WY · benefits by state
Wyoming benefits: SNAP, Medicaid, ACA, WIC and Section 8
No broad-based eligibility, no Medicaid expansion and no online SNAP application: Wyoming runs the federal rules close to the letter.
Federal and Wyoming figures read on official sources on · Checked by Radif Partners · How we calculate
- SNAP maximum, 4 people
- $1,023
- FY 2027, from October 1, 2026
- SNAP gross income limit, 3 people
- $2,960/mo
- 130% of poverty
- Medicaid, single adult
- not expanded
- no adult group
- Children, family of 3
- $4,667/mo
- 205% of poverty, Medicaid
- WIC limit, 3 people
- $50,542/yr
- 185% of poverty, to June 30, 2027
- Section 8 very low income, 4 people
- $49,700 to $74,250
- 23 counties or towns, FY 2026
Wyoming is one of the few states that applies the federal SNAP tests without broad-based categorical eligibility. A household of four must keep gross income under $3,575 a month and net income under $2,750, and countable resources under $3,000, or $4,750 when someone is 60 or older or disabled. For a Casper family of four earning $3,300 a month and renting for $1,150, the estimate is $436 a month in fiscal year 2027 with Wyoming's heating and cooling allowance of $510; with $3,500 in savings the same family would get $0. Health coverage follows the same pattern: Wyoming has not expanded Medicaid, parents qualify only below about $1,375 a month for a family of four, and children are covered up to 205% of the poverty guideline.
Household income in Wyoming
105% of poverty
$28,800 a year against the 2026 guideline of $27,320 for 3 people
- SNAP food benefitsFY 2027 amounts; $510 utility allowance usedLikely eligible$524/mo
- Medicaid for the parentsWyoming: 50% of the poverty guidelineAbove the limitlimit $1,138/mo
- Medicaid or CHIP for the childrenChildren 6 to 18, 205% of the guidelineWithin the Medicaid limitlimit $4,667/mo
- Marketplace premium tax creditAmount depends on the benchmark premium where you liveIn the 100% to 400% window108% of 2025 FPL
- Earned income tax credit (2026)2 qualifying children, single or head of householdCredit at tax time$6,282/yr
- WIC (pregnancy or a child under 5)Nutrition risk is assessed at the WIC clinicWithin 185% of povertylimit $50,542/yr
- Section 8 housing voucherLimits are set by county: check yours in the Section 8 lookup.
A first screening under each program's published 2026 rules; every agency counts income and household its own way and decides on your application. How this is calculated.
Savings count in Wyoming SNAP
In most states a family with a few thousand dollars in the bank never meets an asset test, because broad-based categorical eligibility switches it off. Wyoming does not use that option, so the federal resource rules apply in full: $3,000 for most households and $4,750 with a member 60 or older or disabled. The Casper family above shows what that means. With $2,500 saved it qualifies for $436 a month; with $3,500 it gets $0, even though its income is identical. Income has two hurdles too, a gross test at 130% of poverty and a net test at 100%, and the family passes both: $3,300 against $3,575, then $1,957 of net income against $2,750.
Applying without an online portal
The Department of Family Services publishes a SNAP application to print and return to a local DFS office by mail, fax or e-mail; when we checked, its program page offered no online SNAP application (DFS SNAP page). Submitting the first page with your name, address and signature starts the clock on the application, so a household in a hurry can send that page first and the rest later. The federal processing rules are the same as elsewhere, including expedited service for households with very little income and cash.
Coverage when Medicaid stops at the parents
Wyoming covers parents and caretakers through a dollar standard that CMS converts to 45% of the poverty guideline, 50% with the disregard: about $1,375 a month for a family of four. A parent earning more, or any adult without children at home, has no income-based Medicaid group. From 100% of the 2025 guideline, $15,650 a year for a single adult, HealthCare.gov offers the 2026 premium tax credit; below that, a single worker earning $1,000 a month falls in the gap explained in Medicaid expansion states. Pregnancy opens Medicaid up to 159% of poverty, $2,867 a month for a woman expecting one baby.
205% of the 2026 poverty guideline for your household
205% of poverty, per year
$56,006
| Per month | $4,667 |
| Per week | $1,077 |
| 100% guideline (2026) | $27,320 |
Teton County is a different housing market
HUD treats each of Wyoming's 23 counties as its own area. For a family of four, the very low income limit that opens a Housing Choice Voucher is $74,250 in Teton County, home to Jackson, against $49,750 in Natrona County and $52,200 in Laramie County, where Cheyenne sits. The lookup below gives every county for one to eight people. Children's coverage shown in the mini-calculator above uses the 205% line, which Wyoming families apply for through the same Medicaid application; the state calls its children's plan Kid Care CHIP.
Neighbors went other ways: Montana and Colorado expanded Medicaid and use broad-based eligibility for SNAP, while South Dakota also keeps the federal SNAP tests.
SNAP rules in Wyoming, FY 2027
Run by the Wyoming Department of Family Services. Wyoming does not use broad-based categorical eligibility: the federal tests apply (gross income at 130% of the poverty guideline, net income at 100%, assets up to $3,000, or $4,750 with a member 60+ or disabled).
| Household | Gross income limit | Net income limit | Maximum benefit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $1,729 | $1,330 | $306 |
| 2 | $2,345 | $1,804 | $562 |
| 3 | $2,960 | $2,277 | $808 |
| 4 | $3,575 | $2,750 | $1,023 |
| 5 | $4,191 | $3,224 | $1,217 |
| 6 | $4,806 | $3,697 | $1,463 |
| 7 | $5,421 | $4,170 | $1,616 |
| 8 | $6,037 | $4,644 | $1,841 |
| Allowance area | Heating or cooling (HCSUA) | Other utilities (LUA) | Telephone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wyoming | $510 | $340 | $57 |
Medicaid and CHIP income limits in Wyoming
Wyoming has not adopted the ACA Medicaid expansion. Children's coverage above Medicaid is called Kid Care CHIP. Agency: Wyoming Department of Health · apply. Marketplace for 2026: HealthCare.gov.
| Group | Limit (% of poverty) | Program | 1 or 2 people | 3 people | 4 people |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adults 19 to 64 without children | not covered | – | – | – | – |
| Parents and caretakers | 50% | Medicaid | $901 | $1,138 | $1,375 |
| Pregnant women | 159% | Medicaid | $2,867 | $3,619 | $4,372 |
| Babies under 1 | 205% | Medicaid | $3,696 | $4,667 | $5,637 |
| Children 1 to 5 | 205% | Medicaid | $3,696 | $4,667 | $5,637 |
| Children 6 to 18 | 205% | Medicaid | $3,696 | $4,667 | $5,637 |
Section 8 income limits by county in Wyoming
HUD sets the limits for each of the 23 counties or towns of Wyoming (23 HUD areas). For a family of four, the very low income limit that opens a Housing Choice Voucher ranges from $49,700 (Big Horn County) to $74,250 (Teton County).
Albany County, WY: FY 2026 income limits
Within the voucher limit
Very low income limit for 3: $48,150 a year
| Extremely low income (ELI), 3 people | $28,900 |
| Very low income (50%), the voucher limit | $48,150 |
| Low income (80%) | $77,050 |
| Your band | Very low income (50%) |
| 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.