On October 1, 2026, every SNAP number that matters moves at once. Maximum benefits rise, the minimum benefit gains a dollar, and the shelter deduction cap jumps $25. Income screens shift with the new poverty guidelines the same day.
For most households, the change shows up as a slightly fuller EBT deposit in the first week of October. This year, though, the details vary more than usual.
USDA published the FY2027 cost-of-living adjustment in August 2026, and it carries a surprise. Hawaii's benefits are going down.
It also carries a first-time structural change from the 2025 federal benefits law. Very large households now face a hard cap on total benefits.
The agency itself has a new name, too. The Food and Nutrition Service became the Food and Nutrition Administration (FNA) in June 2026. That is why current documents say FNA where older articles say FNS.
Below, you will see what changes for your household size and what does not move at all. Our household size and allotments guide documents the FY2026 table these numbers replace, in force through September 30, 2026.
What the COLA Actually Adjusts
The SNAP benefit year runs from October 1 through September 30. USDA resets three families of numbers at the top of it.
Maximum allotments, the most a household of each size can get, come from the Thrifty Food Plan. USDA reprices the June market basket each year, then scales every household size from it.
Income eligibility standards move with the poverty guidelines. The set includes the 130% gross screen, the 100% net test, and the higher screens some households use.
Deductions adjust to the same inflation data. These are the amounts subtracted from income before your benefit is computed.
None of this is a raise in the political sense. It is inflation indexing required by law, so benefits climb when food prices climb faster.
When a region's food costs fall against the national baseline, benefits can drop. Hawaii is in exactly that situation this year.
The 30%-of-net-income formula itself never changes. The COLA only swaps the constants fed into it.
Those constants feed every step of the three-step eligibility test. The net-income math behind them is explained in our gross versus net income guide.
The FY2027 Maximum Allotments, Side by Side
For the 48 contiguous states and the District of Columbia, the new maximums look like this. The FY2026 figures they replace sit alongside for comparison.
| Household size | FY2026 (thru Sep 2026) | FY2027 (from Oct 1) | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 person | $298 | $306 | +$8 |
| 2 people | $546 | $562 | +$16 |
| 3 people | $785 | $808 | +$23 |
| 4 people | $994 | $1,023 | +$29 |
| 5 people | $1,183 | $1,217 | +$34 |
| 6 people | $1,421 | $1,463 | +$42 |
| 7 people | $1,571 | $1,616 | +$45 |
| 8 people | $1,789 | $1,841 | +$52 |
| Each additional (9-17) | +$218 | +$225 | +$7 |
Alaska keeps its three-zone system. A one-person household gets $392 in urban areas, $499 in Rural 1 zones, and $608 in Rural 2.
A family of four there ranges from $1,306 to $2,027 depending on location. Guam ($1,507 for four) and the U.S. Virgin Islands ($1,315 for four) run well above the mainland figures.
Imported-food costs drive that gap. The complete territory tables are in the FNA FY2027 COLA announcement.
The new 18-plus household cap
Under the 2025 federal benefits law, very large households face a first-time cap. Households of 9 to 17 people add $225 per member. Households of 18 or more are capped at $3,887 total in the 48 states and D.C.
Multigenerational households and shelter populations with many related adults should budget around that ceiling.
Deduction Changes That Quietly Matter More
For many households, the deduction updates change the benefit more than the allotment table does. The standard deduction for one-to-three-person households rises from $209 to $217 a month.
Higher tiers for larger households are set in the FNA memo. The excess shelter deduction cap jumps from $744 to $769 for the 48 states. That cap limits how much of your rent-plus-utilities can be subtracted.
It remains uncapped entirely for households with a member who is 60 or older or disabled. The homeless shelter deduction rises from $198.99 to $205.66 across all regions. That one serves households with no fixed address.
The minimum benefit rises from $24 to $25 a month in the contiguous states. That floor covers one- and two-person households whose calculations land near zero.
Hawaii's floor moves the other way, from $41 to $40. Asset limits stay where they are: $3,000 for most households, $4,500 with an elderly or disabled member.
Our asset limits guide covers those thresholds in detail. The 20% earned income deduction and the $35 medical-expense threshold are set in statute, so neither moves.
Perspective helps when the increases feel small. The minimum benefit sat at $16 a month for most of the 2010s. Four-person maximums hovered near $640 before the 2021 Thrifty Food Plan reevaluation.
Recent inflation years pushed the tables to $994 for a family of four in FY2026, and to $1,023 now. Adjustments of $8 to $52 a month are genuinely modest. They still compound with the deduction increases and the higher income screens.
Timing quirks are worth knowing before you file. The adjustment applies at your next benefit calculation on or after October 1.
For most households that is simply the October deposit. Households certified through semi-annual or change-reporting cycles may see the new constants at the next scheduled budget run instead.
Nothing is lost either way, because the formulas are date-keyed, not case-keyed. Applicants who file in the last week of September are computed on FY2026 constants and then re-computed automatically.
That re-computation requires no second application, no forms, and no phone call. For a household straddling an eligibility line, the October refresh is regularly the difference between qualifying and not.
Why Hawaii's Benefits Are Dropping
Hawaii is the outlier of FY2027, because every listed household size decreases. A one-person maximum falls from $506 to $496, a family of four from $1,689 to $1,655.
An eight-person household drops from $3,040 to $2,979. The cause is the Thrifty Food Plan's regional repricing.
USDA adjusts island allotments based on food-cost surveys. The 2026 survey found Hawaii's basket cheaper relative to the mainland than last year's survey did.
Lower shipping costs and shifted pricing patterns both play into that math. For Hawaii recipients, the practical move is to re-run the budget.
The state's high utility allowances and uncapped shelter deductions for seniors still do heavy lifting. Households that were not claiming all deductions may offset much of the allotment decrease.
Families can see the new number before the October deposit with the Hawaii SNAP calculator, which applies the FY2027 constants. The same logic works for every state through the SNAP benefits calculator on this site.
What Does NOT Change on October 1
The eligibility architecture is untouched. The 30% formula, where benefits equal the maximum minus 30% of net income, is set in statute. Work requirements, including the ABAWD rules for adults 18 through 54, continue as they run today.
States keep their own BBCE settings, their own utility allowances, and their own deposit schedules. None of that is touched by federal indexing.
Recertification dates do not reset. Your October redetermination evaluates you under the new numbers, and your certification period rolls on.
One more non-change: the average benefit stays well below the maximum. USDA data shows the average recipient received about $187 a month in mid-2026.
That sits far under the $306 one-person ceiling, because most households have income that shaves the maximum down. If your benefit feels lower than the table says it should be, the gap is usually unclaimed deductions. Our guide to income limits and the net test explains how to close it.
