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Section 8 income limits for 2026, county by county
HUD sets a separate limit for every county or metro area and every household size. Find yours, and see which program each tier opens.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How we calculate
Section 8 income limits are not national: HUD publishes them for each county or metropolitan area, and the FY 2026 limits have applied since May 1, 2026. To get a Housing Choice Voucher, a household generally needs income at or below the very low income limit of its area, which for a family of four ranges from $33,250 in Santa Cruz County, Arizona, to $108,750 in Santa Cruz County, California. In Los Angeles County the very low limit for four is $83,300, in Cook County $60,750, in Harris County $52,000. Public housing accepts families up to the low income limit, $133,250 for four in Los Angeles County. Housing authorities must give at least 75% of the vouchers they issue each year to extremely low income families, whose limit for four is $50,000 in Los Angeles County. Income means gross yearly income of everyone in the household, and since 2026 net family assets above $105,574 can also block admission where the housing authority applies the new asset rule.
Alameda County, CA: FY 2026 income limits
Within the voucher limit
Very low income limit for 3: $76,400 a year
| Extremely low income (ELI), 3 people | $45,850 |
| Very low income (50%), the voucher limit | $76,400 |
| Low income (80%) | $122,200 |
| Your band | Extremely low income (30%) |
| Adjusted income after HUD deductions | $29,500 a year |
| Estimated tenant payment (30% of adjusted income) | $738 a month |
HUD FY 2026 limits (effective May 1, 2026) and 2026 deductions ($500 per dependent, $550 for an elderly or disabled family). The housing authority decides, and most have waiting lists. How this is calculated.
FY 2026 limits in twelve large counties
HUD's FY 2026 income limits cover 4,680 counties, county equivalents and New England towns in the 50 states and DC. Each comes with three columns per household size, from one to eight people. The table shows a family of four in the largest counties of a dozen metro areas, with the very low limit for a single person for comparison.
| County | Extremely low, 4 | Very low, 4 | Low, 4 | Very low, 1 | Median family income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles County, CA | $50,000 | $83,300 | $133,250 | $58,300 | $108,100 |
| Kings County, NY | $50,900 | $84,800 | $135,700 | $59,400 | $104,300 |
| Cook County, IL | $36,450 | $60,750 | $97,200 | $42,550 | $121,500 |
| Harris County, TX | $33,000 | $52,000 | $83,200 | $36,400 | $104,000 |
| Maricopa County, AZ | $33,700 | $56,200 | $89,900 | $39,350 | $112,400 |
| King County, WA | $49,300 | $82,200 | $116,650 | $57,550 | $164,400 |
| Miami-Dade County, FL | $40,850 | $68,100 | $109,000 | $47,700 | $89,800 |
| Fulton County, GA | $35,350 | $58,900 | $94,250 | $41,250 | $117,800 |
| Wayne County, MI | $33,000 | $52,400 | $83,850 | $36,700 | $104,800 |
| Philadelphia County, PA | $36,800 | $61,350 | $98,150 | $42,950 | $122,700 |
| Dallas County, TX | $36,350 | $60,550 | $96,900 | $42,400 | $121,100 |
| San Diego County, CA | $52,450 | $87,450 | $139,900 | $61,250 | $130,900 |
Counties in the same metro area share one set of limits, which is why Kings County, Brooklyn's county, has exactly the figures of Manhattan's New York County. Harris and Dallas, the two largest counties of Texas, differ by $8,550 for four because they belong to different metro areas with different medians.
The highest and lowest limits in the country
The very low income limit for four is highest in Santa Cruz County, California, at $108,750, and lowest in Santa Cruz County, Arizona, at $33,250: two counties with the same name, one on the California coast and one on the Mexican border of Arizona, separated by $75,500. A family of four earning $60,000 is well inside the voucher limit in the first and nearly twice over it in the second. The bottom of the range is crowded: a quarter of all areas have a limit for four of $43,550 or less, and 82% of those are outside metropolitan areas. The top is concentrated in coastal California and in the towns of the Boston area.
The extremely low tier behaves differently at the bottom. In the FY 2026 file, no area has an extremely low limit for four below the 2026 poverty guideline for four ($33,000 in the 48 states), and 3,298 sit exactly on it. Harris County is one of them: its extremely low limit for four is $33,000, the poverty guideline itself, while for one person it is $21,850.
Three tiers, three doors
Very low income is the general test for a Housing Choice Voucher under 24 CFR 982.201. A low income family can qualify only in listed cases, such as being continuously assisted under the Housing Act or meeting extra criteria the housing authority wrote into its administrative plan.
Low income is the ceiling for public housing under 24 CFR 960.201: no family above it can be admitted.
Extremely low income opens no separate program, but it decides who gets served first. At least 75% of the vouchers a housing authority issues each year go to extremely low income families, which shapes who comes off the waiting list first.
Since the HOTMA rules took effect, admission also depends on assets where the agency applies them: net family assets may not exceed $105,574 in 2026, according to HUD's 2026 inflation-adjusted values. Meeting the limits makes a family eligible; it does not guarantee a voucher, which depends on the housing authority's funding and its waiting list.
Reading the limit for your own household
Count everyone who will live in the unit and add up their gross income for the year. Under 24 CFR 5.609 that means everything the adults, the head and the spouse receive from any source, plus unearned income received for children under 18; the earnings of children under 18 are left out, as are foster care payments and reimbursements of medical costs. Compare the total with the column for your household size in your county. The state pages include a lookup with every county and HUD area of the state, for example California, Texas or New York, and the calculator above does the same here.
Passing the limit is the first step. What you then pay is a separate calculation, roughly 30% of adjusted income, explained in Section 8 rent. HUD's limits come from area median income, not from the federal poverty level, so a household that qualifies for SNAP or Medicaid may or may not qualify for housing help, and the other way around.