Poverty level · threshold
185% of the federal poverty level: WIC and reduced-price meals
The line that federal law borrowed from the school lunch program and applied to WIC, and that a few states use for food stamps too.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How we calculate
185% of the 2026 poverty guideline is $29,526 a year for one person, $50,542 for three and $61,050 for four in the 48 states and DC, or $5,088 a month for a family of four. Federal law makes it the income ceiling of WIC by pointing to the standard for reduced-price school meals, which is 185% of the poverty guidelines. USDA published the figures on April 29, 2026, and they apply from July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027; a state may switch earlier, on the date it updates its Medicaid charts, but not later than July 1. Alaska's ceiling for four is $76,313 and Hawaii's $70,208. The line is not absolute for WIC: anyone on SNAP, TANF or Medicaid, or in a family where a pregnant woman or infant is on Medicaid, counts as income eligible automatically. In New Jersey, Rhode Island and Vermont, 185% is also the gross income limit for SNAP.
185% of the 2026 poverty guideline for your household
185% of poverty, per year
$50,542
| Per month | $4,212 |
| Per week | $972 |
| 100% guideline (2026) | $27,320 |
Why WIC and school meals share the 185% line
WIC has no income limit of its own in the law. Section 17(d)(2)(A) of the Child Nutrition Act says a person is income eligible if the family meets the standard for reduced-price school meals under section 9(b) of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act, and section 9(b) sets that standard at 185% of the poverty guidelines. The WIC notice of April 29, 2026 applies it to the HHS guidelines published on January 15, 2026: each guideline is multiplied by 1.85 and rounded upward to the next whole dollar. The monthly, twice-monthly, bi-weekly and weekly columns of the notice are rounded up the same way, so a monthly limit is never a cent below 185%. For one person that gives $29,526 a year and $2,461 a month.
The 2026/2027 amounts at 185%
| Household size | 48 states and DC, per year | Per month | Alaska, per year | Hawaii, per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $29,526 | $2,461 | $36,908 | $33,966 |
| 2 | $40,034 | $3,337 | $50,043 | $46,047 |
| 3 | $50,542 | $4,212 | $63,178 | $58,127 |
| 4 | $61,050 | $5,088 | $76,313 | $70,208 |
| 5 | $71,558 | $5,964 | $89,448 | $82,288 |
| 6 | $82,066 | $6,839 | $102,583 | $94,369 |
| 7 | $92,574 | $7,715 | $115,718 | $106,449 |
| 8 | $103,082 | $8,591 | $128,853 | $118,530 |
| Each additional person | +$10,508 | +$876 | +$13,135 | +$12,081 |
A state agency may not run WIC above these figures. Under 7 CFR 246.7 it can instead align WIC with state or local guidelines for free or reduced-price health care, provided they stay between 100% and 185% of the poverty guidelines. The 2026/2027 chart had to be in place by July 1, 2026, and a state was free to adopt it earlier, together with its Medicaid update. Income is compared with the column for the applicant's family size, so the household count matters as much as the paycheck.
Above the line: automatic eligibility through other programs
The 185% figure is only one route in. The same regulation requires WIC to accept as income eligible anyone certified for SNAP, for TANF, or for Medicaid (including presumptive eligibility), plus members of a family receiving TANF and members of a family in which a pregnant woman or an infant is on Medicaid. Medicaid lines often reach higher than WIC's: CMS lists pregnancy coverage above 185% of poverty in 40 of the 50 states and DC, up to 319% in District of Columbia, before the 5-point MAGI disregard. A pregnant woman enrolled there is income eligible for WIC whatever the 185% chart says, and so is her infant after birth, through the family rule. The WIC income guidelines page covers the program itself.
Other programs drawn at 185%
SNAP uses the same percentage in a handful of states. New Jersey, Rhode Island and Vermont set their broad-based categorical eligibility at 185% of the poverty guideline, which gives a family of four a gross limit of $5,088 a month in fiscal year 2027, well above the federal 130% test but below the 200% line of most states. For children, CMS lists a top Medicaid or CHIP line of exactly 185% in Idaho; other states' figures are on each state page. For the whole table of percentages, see the federal poverty level.