All 50 states and DC · 2026–27 rules · worked out in your browser
Benefits calculator: what you can get, and what a raise really leaves you
Tell it where you live, who lives with you and what comes in. It shows what you can likely get from SNAP, Medicaid, CHIP, tax credits, WIC, TANF, child care help, SSI, housing and energy help, and the exact pay where each one ends, so you can see whether a raise really leaves you better off.

Your month
Start with your state
Then add who lives with you and the money coming in. Everything is worked out here in your browser; nothing you type is sent or saved.
Uses SNAP figures for October 1, 2026 to September 30, 2027, the 2026 poverty guidelines, tax year 2026 credits, 2027 marketplace rules, and each state's own limits. Every figure is on Sources with its government page. Checked October 31, 2026.
How the calculator works
It works out each program the way the program does, from its published rules: who counts in the household, which income counts, what is taken off first, the limit for your household size in your state, and the amount. Then it works your household out again at every level of pay, from nothing up to well past what you earn, so it can find each point where a benefit stops.
- Your pay goes upA raise, more hours, a second job
- Taxes take a littleAbout 7.65% for Social Security and Medicare, then income tax
- Help shrinksSNAP, tax credits and marketplace help fall a little with each dollar
- A limit is crossedSome help stops all at once at a set income: Medicaid, child care help, CHIP
- The cliffOne dollar more in pay, hundreds less in help
- The climb backThe pay where you are ahead again: the calculator finds it
Your answer has four parts: the programs you can likely get, with what each is worth and where to apply; your month's budget after federal taxes, child care and health insurance; your next cliff, the pay at which a benefit ends and you would have less money than just below it; and what a raise would really leave you. A line shows your money left at every pay: a red drop in it is a cliff.
What is a benefits cliff?
Most help shrinks gradually as pay rises: SNAP falls by about 30 cents for each extra dollar of income after deductions, and the EITC by 16 to 21 cents. That is not a cliff. A cliff is a limit: at one dollar over it, a benefit stops entirely. Children's Medicaid can end at a set income and CHIP begin, child care help ends at the state's limit, and in some years the marketplace tax credit stops at four times the poverty line. One more dollar of pay can cost hundreds a month.
Not every limit is a cliff for every family, because other help can fill the gap. That is why the calculator works out all of them together, for your household. More on benefits cliffs.
The programs, one by one
Each page has its income limits for 2026–27, how the amount is worked out, and where it ends.
- SNAP food benefitsFood
- WIC (food for mothers, babies and young children)Food
- Free or reduced-price school mealsFood
- Summer EBT (SUN Bucks)Food
- MedicaidHealth
- Marketplace health insurance tax creditHealth
- Medicare Savings ProgramHealth
- Extra Help with Medicare drug costsHealth
- TANF cash help for familiesCash
- SSI (Supplemental Security Income)Cash
- Child care helpFamily and work
- Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8)Home
- Help with energy bills (LIHEAP)Home
- Lifeline phone or internet discountHome
- Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)Family and work
- Child Tax CreditFamily and work
Your state
States set many of the limits: whether adults get Medicaid, how much a family can earn and keep SNAP, what TANF pays, who gets child care help. Each state's page has its own limits, its own names for each program and where to apply.
Questions people ask
Is this a government website?
No. It is an independent calculator published by PVV Media Technologies. It takes no applications and passes nothing to any office. Applying for these programs is free; each card in your answer links to the place to apply on the government's own website.
Do you save what I type?
No. The calculator works in your browser and sends nothing: not your household, your pay or your costs. Nothing is stored when you close the page. It never asks for your name, Social Security number or bank details.
How accurate is it?
It follows each program's published rules and each state's own limits, and every figure links to its source. But it is an estimate: offices count income over particular months, check things a short form cannot ask, and some programs have waiting lists or run out of money. Use it to see what to apply for, and what a change in pay would do.
Can a raise really leave me worse off?
Yes, at a cliff. If your pay crosses a limit where a benefit stops all at once, such as children's Medicaid moving to a costlier plan or child care help ending, you can lose more in help than the raise adds. The calculator finds those points for your household and tells you how much more pay it would take to come out ahead.
What is the income limit for SNAP?
Under the federal rule, a household of three can have gross income up to $2,960 a month (October 1, 2026 to September 30, 2027), and income after deductions up to $2,277. Many states let households in up to a higher gross limit. Households with someone 60 or older or with a disability only need to meet the second limit.