The smallest SNAP households have a slightly higher floor this month. The Agriculture Department’s Food and Nutrition Administration has set the minimum monthly benefit at $25 for eligible one- and two-person households in the 48 states and Washington, D.C. That is up from $24 in the 2026 fiscal year, and it runs from October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027.

The change is part of the yearly cost-of-living adjustment, which the agency published in its fiscal 2027 memo. The prior-year figure of $24 comes from the fiscal 2026 memo. A one-dollar gain sounds small, but for a household whose income is high enough to shrink its benefit to almost nothing, it sets the lowest payment the program will make each month.

Who the $25 minimum covers

The minimum is not a flat payment to every small household. It is a floor for households that are already approved for SNAP and have one or two members. A household that is approved and whose formula result lands below $25 receives $25 instead; a household whose formula result is higher keeps the higher amount.

That formula starts with the maximum allotment for the household’s size and subtracts 30 percent of its net income. Households with more income end up with a smaller benefit, and the minimum catches the ones at the bottom of that slide. A retiree living on Social Security who has high medical or shelter costs may still land near that floor, so the $25 figure matters most for the oldest and smallest households.

Does a one- or two-person household get the $25 minimum, and what is the rest of its benefit? The answer depends on the household’s net income against the new maximums: $306 a month for one person and $562 for two, up from $298 and $546 last year. Anyone whose state worker has not mentioned the new numbers can find the full table on the agency’s cost-of-living page, and the renewal dates that decide when the new amounts apply are the part most households have to track themselves.

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How the maximums and deductions moved

The agency recalculates every figure from the cost of the Thrifty Food Plan, a USDA basket of groceries, using the June price. That is why the maximum for a single person rose from $298 to $306 and the maximum for a family of four rose from $994 to $1,023. The standard deduction for households of one to three people rose from $209 to $217, according to the two memos.

A larger standard deduction lowers the income SNAP counts, which can raise a benefit even when the maximum allotment barely moves. The FNA page lists the deduction at $217 for one to three people, $229 for four, $268 for five and $308 for six or more.

Not every area gained. Hawaii is the exception in the memo, with the maximum for a household of four set to decrease to $1,655. Alaska, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands have their own tables, and the agency lists a one-person maximum of $392 in urban Alaska, $496 in Hawaii, $452 in Guam and $394 in the Virgin Islands. The $25 minimum applies only in the 48 states and D.C.

What changed for older and disabled households

For households with a member who is 60 or older, or who is disabled, the asset limit rose from $4,500 to $4,750 under the new memo. The standard limit for other households stays at $3,000. The extra $250 gives older applicants slightly more room in savings before the program counts them out.

Income limits moved too. The memo sets the gross monthly income limit for a one-person household at $1,729 and the net limit at $1,330. For a household of four, the gross limit is $3,575 and the net limit $2,750. Households that include an older or disabled member are tested on a higher 165 percent gross limit that the agency lists at $2,195 for one person and $4,538 for four.

Where small households can slip up

The higher floor does not renew itself. SNAP households still have to recertify on the schedule their state sets, report changes in income or household size, and respond to mail from the county office. A missed recertification can end a $25 benefit as quickly as a $300 one.

The agency’s cost-of-living page is the place to confirm the figures that apply to a particular household, and a local SNAP office can say how the new maximum changes an existing case. The open question for one- and two-person households is whether their next notice reflects the October 1 numbers, and the date on that notice is worth keeping.

Is a one- or two-person household getting the right amount this year?

A $25 floor only helps a household that stays enrolled, and a small benefit is the easiest one to lose track of. A missed renewal or an unreported change can end the payment even when the new October 1 figures are in place.

The SNAP & Medicaid Renewal Organizer gives a small household a renewal and reporting calendar, so the recertification and change-report dates are written down before they pass. It also includes 51 state packs, one for every state and D.C., plus a section on the senior rules that raise a benefit.

Get the renewal organizer and reporting calendar for the $25 SNAP minimum →

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This article was produced with AI assistance and edited for accuracy against the sources linked above.