three months could be charged with one felony based on the full amount rather than a dozen separate misdemeanors. The same logic applies to organized shoplifting operations that target multiple stores.4United States Department of Justice. Criminal Resource Manual 1013 – Aggregation
The rules vary. Some jurisdictions require all the thefts to have occurred within a specific time window. In federal cases, at least one circuit court has held that the thefts must fall within the same one-year period required by the underlying statute.4United States Department of Justice. Criminal Resource Manual 1013 – Aggregation Proving that a series of small thefts were connected rather than random is the prosecutor’s burden. For embezzlement and organized retail theft, the pattern is usually clear enough that aggregation succeeds.
What a Felony Theft Conviction Costs
The prison sentence is only the beginning. A felony theft conviction creates lasting legal and practical consequences.
Federal law prohibits anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year of imprisonment from possessing firearms or ammunition. This applies to all felony theft convictions, not just violent ones.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 922 – Unlawful Acts Voting rights are affected in most states, though the rules vary. Some states restore voting rights automatically upon release from prison, others require completion of parole or probation, and a few require a separate petition.
Employment becomes significantly harder. Most job applications ask about felony convictions, and a theft conviction specifically signals dishonesty to employers. Licensed professions are often out of reach entirely. States routinely revoke or deny professional credentials in fields like teaching, nursing, real estate, and finance after a felony theft conviction. Housing applications face similar scrutiny, as most landlords run background checks and many have policies against renting to people with felony records.
Beyond the criminal penalties, theft victims can pursue civil recovery separately. A majority of states allow retailers to send civil demand letters to people accused of shoplifting, seeking payment of several hundred dollars regardless of whether criminal charges were filed. Courts also routinely order restitution as part of a criminal sentence, requiring the defendant to repay the full value of what was stolen plus, in some cases, interest that accrues until the balance is paid.
Expungement is possible in some states but typically requires waiting several years after completing the sentence, filing a petition, paying filing fees that can run up to $400, and convincing a judge that the record should be sealed. Not every state allows felony expungement, and even where it’s available, certain categories of theft convictions may be excluded.