Texas SNAP Income Limits for 2026

The Texas Health and Human Services Commission administers SNAP in Texas. The official application is free, online at Your Texas Benefits — the state's portal for SNAP, Medicaid, and related programs. If you prefer paper, HHSC's Form H1010 application can be printed or mailed to you. No fee, product, or paid preparer is ever required to apply.

Disclosure: Money Hope Now is an independent publisher and is not part of the Texas Health and Human Services Commission or USDA. Applying for SNAP through the official Texas portal is free. This page provides general information and does not determine eligibility.

The income figures below are effective October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026.

Household size	Texas BBCE gross screen (165%)	Regular federal gross (130%)	Regular federal net (100%)
1	$2,152	$1,696	$1,305
2	$2,909	$2,292	$1,763
3	$3,665	$2,888	$2,221
4	$4,421	$3,483	$2,680
5	$5,177	$4,079	$3,138
6	$5,934	$4,675	$3,596
7	$6,690	$5,271	$4,055
8	$7,446	$5,867	$4,513
Each additional	+$757	+$596	+$459

Monthly SNAP income standards for Texas, effective October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026 (federal fiscal year 2026). All figures are monthly and apply to the 48 contiguous states and D.C. To use the table: count the people in your SNAP household using SNAP household rules rather than your tax household or everyone at your address, add the household's countable gross monthly income before deductions, compare it with the Texas screening column, and apply — collecting proof of childcare, child-support, shelter, utility, and eligible medical costs as you go. The dollar values in all three columns come from USDA's FY 2026 COLA tables; the 165 percent column is the ceiling Texas applies because of its BBCE gross-income framework, confirmed in the Texas Works Handbook's categorical-eligibility rules. HHSC determines which rules apply to a household. Sources checked August 5, 2026.

Data status: Verified — every row above is supported by a current primary source, with the federal dollar values from USDA FNA's FY 2026 COLA tables and the Texas 165 percent rule from HHSC's Texas Works Handbook. Review dates are in the methodology section.

What these figures are not. They are not benefit amounts. Income limits decide whether a household may qualify; the monthly benefit is calculated separately from net income, and the FY 2026 maximum for a four-person household in the 48 states and D.C. is $994 — most households receive less. Our SNAP application and eligibility guide covers how benefit amounts are figured. They are also not an approval: a published standard describes a rule, not your case.

If you have compared Texas SNAP numbers across several websites, the disagreement usually comes down to which column a page chose to show. National articles often print only the federal 130 percent gross figure, which makes Texas look stricter than it is for most applicants. The 100 percent net column matters after deductions, and mainly for households outside the BBCE pathway. None of the three columns is a personal answer; each is a published standard that HHSC applies alongside household, resource, and nonfinancial rules. For how the full program works beyond income — interviews, renewals, work rules, and benefit amounts — see our national SNAP application and eligibility guide.

This page covers Texas only. Income ceilings differ by state because each state sets its own categorical-eligibility policy, and neighboring states' figures do not apply here. If you live outside Texas, use USDA's SNAP State Directory of Resources to reach your own state agency and its published limits, and USDA's BBCE state chart to see which ceiling your state uses.

Who actually runs Texas SNAP

Call this the four-layer answer. Four layers produce the answer a household actually receives, and each layer changes something different:

Layer	Who decides	What it changes for you
Federal baseline	USDA Food and Nutrition Administration	The fiscal-year income standards, deduction amounts, and national rules — the numbers in the table.
State implementation	Texas HHSC, through the Texas Works Handbook	Texas's BBCE screening ceiling, resource framework, and processing rules — which test applies and where you apply.
Local delivery	HHSC eligibility offices and 2-1-1	Interviews, document handling, and the day-to-day handling of your case.
Individual determination	Your HHSC case decision	The only answer that is actually yours — with the fair-hearing path if you disagree.

Which rules apply to your household

Texas does not run one income test. It runs the four Texas pathways, and which one you fall into changes which figures matter. All four are federal rules as Texas administers them; none of them costs anything to be screened for. Work through these in order, one question at a time:

Is anyone in your household age 60 or older, or living with a disability? If yes, the gross-income test does not apply to your household at all. Go straight to the net test and the deductions section — a gross income well above $4,421 for four people can still end in an approval.
If no — is your gross monthly income at or below the 165 percent figure for your household size, and are your countable liquid resources plus excess vehicle value $5,000 or less? If yes, Texas treats your household as categorically eligible, and neither the 130 percent gross test nor the 100 percent net test applies to you.
If neither of the above fits — the regular rules apply: 130 percent of poverty gross, and 100 percent of poverty net after deductions.
Separately, do you have almost no income or cash on hand right now? Expedited screening runs on top of whichever branch fits you. It is an overlay on your application, not a different application.

The same four pathways, side by side:

Pathway	Gross income test	Net income test	Resource test	Not a fit when	Deadline in play
Categorical eligibility (most Texas households)	At or below 165% of poverty	Does not apply	Liquid resources plus excess vehicle value at or below $5,000	A member is disqualified, or the primary wage earner did not meet work or voluntary-quit rules	Benefits start from your filing date, not the date you decide
Regular rules, no member 60+ or with a disability	At or below 130% of poverty	At or below 100% after deductions	Same $5,000 limit, per HHSC	A member is 60 or older or has a disability — the next row applies	Same filing-date rule
Regular rules, a member 60+ or with a disability	Does not apply	At or below 100% after deductions	Same $5,000 limit, per HHSC	No member meets the program's definitions of elderly or disability	Same filing-date rule
Expedited service (an overlay, not a pathway)	Screened on whichever pathway applies	Screened on whichever pathway applies	Liquid resources of $100 or less, for two of the three criteria	Your income and cash on hand exceed all three expedited criteria above	Participation by the seventh calendar day if you meet a criterion
Not applying	Not applicable	Not applicable	Not applicable	You are uncertain — SNAP is not backdated, so weeks spent deciding are not paid later	Every week not filed is a week of benefits that will not be paid later

The route in is the same for every row and it is free: apply through Your Texas Benefits and let HHSC decide which test to run. What changes by row is what you should make sure HHSC actually sees — your resource and vehicle values in the first row, your deductible expenses in the second, medical costs above $35 a month and all shelter costs in the third, and your cash on hand against your rent in the fourth. The gross-test exemption in the third row is the one households miss most often, and it is stated in the Texas Works Handbook's income-limits section.

Who counts in your SNAP household

Household size decides which row of the table applies to you, and SNAP defines "household" more narrowly than an address and differently from a tax return. The baseline federal rule, described on USDA's SNAP eligibility page, is that a SNAP household is the people who live together and buy and prepare food together. Roommates who genuinely purchase and cook separately can be separate SNAP households at the same address.

Two groups are combined regardless of how they handle food. Spouses who live together are one SNAP household. And a person under 22 who lives with a parent or stepparent is generally part of the parent's SNAP household even if they buy and prepare food separately. Getting this wrong in either direction changes the row you compare against — a larger household has a higher screening figure, but it also must count every member's income.

There is one frequently missed exception. A person who is age 60 or older and unable to purchase and prepare meals separately because of a lasting disability may, in limited circumstances, be treated as a separate household together with their spouse — but only if the income of the others they live with falls at or below 165 percent of poverty. That is the same set of dollar figures as the first column of the table above, which is why USDA publishes that column under the heading for elderly or disabled separate households. The conditions are specific, so if this may describe someone in your home, read USDA's special rules for elderly or disabled members before settling on a household size.

If you have separated from someone in your household because the situation was unsafe, household composition may not match what an address suggests. Describe your living arrangement on the application, and 2-1-1 can connect you with local advocates who work with these situations.

This page deliberately stops there. Disputed custody arrangements, foster placements, boarders, students, and facility residents each have their own composition rules that belong to the full program guide, not an income-limit table. If your composition is genuinely unclear, list everyone on the application and explain the living arrangement; HHSC applies the composition rules as part of its determination, and describing your situation accurately is all the application asks of you.

Gross income, net income, and the Texas BBCE rule

Gross monthly income is your household's countable income before SNAP deductions — wages, self-employment income after allowable business costs, and unearned income such as Social Security, unemployment, or child support received. Net monthly income is countable income after the deductions SNAP allows. Neither one is simply take-home pay: some money you receive is excluded, and the deductions are program-specific.

Texas's distinctive feature is broad-based categorical eligibility. Texas operates a TANF-funded, non-cash benefit whose recipients are "categorically eligible" for SNAP screening purposes, and USDA's BBCE state chart lists Texas with a 165 percent of poverty gross-income ceiling and a $5,000 asset framework for that pathway. Practically, that is why the first column of the table above is higher than what national articles show.

HHSC's Texas Works Handbook states the two categorical-eligibility criteria — gross income at or below 165 percent of poverty, and countable liquid resources plus excess vehicle value of $5,000 or less — in its categorical-eligibility section. That section also makes the limit of the idea explicit: categorical eligibility does not mean an applicant automatically receives SNAP, and a household can fall out of the pathway when a member is disqualified.

Households outside that pathway are measured against the regular federal standards in the handbook's income-limits section: the 130 percent gross test, which does not apply to households with a member who is age 60 or older or who has a disability, and the 100 percent net test after deductions. Two details in that section are worth knowing. A household subject to the gross test is ineligible if its unrounded gross income exceeds the limit by as little as one cent — which is exactly why reporting deductible expenses accurately matters more than rounding your own numbers. And for households with a deductible farm loss, the loss is subtracted before the gross test is applied.

Example (illustrative only): A four-person household has $4,300 in countable gross monthly income — all wages, no excluded income, no farm loss. That is below the $4,421 Texas screening figure for four people, so the household appears within the published FY 2026 screen and applying is the clear next step. Whether the household is approved, and for how much, depends on HHSC's full review — this comparison is a screen, nothing more.

Deductions that can change the result

Deductions are why a household whose gross income sits near or even above a published figure should not conclude anything from the table alone. SNAP subtracts specific expenses from gross income to reach net income, and net income drives both some eligibility tests and the benefit amount. The federal FY 2026 deduction categories and values, from USDA's eligibility page and FY 2026 COLA tables for the 48 states and D.C., are:

Earned-income deduction. 20 percent of earned income is subtracted off the top.
Standard deduction. $209 per month for households of one to three people, $223 for four, $261 for five, and $299 for six or more (FY 2026).
Dependent-care costs. Out-of-pocket childcare or other dependent care needed for work, training, or education.
Child support. Legally obligated child-support payments made to someone outside the household.
Medical expenses. Costs above $35 per month for household members who are age 60 or older or have a disability — premiums, prescriptions, and other allowable costs. Other members' medical bills do not count.
Homeless shelter deduction. A set deduction of $198.99 per month in FY 2026 for qualifying households experiencing homelessness that pay some shelter costs.
Excess shelter deduction. Shelter and utility costs above half of the household's income after all other deductions, capped at $744 per month in FY 2026 for most households. Households with a member who is elderly or has a disability are not subject to the cap, as HHSC confirms in the handbook's section on households with elderly members or members with a disability.

Two things trip people up. First, deductions are not automatic. HHSC can only subtract an expense the household reports and, when asked, documents — an unreported $600 childcare bill helps you exactly zero. Second, the order matters: the excess-shelter deduction is calculated after the others, so high rent alone does not translate into a predictable number without the full budget.

Example (illustrative only): A working household pays $980 in rent plus utilities and $520 in documented childcare. The childcare is potentially deductible in full as dependent care, and the housing costs may support an excess-shelter deduction — but only after the earned-income and standard deductions are applied, and only to the extent the costs exceed half of the remaining income. This page cannot compute the outcome, and that is by design: report the expenses on the official application, provide the proofs listed in the application section below, and HHSC will calculate the budget it is required to use.

Assets and vehicles in Texas

For most Texas applicants, resources are handled inside the BBCE framework rather than as a separate hurdle. The Texas Works Handbook's resource policy sets the test plainly: to meet it, a household's countable liquid resources plus excess vehicle value must be $5,000 or less. Liquid resources are things like cash and money in checking or savings accounts; a home you live in is not counted, and most retirement accounts and many other items are excluded under the federal rules linked from USDA's eligibility page.

Vehicles get Texas-specific treatment, and the numbers are more generous than most households expect. Up to $22,500 of the fair market value of the household's highest-valued countable vehicle is exempt, and up to $8,700 of the value of each additional countable vehicle; only value above those amounts counts toward the $5,000 figure. Texas raised these exclusions from $15,000 and $4,650 under House Bill 1287, which added Section 33.021 to the Human Resources Code and took effect September 1, 2023; HHSC's rules were conformed in 2026. The current figures have applied to Texas cases since 2024, so a denial from an earlier year was decided under a different rule. This is why owning a reliable car does not, by itself, put a household over the limit.

If you want to check the $5,000 figure for yourself before you apply, the arithmetic is short:

Add up your household's liquid resources — cash, checking, and savings.
Take the fair market value of your highest-valued countable vehicle and subtract $22,500. If the answer is zero or less, that vehicle adds nothing.
For each additional countable vehicle, subtract $8,700 from its fair market value the same way.
Add the amounts from steps 1 through 3. If the total is $5,000 or less, your household meets the resource part of the categorical-eligibility test.

That result is a screen, not a determination — HHSC applies exemptions this arithmetic does not capture, and some vehicles are exempt for other reasons entirely. It is meant to spare you the wrong conclusion, not to replace the agency's.

That same $5,000 is HHSC's published SNAP resource limit generally, not only a categorical-eligibility criterion. The Texas Works Handbook's resource limits section states that a SNAP household is ineligible when countable resources exceed $5,000, with no separate figure for households that include an older member or a member with a disability. The federal FY 2026 standards are lower — $3,000, or $4,500 where a member is 60 or older or has a disability — but those are the national floor, not what HHSC tells its staff to apply in a Texas case. Resources sitting between the federal figure and $5,000 are a reason to apply, not a reason to rule yourself out.

Do not read any of this as "assets never matter in Texas." Additional vehicles have their own valuation rules, and transferring a resource to qualify carries a penalty period. If your household holds resources near the limit, list them accurately; HHSC applies the exemptions, and guessing at valuations yourself helps no one.

How to apply through Texas HHSC

Man photographing pay stubs with his phone at a bright Texas home desk, fan turning beside him

Apply free on Your Texas Benefits — the official HHSC portal. You can create an account, complete the SNAP application online, upload documents, and check case status in one place. If you prefer or need paper, the official H1010 application form is available to print or request by mail; the same page lists Form H0011 for the Texas Simplified Application Project — use that form only if the form page indicates your household qualifies for it.

Your application date is the thing worth protecting. Approved SNAP benefits are prorated from the date of application under federal application-processing rules, and SNAP does not backdate — a household that waits three weeks to apply does not receive those three weeks later. Filing before every document is in hand protects your start date; verification can follow.

Gather documents in these categories as you are able:

Identity for the person applying
Texas address (lease, utility bill, or similar)
Who lives in the household
Income for each member (pay stubs, self-employment records, benefit letters)
Rent or mortgage and utility costs
Childcare or dependent-care costs
Child-support orders and proof of payments made
Medical expenses for members who are age 60 or older or have a disability
Bank or resource information, when HHSC requests it

After you apply, expect an interview and requests for any missing proof. Two federal timing standards apply. For an ordinary application, the state has 30 days from the filing date to determine eligibility and, for an eligible household, provide an opportunity to participate. For a household that meets the expedited criteria described at the top of this page, that standard drops to the seventh calendar day. Both are processing standards rather than delivery promises — a case can run longer when the interview or requested documents are outstanding — so if your situation is urgent, say so explicitly when you apply and again in the interview.

What this page does not decide. This page covers income, household size, deductions, and resources. Three other screens can decide a case on their own. Work rules are the most consequential: adults aged 18 through 64 who can work and have no dependent under 14 are generally limited to three months of SNAP in a three-year period unless they meet the ABAWD work requirement of 80 hours a month of work, training, or both, and HHSC began screening Texas cases against the expanded rules on November 1, 2025. Student and non-citizen eligibility are separate screens; USDA notes on its SNAP eligibility page that the One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025 changed work requirements and non-citizen eligibility and that its guidance is still being updated. Our SNAP application and eligibility guide covers all three. Checked August 5, 2026.

Which situation are you in

Your situation	What decides it	Your first step	Deadline in play
No food this week; almost no income or cash	The three expedited-service criteria	Apply and say plainly that you have almost no income or cash; call 2-1-1 the same day	Participation by the seventh day if you meet a criterion
Working, gross income just under the 165 percent figure	Household size and countable gross income	Compare your row, then apply and report childcare and shelter costs	Every week before you file is a week of benefits not paid later
Gross income above the 165 percent figure, high rent or childcare	Which deductions apply and which test you fall under	Gather childcare, child-support, and shelter proof, then apply anyway	None fixed — but you can file first and send proof after
Someone in the household is 60+ or has a disability and the income looks "too high"	The gross-income test does not apply to your household	Apply; report medical costs above $35 a month and all shelter costs	None fixed — the gross figure is not the barrier here
Worried that owning a car disqualifies you	The $22,500 and $8,700 vehicle exclusions against the $5,000 limit	Add liquid resources plus excess vehicle value, compare to $5,000, then apply	None fixed — do not delay filing to sell or transfer anything
Already receiving SNAP; a notice says benefits are ending or dropping	The dates printed on your Notice of Case Action	Request the fair hearing within the notice period so benefits continue during the appeal	The notice period first, then 90 days for the request overall
Denied more than 90 days ago	Whether the hearings officer finds good cause for the delay	Request a hearing anyway and explain the delay; apply again in parallel	Passed, but curable for good cause
No internet or printer, or limited English	How you can reach the application	Request the paper H1010 by mail, or call 2-1-1 for help finding an office	The filing date is what counts, however you file

One limit on all of the above: fluctuating or self-employment income is converted to a monthly figure using program rules, so one strong or weak week is not the answer — report actual income and let HHSC do the conversion. The honest summary is the same either way: the table narrows the question, the application answers it.

If the HHSC decision looks wrong

Start with the Notice of Case Action HHSC sends you. That is the letter stating what was decided, why, and the deadlines that control your case; it is the document every step below refers back to. If the notice cites missing proof, submitting the documents quickly is often the fastest fix.

A fair hearing is the free administrative review that follows if you disagree. An impartial hearings officer who had no part in the original decision listens to both sides and issues a written decision. You do not need a lawyer, there is no filing fee, and you may bring someone to speak for you.

If you are already receiving SNAP and the notice says your benefits are being reduced or ended, there are two different deadlines, and the shorter one is the one that costs money. Under federal rules on continuing benefits, requesting a fair hearing within the period stated on your notice is what keeps your current benefits in place while the appeal is decided. That advance-notice period is short — federal rules require states to allow at least 10 days between the mailing of the notice and the date the change takes effect. Request the hearing after that window and your benefits are reduced or ended as the notice states while you wait, though the agency must restore them if you show good cause for the delay. If the hearing later upholds HHSC, any benefits you received in the meantime can be claimed back — so the choice is worth making deliberately rather than by default.

The outer deadline is longer. Federal rules give a household 90 days from the action to request a hearing, and HHSC's fair and fraud hearings page states that most appeal requests can be made in writing, by calling 2-1-1, or at a local HHSC office within 90 days of the case action or the effective date on the notice, with 120 days for actions taken by a managed care organization. Miss the 90 days and you lose the right to a hearing unless the hearings officer accepts good cause for the late request — the page states that late requests are reviewed on exactly that basis. Use the deadline printed on your own notice as the controlling date. For SNAP appeals, the hearing decision itself is due within 60 days of the request.

Money Hope Now is a publisher, not an advocate or legal service; for free help with an appeal, ask 2-1-1 about legal-aid organizations in your area. Federal rules also require the agency to tell you about free legal representation where it is available, and to give you, without charge, the case materials you need to prepare.

If HHSC says no and the answer is right

Some households are correctly found ineligible. That is a real outcome, and it is not the end of the food question.

Call 2-1-1 and ask about food pantries, mobile distributions, and local emergency assistance in your area; our guide to emergency food and financial help covers the same ground. School meals, WIC, and senior nutrition programs each have their own eligibility rules, which are not the SNAP rules on this page — being turned down for SNAP does not answer whether you qualify for any of them. You can also check other government assistance you may qualify for.

SNAP eligibility is a snapshot, not a permanent status. If your income drops, your household grows, someone turns 60, or your shelter or medical costs rise, the answer can change — and reapplying is free, with no limit on how many times you may apply.

Frequently asked questions

Which income test does Texas actually use for SNAP?

Texas screens most households against its higher BBCE ceiling — the first column of the table — while the lower federal gross and net standards apply to households outside the categorical-eligibility pathway. The four pathways above show which branch fits which situation; HHSC applies the correct test as part of its determination.

Can I apply if my income is over a published limit?

Yes, and applying is free. Household composition, deductions, resource rules, and the elderly or disabled pathway can each change which test applies and how your income is counted. A household close to or somewhat above a screening figure loses nothing by applying, and an official determination from HHSC is the only answer that settles the question.

Do rent and utility costs lower my countable income?

They can, through the excess-shelter deduction — but only after the other deductions are applied, and only for costs above half of your remaining income, with a cap for most households that does not apply when a member is elderly or has a disability. Report your actual housing and utility costs and keep proof; HHSC cannot credit an expense it never sees.

How long does a Texas SNAP decision take?

Federal rules give the state 30 days from the filing date to determine eligibility and give an eligible household an opportunity to participate, or seven calendar days for households meeting the expedited criteria. Both are processing standards, not delivery promises, and only HHSC's written determination is final.

Is applying for SNAP in Texas free?

Yes — always. The official application at Your Texas Benefits and the paper H1010 cost nothing, and no paid preparer, filing service, or "approval help" is ever required. Two patterns are worth watching for: a site that charges an "application assistance" or "processing" fee for something the state does free, and any site or caller promising approval. No one can promise approval — only HHSC decides. The official portal is the state's own site, and 2-1-1 can confirm official channels.

A third pattern affects households already receiving benefits. Card skimming and cloning capture Lone Star Card numbers and PINs at store card readers, and the HHS Office of Inspector General's SNAP skimming page describes what to look for — loose or glued-on pieces at the reader, keys that feel soft or covered, a camera pointed at the PIN pad — and gives the Lone Star Card Help Desk number, 800-777-7328, to cancel a compromised card immediately. Cancel first and ask questions afterward: the Texas Works Handbook's benefit-replacement rules state that HHSC does not replace benefits taken by skimming, cloning, or other fraudulent methods.

How often do Texas SNAP income limits change?

On the federal fiscal-year cycle, effective each October 1 — which is why this table carries an exact effective period rather than a calendar year. The figures rose at the October 1, 2025 adjustment, along with the standard deduction and the shelter cap, so a household just over the line last year may not be this year. That is a reason to check again rather than rely on a past denial. Your own renewal date is a separate thing: HHSC sets a certification period when it approves a case, and the renewal deadline appears on your approval notice rather than following the October cycle. This page's next scheduled review is noted in the methodology section.

Your first step

Grandmother and grandson laughing while making breakfast tacos in a bright Texas kitchen

Gather what proof you reasonably can, then apply free through Your Texas Benefits and let HHSC make the determination — that decision, not any table, is the real answer. Ask about expedited service when you apply if your need is urgent. Once your application is in, it may be worth a few minutes to check other government assistance you may qualify for, and if utility bills are part of the squeeze, our guide to help with utility bills covers that separately.

Methodology, sources, and verification status

This page is built from primary sources in a fixed hierarchy: the Code of Federal Regulations and USDA Food and Nutrition Administration publications for federal rules and the FY 2026 standards, and HHSC's Texas Works Handbook and official portals for Texas implementation, application, and hearings. No figure here is taken from a search snippet alone, a third-party table, or another state's rule, and no expired fiscal year is carried forward. All federal and Texas sources on this page were opened and checked on August 5, 2026.

Money Hope Now is funded by advertising and by commissions on the consumer products we compare in our savings guides. We are not paid for our coverage of government programs, we never charge for help with a benefits application, and there are no affiliate or referral links on this page.

Three source conflicts are worth stating rather than hiding.

Vehicle exclusions. USDA's national BBCE summary chart lists Texas's highest-vehicle exclusion as $22,000, while the Texas Works Handbook applies $22,500. The Texas rule governs how HHSC values a vehicle in a Texas case.
Resource limits. HHSC's published SNAP limit is $5,000 in countable resources with no elderly or disabled variant; the federal FY 2026 standards are $3,000 and $4,500. The HHSC figure is what its staff apply in Texas.
Federal charts versus state charts. HHSC publishes its own income, deduction, and allotment charts in the Texas Works Handbook SNAP appendix, currently effective October 1, 2025. If those ever diverge from the federal tables reproduced above, the HHSC chart governs the determination in a Texas case.

One naming note for anyone checking the sources: USDA's Food and Nutrition Service became the Food and Nutrition Administration on June 1, 2026, and its pages now sit on fna.usda.gov. Older articles and links citing "FNS" refer to the same agency.

Federal standards change on the federal fiscal-year cycle, so the figures above are expected to be replaced effective October 1, 2026. This page is scheduled for review on September 15, 2026 for the Texas sections and November 14, 2026 for the federal figures, with an interim check when the FY 2027 federal standards publish ahead of October 1, 2026. Between scheduled reviews, any figure found to have changed at its official source is corrected here and its verification date updated.

Sources and last verified date

Last verified: August 5, 2026

Next review: September 15, 2026 (Texas sections); November 14, 2026 (federal figures)

SNAP Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) Information — USDA Food and Nutrition Administration — FY 2026 monthly income standards (100%, 130%, 165%), deductions, and the October 1, 2025–September 30, 2026 effective period.
SNAP Fiscal Year 2026 Cost-of-Living Adjustments memorandum — USDA — Source document for the income tables, standard deductions, shelter and homeless shelter deductions, maximum allotments, and the $3,000/$4,500 asset limits.
SNAP Eligibility — USDA Food and Nutrition Administration — Gross and net income definitions, household concept, excluded resources, allowable deduction categories, and the notice that guidance is being updated for the One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025.
Broad-Based Categorical Eligibility (BBCE) — USDA Food and Nutrition Administration — Texas's 165% BBCE gross-income framework, $5,000 asset framework, and the state-by-state ceilings.
SNAP Special Rules for the Elderly or Disabled — USDA Food and Nutrition Administration — Age-60 and disability definitions, medical deduction, and the separate-household exception.
SNAP State Directory of Resources — USDA Food and Nutrition Administration — Official routing to each state's SNAP agency for readers outside Texas.
7 CFR 273.2, Office operations and application processing — eCFR — Expedited-service criteria, the 30-day processing standard, and proration from the application date.
7 CFR 273.13, Notice of adverse action — eCFR — The minimum 10-day advance-notice period that governs the continued-benefits window.
7 CFR 273.15, Fair hearings — eCFR — The 90-day request period, continuation of benefits, the 60-day SNAP decision standard, the two-working-day agency conference, and access to case materials and free legal representation.
House Bill 1287, 88th Texas Legislature — Texas Legislature Online — Human Resources Code Section 33.021, the $22,500 and $8,700 vehicle exclusions, effective September 1, 2023.
Your Texas Benefits — Texas Health and Human Services Commission — Official free Texas application portal.
Your Texas Benefits: Get a Paper Form — Texas Health and Human Services Commission — Form H1010 paper application and Form H0011 (TSAP) availability.
Texas Works Handbook A-1210, General Policy — Texas HHSC — The $5,000 combined resource test and the $22,500 and $8,700 vehicle fair-market-value exclusions.
Texas Works Handbook A-1220, Limits — Texas HHSC — HHSC's published SNAP resource limit of $5,000 in countable resources, with no separate elderly or disabled figure.
Texas Works Handbook A-1340, Income Limits — Texas HHSC — Which households are subject to the gross and net income tests, the 165% categorical-eligibility criterion, the one-cent rule, and the farm-loss exception.
Texas Works Handbook B-470, Categorically Eligible Households — Texas HHSC — Categorical-eligibility criteria and exclusions, and that categorical eligibility is not automatic approval.
Texas Works Handbook B-430, Households with Elderly Members or Members with a Disability — Texas HHSC — The $35 medical-expense threshold and the uncapped excess shelter deduction.
Texas Works Handbook A-140, Expedited Service — Texas HHSC — Expedited screening and the seventh-day participation standard as Texas applies it.
Texas Works Handbook B-340, Replacing Benefits — Texas HHSC — That HHSC does not replace benefits stolen by skimming, cloning, or other fraudulent methods.
Texas Works Handbook C-120, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program — Texas HHSC — HHSC's own SNAP income, deduction, and allotment charts, effective October 1, 2025.
SNAP Work Rules — Texas Health and Human Services — The ABAWD work requirement, the 18-to-64 age range, the dependent-under-14 condition, and the 80-hour monthly standard.
SNAP Skimming Resources — Texas HHS Office of Inspector General — How to identify card skimming devices and the Lone Star Card Help Desk number for cancelling a compromised card.
Fair and Fraud Hearings — Texas HHSC — Fair-hearing request methods, the 90-day and 120-day windows, and good-cause review of late requests.

Not sure what fits your situation?

Answer a few questions and get a shortlist matched to where you are right now.

Take the 2-minute questionnaire

Texas SNAP Income Limits for 2026

If you need food help right now