LIHEAP Income Limits by State 2026: What Yours Actually Uses

If you have searched for the LIHEAP income limit, you have probably seen a chart built on the 2026 federal poverty guidelines: $15,960 for one person, $33,000 for a family of four.

Those are real numbers. They are just not the numbers LIHEAP is using right now.

Through September 30, 2026, the poverty table LIHEAP programs work from is the one ACF published for federal fiscal year 2026 — and that table holds the 2025 guidelines. A family of four is measured against $32,150, not $33,000. And in 32 states and the District of Columbia, the poverty table is not the test at all.

This guide gives you the table your state is actually using.

The Rule Behind the Numbers

Federal law does not set one national LIHEAP income limit. It sets a band, and each state picks a point inside it. From 42 U.S.C. § 8624(b)(2)(B), a state may serve:

households with incomes which do not exceed the greater of— (i) an amount equal to 150 percent of the poverty level for such State; or (ii) an amount equal to 60 percent of the State median income

and then the sentence most summaries drop:

except that a State may not exclude a household from eligibility in a fiscal year solely on the basis of household income if such income is less than 110 percent of the poverty level for such State, but the State may give priority to those households with the highest home energy costs or needs in relation to household income

Three things follow from that one paragraph, and between them they explain almost every confusing thing you will read about LIHEAP eligibility.

1. The ceiling is a “greater of.” A state is not capped at 150% of poverty. If 60% of its median income is higher — and in most states it is — the state may use that instead.
2. There is a floor. No state may turn you away on income alone if you are under 110% of poverty. States can still put higher-burden households first in line, but they cannot set the income door lower than that.
3. A state can express the same ceiling in different units. This is why Ohio can advertise 175% of poverty and Iowa 200% and both still follow federal law — those percentages describe a ceiling that the median-income test already permits.

The Poverty Table LIHEAP Uses Through September 2026

45 CFR 96.85 lets a state adopt new guidelines any time between publication and October 1. The LIHEAP Clearinghouse explains what states do with that latitude: “the majority of grant recipients use the prior year guidelines until the first day of the next fiscal year in order to avoid changing guidelines in the middle of their program year.”

So this is the operative table — ACF’s published FFY 2026 figures for the 48 contiguous states and DC:

Household size	100% of poverty	110% (federal floor)	150% (poverty-based ceiling)	200%
1	$15,650	$17,215	$23,475	$31,300
2	$21,150	$23,265	$31,725	$42,300
3	$26,650	$29,315	$39,975	$53,300
4	$32,150	$35,365	$48,225	$64,300
5	$37,650	$41,415	$56,475	$75,300
6	$43,150	$47,465	$64,725	$86,300
7	$48,650	$53,515	$72,975	$97,300
8	$54,150	$59,565	$81,225	$108,300
9	$59,650	$65,615	$89,475	$119,300
10	$65,150	$71,665	$97,725	$130,300
11	$70,650	$77,715	$105,975	$141,300
12	$76,150	$83,765	$114,225	$152,300

Alaska runs on its own table: $19,550 at 100% for one person and $40,190 for four, which puts 150% at $29,325 and $60,285. Hawaii’s FFY 2026 four-person figures are $36,980 at 100% and $55,470 at 150%.

On October 1, 2026, all of this steps up to the 2026 HHS guidelines — $15,960 for one person, $33,000 for four. If you are applying in the fall, it is worth asking which table the office is using that week.

What Standard Each State Uses

The table below is the FFY 2026 standard for heating assistance, from ACF’s state-by-state listing. The ceiling column is for a four-person household: for states on a poverty percentage it is that percentage of the FFY 2026 poverty table above; for states on 60% of state median income it is the state’s own published SMI figure.

Treat this as a yardstick for whether it is worth applying, not as your determination. Your state runs your case.

State	Standard used for heating help	Ceiling, 4-person household	Notes
Alabama	150% poverty	$48,225
Alaska	150% poverty	$60,285	Alaska poverty table
Arizona	60% SMI	$64,789	150% poverty instead at 10+ people
Arkansas	60% SMI	$54,168	150% poverty instead at 8+ people
California	60% SMI	$76,886
Colorado	60% SMI	$83,256
Connecticut	60% SMI	$91,854
Delaware	60% SMI	$75,659
District of Columbia	60% SMI	$118,926
Florida	60% SMI	$61,837	150% poverty at 10+ for cooling and crisis
Georgia	60% SMI	$66,441
Hawaii	60% SMI	$80,656	150% poverty instead at 11+ people
Idaho	60% SMI	$63,145	150% poverty instead at 8+ people
Illinois	60% SMI	$76,884	150% poverty instead at 12+ people
Indiana	60% SMI	$64,533
Iowa	200% poverty	$64,300
Kansas	150% poverty	$48,225
Kentucky	150% poverty	$48,225
Louisiana	60% SMI	$58,882
Maine	60% SMI	$70,839	150% poverty instead at 10+ people
Maryland	41.7% SMI	$64,267	Sliding scale: 39% SMI at 1 person, rising to 60% above 10
Massachusetts	60% SMI	$99,573
Michigan	110% poverty	$35,365	The lowest limit federal law allows
Minnesota	50% SMI	$59,998
Mississippi	60% SMI	$51,424
Missouri	60% SMI	$65,537
Montana	60% SMI	$64,846	150% poverty instead at 9+ people
Nebraska	150% poverty	$48,225
Nevada	150% poverty	$48,225
New Hampshire	60% SMI	$91,548
New Jersey	60% SMI	$96,165
New Mexico	150% poverty	$48,225
New York	60% SMI	$80,165	150% poverty instead at 14+ people
North Carolina	130% poverty	$41,795	150% if a household member is 60+ and disabled
North Dakota	60% SMI	$77,946
Ohio	175% poverty	$56,263	60% SMI instead at 9+ people
Oklahoma	130% poverty	$41,795
Oregon	60% SMI	$73,816
Pennsylvania	150% poverty	$48,225
Rhode Island	60% SMI	$81,254
South Carolina	60% SMI	$61,525
South Dakota	200% poverty	$64,300	60% SMI at 7–9 people; 150% poverty at 10+
Tennessee	60% SMI	$61,641
Texas	150% poverty	$48,225
Utah	150% poverty	$48,225
Vermont	60% SMI	$78,992
Virginia	150% poverty	$48,225	Weatherization uses 60% SMI
Washington	150% poverty	$48,225
West Virginia	60% SMI	$56,637	150% poverty instead at 8+ people
Wisconsin	60% SMI	$73,888
Wyoming	60% SMI	$68,902

Three things worth pulling out of that table:

• North Carolina raises its own limit for older adults. The base heating standard is 130% of poverty, but the state’s published note says 150% applies if a household member is 60 or older and disabled. If you were told no in North Carolina, that distinction is worth a second call. Our guides to SSI income limits and Medicare Savings Programs cover the age and disability documentation you would already have on hand.
• Large households often do better on the poverty table than on median income, which is why so many SMI states switch to 150% of poverty above a certain size. The reason is 45 CFR 96.85: the median-income figure is set for a four-person family and then adjusted by fixed percentages — 52% for one person, 68% for two, 84% for three, 100% for four, 116% for five, 132% for six, and 3 percentage points per person after that. The poverty guidelines rise faster per added person than 16 points do, so the two lines eventually cross.
• Cooling and crisis limits can differ from heating limits. Several states run a different percentage for summer cooling or for shutoff crises. If you are facing a disconnection in July, do not assume the winter number applies to you.

Three Ways to Qualify Without Hitting the Income Table

Categorical eligibility. Section 8624(b)(2)(A) lets a state serve any household in which at least one person receives TANF, SSI, SNAP, or certain needs-tested veterans’ pension payments. ACF describes this as flexibility grantees “have” — meaning it is a state option, not a nationwide guarantee. Where a state uses it, your SNAP or SSI award letter can settle the income question by itself.

Deductions your state may allow. ACF states flatly that “the LIHEAP statute does not define income.” In practice that means gross income, but ACF’s own guidance notes that a number of states deduct medical expenses above a threshold, or limited work-related costs such as child care. If you are just over the line and you have significant out-of-pocket medical bills, ask — the same expenses can also matter for the SNAP medical expense deduction for seniors.

Being counted as a household at all. Federal guidance defines a household as people living together as one economic unit “for whom residential energy is customarily purchased in common or who make un-designated payments for energy in the form of rent.” That last clause exists for renters whose heat is bundled into the rent. What varies is the size of the benefit and whether your state requires non-subsidized housing.

The LIHEAP Payment Itself Does Not Count Against You

This is the part people most often have backwards. 42 U.S.C. § 8624(f) says a LIHEAP payment:

shall not be considered income or resources of such household (or any member thereof) for any purpose under any Federal or State law, including any law relating to taxation, supplemental nutrition assistance program benefits, public assistance, or welfare programs

It is not taxable income, and it cannot be counted against you for SNAP, for public assistance, or for other welfare programs.

The same subsection goes further. For the SNAP excess shelter expense deduction, “the full amount of such payments or allowances shall be deemed to be expended by such household for heating or cooling expenses” — as long as the payments “were greater than $20 annually.” A LIHEAP payment above $20 a year can therefore increase a SNAP benefit, by establishing a heating and cooling cost the household is treated as paying. If you receive both, tell your SNAP caseworker about the LIHEAP award and ask them to re-run the shelter deduction.

Checklist: Before You Apply

• Find your state’s row above and compare your gross annual household income for your household size.
• If you are within roughly 20% over the line, apply anyway — deductions, a different cooling or crisis standard, or categorical eligibility may close the gap.
• Gather proof of income for every adult (recent pay stubs, benefit award letters, Social Security statement).
• Gather a recent energy bill, or, if heat is in your rent, your lease showing that.
• Gather photo ID and Social Security numbers for household members.
• If you have a shutoff or disconnection notice, say so on the first call — crisis funds run on a separate, faster track and sometimes a different income standard.
• If anyone in the household is 60 or older, disabled, or a young child, say so. Section 8624(b)(3) requires states to run outreach specifically toward households with elderly or disabled members and high home energy burdens.
• Ask whether your state adds an assets test or a non-subsidized-housing rule — ACF lists both as options a state may impose.

How to Apply

LIHEAP is federally funded but locally run, and there is no national application. Two official starting points:

• EnergyHelp.us — ACF’s own locator, available in English, Spanish, Traditional Chinese and Simplified Chinese.
• National Energy Assistance Referral (NEAR) hotline: 1-866-674-6327, weekdays 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Eastern.

Apply as early in the season as you can. LIHEAP is a block grant, not an entitlement — when a state’s funds run out, applications stop being approved even from households that qualify.

One safety note, in ACF’s words: “LIHEAP does not provide direct grants to individuals; LIHEAP does not charge a fee for receiving a benefit.” Anyone offering you a LIHEAP grant for a fee, or asking for a payment to move you up a list, is not running the program. ACF asks you to report it to the HHS Fraud Hotline at 1-800-447-8477.

If LIHEAP funds are exhausted where you live, our guides to nonprofit fuel funds, the Dollar Energy Fund and calling 211 cover the non-government options, and the Weatherization Assistance Program is a separate pot of money with its own — usually higher — income limit.

How We Checked This

Every number above was read from a primary source rather than from another site’s summary. The eligibility band and the treatment of LIHEAP payments come from the statute itself, 42 U.S.C. § 8624, quoted directly. The household-size percentages come from 45 CFR 96.85. The poverty figures, the state median income figures and the state-by-state standards table all come from the FFY 2026 tables published by ACF’s Office of Community Services through the LIHEAP Clearinghouse.

Two things we found by reading those sources instead of a summary are worth stating plainly, because the common advice gets them wrong.

The “2026” LIHEAP poverty table is the 2025 HHS poverty guidelines. HHS published 2026 guidelines in the winter, and nearly every LIHEAP article now quotes them. But 45 CFR 96.85 lets states wait until October 1, and the Clearinghouse says most do. ACF’s own table titled “Federal Poverty Guidelines for FFY 2026” contains $15,650 and $32,150 — the 2025 figures. If you compared yourself against $33,000 and concluded you were over the line, you used a table that does not take effect until October 1, 2026.

ACF archived its plain-English eligibility page in February 2026. The page that explained categorical eligibility, the household definition, and the absence of any statutory income definition now carries a banner reading “no longer current but remains on our site for reference.” Nothing in the underlying law changed — we verified each of those points against 42 U.S.C. § 8624 and 45 CFR 96.85, which are current. But it does mean the friendly federal explainer many articles were built on is no longer maintained, and we cite the archived page only for points the statute and the regulation independently confirm.

We also noticed, while transcribing, a typographical error in ACF’s Arizona FFY 2026 median income table, where the two-person figure is printed with a doubled comma. The arithmetic required by 45 CFR 96.85 — 68% of the four-person figure — resolves it to $44,056. We did not rely on that cell for anything in this guide.

State limits, standards and available funds change every year and often mid-year. The figures here are the FFY 2026 federal tables, not your state’s determination, and a state may apply deductions, assets tests or housing rules that change your result. All sources above were verified on August 27, 2026. If your local agency tells you something different from what you read here, trust the agency for your case and tell us so we can re-check the guide.

Last updated: August 27, 2026. This is general information, not legal or financial advice.