Montana SNAP Benefit Calculator

This page is our Montana SNAP calculator companion. Every figure comes from DPHHS and USDA files checked this September.

Montana runs one of the friendlier income screens in the country. Most households qualify under a 200% test.

That rule changes every number other sites quote. The $1,696 figure describes a line most Montanans never face.

Roughly 80,000 Montanans receive SNAP today. The average one-person household gets about $188 a month.

The state deposits benefits between the 2nd and the 6th. Your TEAMS case number picks the exact day.

Most households also skip Montana's asset test entirely. The exceptions carry their own lower limits, so read that section twice.

Below you'll find both income tables, the deposit chart, real benefit math, and every application route.

Run your own numbers with the free Montana SNAP calculator after reading. It runs every deduction in order for you.

📋 Inside This Guide

How Montana's SNAP Rulebook Actually Works

Two rulebooks live inside Montana SNAP. Which one applies decides your income limit, your asset limit, and your paperwork.

The first is expanded categorical eligibility, or ECE. Nearly every household under the 200% line qualifies through it.

The second is the standard federal book with its 130% screen. Montana keeps it for households outside ECE conditions.

Under ECE, gross income can reach 200% of poverty. The net test still applies after deductions at 100%.

Assets never enter an ECE review. That single exclusion separates Montana from states such as Idaho's $5,000 asset test.

Households receiving TANF, tribal TANF, or SSI skip the resource check too. So do most working families once ECE attaches.

A member over 60 or with a disability adds another shortcut. Those households can qualify through the net test alone.

Your calculator result follows the ECE path for most incomes. The tables below show both books side by side.

Montana SNAP Income Limits for FY 2026

Montana publishes two income tables for October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026. Pick the one that matches your household.

Table one covers households meeting expanded categorical eligibility. That's most of Montana — the gross limit sits at 200%.

Household Size	Gross Monthly (200% FPL)	Net Monthly (100% FPL)
1	$2,610	$1,305
2	$3,526	$1,763
3	$4,442	$2,211
4	$5,360	$2,680
5	$6,276	$3,139
6	$7,192	$3,596
7	$8,110	$4,055
8	$9,026	$4,513
Each additional member	+$918	+$459

Table two is the standard federal rulebook at 130%. It applies to households that fall outside ECE conditions.

Household Size	Gross Monthly (130% FPL)	Net Monthly (100% FPL)
1	$1,696	$1,305
2	$2,292	$1,763
3	$2,888	$2,211
4	$3,483	$2,680
5	$4,079	$3,139
6	$4,675	$3,596
7	$5,271	$4,055
8	$5,867	$4,513
Each additional member	+$596	+$459

Gross income means everything before taxes: wages, self-employment, Social Security, unemployment, and child support received.

The net test comes second. Deductions from the next section subtract first, then the 100% line decides.

A household with a member over 60 or disabled gets a shortcut. It can qualify through the net test alone.

Cross-check either table on the official DPHHS SNAP overview. DPHHS updates both every federal year.

The Asset Test Most Montanans Never Face

Here's the section most national guides get wrong. Some claim Montana has no asset test; others quote federal numbers.

The truth sits in between. Resources only count when your household doesn't meet expanded categorical eligibility.

Every ECE household — most of the state — excludes assets completely. Savings, vehicles, and retirement funds stay out.

Outside ECE, countable resources must stay under $2,750. With a member over 60 or disabled, the cap rises to $4,500.

That $2,750 line sits below the federal $3,000 standard. It's a leftover Montana figure worth knowing before you apply.

Excluded from every count: your home, your vehicles, retirement and education accounts, and combat-related military pay.

Households where everyone receives TANF, tribal TANF, or SSI skip the resource test entirely.

Countable means cash, bank balances, stocks, and extra-vehicle equity. The caseworker asks about each on the resource form.

Deductions That Lower Countable Income

Deductions turn denied cases into approved ones. Montana allows six, and each shrinks your net income.

• Earned income deduction. Twenty percent of gross wages disappears before any other math.
• Standard deduction. $209 for households of one to three, $223 for four, $261 for five, $299 for six or more.
• Dependent care. Child care or adult care costs that free you to work or train.
• Child support paid. Court-ordered payments you make count in full.
• Excess shelter. Housing plus utility costs over half your adjusted income, up to $744.
• Medical costs. Unreimbursed medical spending past $35 a month for members over 60 or disabled.

No address? Montana applies the federal $198.99 homeless shelter deduction without rent paperwork.

The full math lives in our guide to how SNAP deductions work. It walks each one line by line.

What the Benefit Pays: Real Montana Math

Your award starts at the max allotment for your size. The state then subtracts 30% of net income.

Household Size	Max Monthly Benefit (FY 2026)
1	$298
2	$546
3	$785
4	$994
5	$1,183
6	$1,421
7	$1,571
8	$1,789
Each additional member	+$218

A second example shows the senior path. A Great Falls retiree collects $980 in Social Security each month.

The $209 standard deduction and a $55 medical deduction cut his income. Shelter costs above half the rest deduct too.

His net income lands near $340, so thirty percent is $102. The $298 maximum minus $102 pays about $196.

One- and two-person households with tiny incomes get the $24 minimum. Zero income always means the full allotment.

The average one-person benefit in Montana runs about $188. Most working households land between the minimum and the middle.

How the size chart moves each October is its own story. Our maximum allotment guide tracks the yearly shifts.

When Benefits Arrive: The TEAMS Case-Number Schedule

Montana spreads deposits over five days, starting on the 2nd. Your TEAMS case number's last digit sets the day.

TEAMS Case Number Ends In	Deposit Day
0 or 1	The 2nd
2 or 3	The 3rd
4 or 5	The 4th
6 or 7	The 5th
8 or 9	The 6th

Money posts at 12:01 a.m. sharp. Weekends and holidays never push the date back.

Find your TEAMS number on the DPHHS approval letter. It also shows inside apply.mt.gov under your case details.

The same number lives in the CHIMES eligibility system. If the letter and portal disagree, call the Helpline.

Nationwide timing works differently, which trips up newcomers. Our EBT payment schedule guide compares all fifty states.

Your Montana Access Card: Balances, Replacements, Rules

Montana calls its EBT card the Montana Access Card. Benefits load monthly, like a debit account for groceries.

The help desk line is 1-866-850-1556. The automated system handles balances, PIN changes, and your last ten transactions.

Card lost or stolen? Call the same number and follow the prompts to cancel and reorder.

Your balance also shows inside apply.mt.gov through Check My Benefits. Free phone apps track it between shopping trips.

Restaurants are off the table. Montana has no Restaurant Meals Program, so hot prepared food never qualifies.

The card works in all 50 states at any Quest-marked store. Farmers markets across Montana accept it as well.

SNAP brings side perks too: museum discounts, low-cost internet, and retail membership deals. Ask at any participating counter.

Applying with DPHHS: Five Ways In

Montana gives you five application routes. Pick whichever fits your week.

Online is fastest at apply.mt.gov. One account covers SNAP, TANF, LIHEAP, and health coverage.

Call the Public Assistance Helpline at 1-888-706-1535. Staff will mail an application or take one by phone where allowed.

Visit a local Office of Public Assistance on weekdays. Offices sit in Helena, Billings, Missoula, Great Falls, and Bozeman.

Email DPHHS for a PDF application, or download the Spanish-language version. Mail it back or drop it off.

You'll need ID, household details, income proof, and housing costs. Missing documents can follow after you submit.

A caseworker then calls for your interview. Answer unknown numbers for a few weeks, or the case stalls.

Montana 211 can walk you through the paperwork free. The Montana Food Bank Network's outreach team helps as well.

The 2026 Change Log, Honestly Told

This year brought more SNAP change than the last five combined. Here's the honest sequence.

None of these changes removed Montana's 200% screen. The ECE rulebook survived, keeping the state friendlier than most.

One more debate is coming. Starting in 2027, federal rules may make Montana share the cost of benefits.

State budget writers are watching that closely. For now, nothing changes for applicants.

The ABAWD Clock and Montana Work Rules

Able-bodied adults without dependents face the time limit. The age band now runs from 18 through 64.

Three months in 36 is the cap without work. Meeting the work rule removes the clock entirely.

The standard is 80 hours a month, or a qualifying program at the same pace.

Veterans, homeless adults, and former foster youth used to be exempt. The 2025 federal law removed several of those exemptions.

Montana runs SNAP E&T in seventeen counties, including Flathead, Cascade, Yellowstone, Missoula, Gallatin, and Lewis and Clark.

Live outside those counties? Ask the Helpline about a referral — participation depends on funding and slots.

Hours dropped below 20 a week? Report it by the 10th if you're on the ABAWD clock.

SNAP Rules for Montana Students

College students face extra screens. Half-time enrollment plus one exemption opens the door.

Twenty work hours a week clears the bar. Work-study, a young child at home, or TANF also count.

Montana State University runs its own SNAP outreach desk in Bozeman. Staff there screen students for free.

Students under 18 or over 50 skip the extra rules. So do students with a disability.

A single student household usually draws a modest award. Every dollar still counts against meal-plan costs.

Seniors and Montanans with Disabilities

Households with a senior or disabled member play by softer rules. The gross income test disappears from their review.

Only the net test and the resource check remain. That combination approves cases the gross screen would deny.

The medical deduction matters most here. Costs above $35 a month — rides, prescriptions, dental — subtract directly.

Fixed-income households also recertify every 24 months instead of 12. Outside ECE, their resource limit rises to $4,500.

Montana's Area Agencies on Aging help with applications. Reach them through 2-1-1.

Immigrant Eligibility After the 2026 Federal Changes

Federal law narrowed immigrant eligibility in 2026. Some statuses that qualified before no longer do.

Green-card holders, Cuban-Haitian entrants, and COFA citizens still qualify. Asylee, refugee, and parolee statuses no longer do.

Children in mixed-status households often still qualify. Applying for a qualifying child does not create immigration risk for others.

Montana follows the federal chart here with no state additions. When in doubt, call the Helpline before assuming.

WIC, school meals, and food banks stay open to everyone regardless of status.

Renewals and the Simplified Report

Approval isn't forever. Montana recertifies most households every 12 months.

All-elderly or all-disabled households with no earned income get 24 months. Migrant and seasonal farm worker households get 6.

Halfway through each period, DPHHS mails the Simplified Report. It's a short form, and no interview attaches.

Return it by the deadline or benefits stop. Missed mail is the top cause of surprise cutoffs.

Report three things by the 10th: income over your limit, $4,250-plus lottery wins, or dropped ABAWD hours.

Everything else — new jobs, rent changes, household size — reports at renewal. Update your address immediately though.

Free Food Help Across Montana

The Montana Food Bank Network anchors the state's emergency food system. Call its Missoula office at (406) 721-3825.

Its SNAP outreach team explains eligibility and fixes stuck applications. Help comes free, with no income test for advice.

Dial 2-1-1 for anything food-related, 24 hours a day. The line covers every Montana county through Montana 211.

Farmers markets stretch EBT dollars in some towns. Ask at the market table; WIC covers produce too.

FY 2027 Amounts Begin October 1

USDA locked the FY 2027 cost-of-living numbers in August 2026. From October 1, this chart goes live:

The standard deduction moves to $217, the shelter cap to $769. Montana's two income tables climb with them.

We'll refresh the calculator and all three tables the day the new rules take effect.

Denied? How a Montana Fair Hearing Works

A denial letter is a fork, not a wall. Montana lets every applicant demand a fair hearing.

The window is 90 days from that notice. Send your request to any OPA office or the Helpline.

Montana Law Help publishes a plain-English appeal guide. Its FAQ covers exactly what to write.

Benefits can continue during the appeal in some cases. Ask within the notice deadline to preserve that option.

Fix-and-reapply is often faster for paperwork denials. Submit the missing document and call the Helpline the same day.

Six Mistakes That Sink Montana Applications

Most denials trace to six fixable slips. Read this list before your interview call.

Mistake one: quoting the $1,696 federal limit and giving up early. Montana's 200% screen clears incomes that figure would reject.

Mistake two: assuming there's no asset test because a national site said so. Outside ECE, the $2,750 rule applies.

Mistake three: missing the interview call. The Helpline appears on your notice — answer unknown numbers for a few weeks.

Mistake four: skipping the Simplified Report at the six-month mark. That single form keeps benefits flowing.

Mistake five: forgetting the medical and shelter deductions. Rent-heavy households lose real money by not submitting costs.

Mistake six: waiting past the 10th to report a change. That deadline protects you, not DPHHS.

Other Montana Assistance Programs Worth Knowing

One apply.mt.gov account reaches every major program. These sit alongside SNAP:

Montana Medicaid and Healthy Montana Kids cover health care. TANF adds cash support for families with children.

LIHEAP pays heating bills; propane and wood homes apply from September 1. Our LIHEAP guide shows how they stack.

WIC supports pregnant members and children under five. SUN Bucks adds $120 per school-age child each summer.

The 2026 SUN Bucks window closed August 31. Questions go to SUNBucks@mt.gov or (406) 444-0044.

Montana LifeLine trims phone bills for benefit households. One approval tends to smooth the next application.

Montana SNAP FAQ

Compare Neighboring States

Montana's 200% screen makes it the friendliest state on this border. Neighbors vary widely.

Idaho runs the strictest book around — 130% income plus a $5,000 asset test. The Idaho SNAP calculator shows it.

Wyoming and the Dakotas stay closer to federal rules. See the Wyoming calculator, plus North Dakota and South Dakota.

Two pages run expansions like Montana's. The Colorado SNAP calculator shows a 200% cousin; the CalFresh page runs its own.

Texas carries the plain federal rulebook at scale. The Texas SNAP calculator shows what 130% with no expansion looks like.

Every state lives in one place. Browse the full list on the state calculator index.