Free and Reduced School Lunch Income Limits 2026-27: Every Household Size, Plus WIC and Head Start
2026-27 free and reduced-price school meal income limits by household size, with Alaska and Hawaii, and how WIC and Head Start use the same poverty line.
For 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027, a household of four in the 48 states, DC and the territories gets free school meals with income up to $42,900 a year ($3,575 a month) and reduced-price meals up to $61,050 ($5,088 a month). WIC uses the same 185% limit, and Head Start uses the poverty line itself, $33,000 for four.
For the 2026-27 school year (1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027), a household of four in the 48 states, DC, Guam and the territories qualifies for free school meals with income up to $42,900 a year and for reduced-price meals up to $61,050 a year. Those are 130% and 185% of the 2026 federal poverty line. USDA published them in the Federal Register on 9 April 2026. Alaska and Hawaii have higher limits because their poverty lines are higher.
You can check your own numbers, including weekly and every-two-weeks pay, with the free school lunch checker.
The 2026-27 limits, 48 states, DC and territories
Income means household income before tax and other deductions.
| Household size | Free meals, a year | Free meals, a month | Reduced price, a year | Reduced price, a month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $20,748 | $1,729 | $29,526 | $2,461 |
| 2 | $28,132 | $2,345 | $40,034 | $3,337 |
| 3 | $35,516 | $2,960 | $50,542 | $4,212 |
| 4 | $42,900 | $3,575 | $61,050 | $5,088 |
| 5 | $50,284 | $4,191 | $71,558 | $5,964 |
| 6 | $57,668 | $4,806 | $82,066 | $6,839 |
| 7 | $65,052 | $5,421 | $92,574 | $7,715 |
| 8 | $72,436 | $6,037 | $103,082 | $8,591 |
| Each extra person | +$7,384 | +$616 | +$10,508 | +$876 |
Alaska and Hawaii
| Household size | Alaska free | Alaska reduced | Hawaii free | Hawaii reduced |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $25,935 | $36,908 | $23,868 | $33,966 |
| 2 | $35,165 | $50,043 | $32,357 | $46,047 |
| 3 | $44,395 | $63,178 | $40,846 | $58,127 |
| 4 | $53,625 | $76,313 | $49,335 | $70,208 |
| 5 | $62,855 | $89,448 | $57,824 | $82,288 |
| 6 | $72,085 | $102,583 | $66,313 | $94,369 |
| 7 | $81,315 | $115,718 | $74,802 | $106,449 |
| 8 | $90,545 | $128,853 | $83,291 | $118,530 |
| Each extra person | +$9,230 | +$13,135 | +$8,489 | +$12,081 |
These are yearly figures. The notice also gives monthly, twice-monthly, every-two-weeks and weekly limits. Each one is the yearly limit divided by 12, 24, 26 or 52 and rounded up to the next dollar. That is the rounding the checker uses.
How the limits are worked out
The starting point is the HHS 2026 poverty guidelines: $15,960 for one person in the 48 states, plus $5,680 for each extra person. In Alaska the base is $19,950 plus $7,100 a person, and in Hawaii it is $18,360 plus $6,530. USDA multiplies the poverty line by 1.30 for free meals and by 1.85 for reduced price, then rounds up to the next dollar. For a household of four that is $33,000 × 1.30 = $42,900. The notice says the figures for a family of four are 2.6% higher than last year's.
Free without an income test
Some children get free meals whatever the household earns. Under the federal rules (7 CFR 245.2), children are categorically eligible in these cases:
- Someone in the family gets SNAP, TANF or FDPIR (food distribution on Indian reservations).
- The child is a foster child or is homeless.
- The child is a migrant or a runaway.
- The child is enrolled in Head Start.
Some schools also serve free meals to every pupil through the federal Community Eligibility Provision. Some states go further. These states give every public-school pupil free breakfast and lunch in 2026-27, as checked on official pages on 18 October 2026:
| State | Rule | How it is funded |
|---|---|---|
| California | Education Code 49501.5, since 2022-23 | Permanent law |
| Colorado | Healthy School Meals for All, in districts that opt in | Dedicated tax, backed by voters in 2025 |
| Maine | 20-A MRSA 6602 | Permanent law |
| Massachusetts | MGL c.69 s.1C, since 2023-24 | Permanent law, money in each budget |
| Michigan | Michigan School Meals, since 2023-24 | Approved in each year's budget |
| Minnesota | Minn. Stat. 124D.111 | Permanent law |
| New Mexico | Healthy Universal School Meals, since 2023-24 | Permanent, recurring funding |
| New York | Education Law 915-a, since 2025-26 | Permanent law, money in each budget |
| Vermont | Act 64, since 2023-24 | Permanent law, paid from the Education Fund |
Breakfast only is free for every pupil in:
- Arkansas: Act 123 of 2025, since 2025-26.
- Connecticut: the 2026-27 budget.
- Delaware: from 1 July 2026.
- Pennsylvania: funded in each year's budget.
Illinois passed a universal-meals law that depends on funding, and no money had been approved, so it is not universal. Your school district can tell you what applies at your school.
WIC: the same 185% line, with extra conditions
WIC's federal income limit is the same as reduced-price meals: 185% of the poverty line, so $61,050 a year for a family of four. It applies from 1 July 2026 under USDA's WIC notice of 29 April 2026. Three rules differ from school meals (7 CFR 246.7):
- A state may set its WIC limit lower than 185%, but not below the poverty line.
- Anyone certified for SNAP, TANF or Medicaid passes the income test automatically. So do members of a family on TANF, or of a family where a pregnant woman or an infant gets Medicaid.
- A pregnant woman counts each expected baby as an extra household member if that brings her under the limit.
Passing the income test is not enough on its own. WIC also serves only certain groups: pregnant, breastfeeding and postpartum women, infants, and children under their fifth birthday. Applicants must also meet WIC's nutritional risk criteria and live in the state.
Head Start: the poverty line itself
Head Start's rules (45 CFR 1302.12) use the poverty line, not a multiple of it. A child is eligible in any of these cases:
- Family income is at or below the poverty line ($33,000 for a family of four in the 48 states).
- The family gets public assistance such as TANF.
- The child is homeless or in foster care.
A program may also fill up to 35% of places with families between 100% and 130% of the poverty line, once it has served eligible families first. It may fill up to 10% with children who would benefit regardless of income. Head Start preschool is for children from age 3 to school age; Early Head Start is for children under 3 and pregnant women.
What changed for 2026-27
- The limits for a family of four rose by 2.6%, so a household just over last year's line may now qualify.
- The new limits apply from 1 July 2026. An application made in the 2025-26 school year was judged on that year's lower limits.
- WIC's 2026-27 limits must be in use by 1 July 2026 at the latest; states that align WIC with Medicaid may have switched earlier in the year.
The limits are estimates of the federal income test only. The decision is your school district's, or your WIC or Head Start office's, based on your application.