Illinois Benefits Calculator: SNAP, Medicaid, CHIP and Other Income Limits (2026–27)

Illinois income limits at a glance

Income is before taxes. Each program counts income its own way (some take off deductions first), so a household just over a limit here can still qualify: the calculator works it out properly.

Sources: SNAP – Fiscal Year 2027 Cost-of-Living Adjustments (memo and tables, signed August 21, 2026) (USDA Food and Nutrition Administration (formerly Food and Nutrition Service)); 7 CFR 273.9 Income and deductions (eCFR up to date as of 2026-10-29) (eCFR / National Archives (USDA rule)); 7 CFR 273.10 Determining household eligibility and benefit levels (eCFR 2026-10-29) (eCFR / National Archives (USDA rule)); 7 CFR 273.8 Resource eligibility standards (eCFR 2026-10-29) (eCFR / National Archives (USDA rule)); Public Law 119-21 (the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act"), 4 July 2025, Title I Subtitle A "Nutrition", sections 10101-10108 (139 Stat. 81-85) (U.S. Government Publishing Office (govinfo)); PM 05-07-00 Categorically Eligible SNAP Households (Illinois Department of Human Services (Cash, SNAP, and Medical Manual)); Manual Release MR #26.26 October 2026 SNAP Adjustments due to COLA (Illinois Department of Human Services); WAG 25-03-02 (1) SNAP: Program Standards chart (income standards, deductions, utility standards, resource limits) (Illinois Department of Human Services (Cash, SNAP, and Medical Manual)); Cash, SNAP & Medical Assistance: Apply for Benefits (Illinois Department of Human Services); MACStats Exhibit 35. Medicaid and CHIP Income Eligibility Levels as a Percentage of the Federal Poverty Level for Children and Pregnant Women by State, July 2025 (Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission (MACPAC), a federal agency); MACStats Exhibit 36. Medicaid Income Eligibility Levels as a Percentage of the Federal Poverty Level for Non-Aged, Non-Disabled, Non-Pregnant Adults by State, July 2025 (Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission (MACPAC), a federal agency); Letter_Bill 1..596 (State of Illinois site (hfs.illinois.gov)); Medical Programs HFS (State of Illinois site (hfs.illinois.gov)); IDHS: PM 15-06-01-d: All Kids Assist Standard (State of Illinois site (www.dhs.state.il.us)); IDHS: PM 06-09-03: Income Requirements (State of Illinois site (www.dhs.state.il.us)); IDHS: PM 15-06-01-b: ACA Adults (State of Illinois site (www.dhs.state.il.us)); Who can get Illinois Medicaid? (State of Illinois site (hfs.illinois.gov)); Changes Coming to Medicaid (State of Illinois site (hfs.illinois.gov)); Medicaid Program; Community Engagement Requirement for Certain Individuals, interim final rule with comment period, 91 FR 33348 (3 June 2026), CMS-2454-IFC, RIN 0938-AV98, effective 31 July 2026 (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services via the Federal Register (read as the govinfo.gov PDF)); Public Law 119-21 (4 July 2025; 'One Big Beautiful Bill Act'; CMS now calls it the 'Working Families Tax Cut' legislation), Title VII Subtitle B Chapter 1 sections 71101-71121 (Medicaid) and 71201, 71301-71303 (U.S. Congress via the Government Publishing Office); Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC): 2026/2027 Income Eligibility Guidelines (91 FR 23050-23052, FR Doc. 2026-08323, 29 Apr 2026) (USDA Food and Nutrition Service (Federal Register notice)); The Food and Nutrition Assistance Landscape: Fiscal Year 2025 Annual Report (Economic Information Bulletin 304, June 2026) (USDA Economic Research Service); Child Nutrition Programs: Income Eligibility Guidelines (91 FR 17932-17935, FR Doc. 2026-06842, 9 Apr 2026) (USDA Food and Nutrition Service (Federal Register notice)). Checked October 31, 2026.

Download every state's limits (CSV, opens in Excel) Every state and DC, households of 1 to 8 people: each program's monthly income limit and the most TANF pays, as the state pages show them, with the period each figure is for.

Where the cliffs are for an Illinois family

• $3,758 a month: SNAP ends or drops, and the family has $366 less a month than just below it.

Worked out by this site's calculator with Illinois's rules as of November 1, 2026. Money left means pay, and benefits counted as money, after federal taxes, the child care bill and health insurance premiums. Your own household will differ: put it in the calculator above.

Each program in Illinois

SNAP

Illinois lets households with no one 60 or older or with a disability with gross income up to 165% of the poverty line (no limit on savings); and households with someone 60 or older or with a disability with gross income up to 200% of the poverty line (no limit on savings) apply (broad-based categorical eligibility). The amount still depends on income after deductions. A household that pays for heating or cooling counts a standard utility allowance of $565 a month with its rent. Where to apply.

Sources: PM 05-07-00 Categorically Eligible SNAP Households (Illinois Department of Human Services (Cash, SNAP, and Medical Manual)); Manual Release MR #26.26 October 2026 SNAP Adjustments due to COLA (Illinois Department of Human Services); WAG 25-03-02 (1) SNAP: Program Standards chart (income standards, deductions, utility standards, resource limits) (Illinois Department of Human Services (Cash, SNAP, and Medical Manual)); Cash, SNAP & Medical Assistance: Apply for Benefits (Illinois Department of Human Services). Checked October 31, 2026.

Illinois Medicaid and CHIP

Illinois has expanded Medicaid, so adults 19 to 64 qualify up to 138% of the poverty line. From January 1, 2027 for new applicants (those who apply after December 31, 2026), adults 19 to 64 covered through Illinois’s Medicaid expansion must show 80 hours a month of work, community service, a work program or half-time school, or household income of at least $580 a month, to get or keep this coverage, unless they are exempt (for example, parents of a child 13 or under, people with a disability, and pregnant women). Where to apply.

Monthly income before taxes, counted the way Medicaid counts it (modified adjusted gross income); a pregnant woman counts the baby she expects. The percents include the 5 points of income Medicaid disregards.

Sources: MACStats Exhibit 35. Medicaid and CHIP Income Eligibility Levels as a Percentage of the Federal Poverty Level for Children and Pregnant Women by State, July 2025 (Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission (MACPAC), a federal agency); MACStats Exhibit 36. Medicaid Income Eligibility Levels as a Percentage of the Federal Poverty Level for Non-Aged, Non-Disabled, Non-Pregnant Adults by State, July 2025 (Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission (MACPAC), a federal agency); Letter_Bill 1..596 (State of Illinois site (hfs.illinois.gov)); Medical Programs HFS (State of Illinois site (hfs.illinois.gov)); IDHS: PM 15-06-01-d: All Kids Assist Standard (State of Illinois site (www.dhs.state.il.us)); IDHS: PM 06-09-03: Income Requirements (State of Illinois site (www.dhs.state.il.us)); IDHS: PM 15-06-01-b: ACA Adults (State of Illinois site (www.dhs.state.il.us)); Who can get Illinois Medicaid? (State of Illinois site (hfs.illinois.gov)); Changes Coming to Medicaid (State of Illinois site (hfs.illinois.gov)); Medicaid Program; Community Engagement Requirement for Certain Individuals, interim final rule with comment period, 91 FR 33348 (3 June 2026), CMS-2454-IFC, RIN 0938-AV98, effective 31 July 2026 (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services via the Federal Register (read as the govinfo.gov PDF)); Public Law 119-21 (4 July 2025; 'One Big Beautiful Bill Act'; CMS now calls it the 'Working Families Tax Cut' legislation), Title VII Subtitle B Chapter 1 sections 71101-71121 (Medicaid) and 71201, 71301-71303 (U.S. Congress via the Government Publishing Office). Checked October 31, 2026.

Illinois Temporary Assistance for Needy Families

Cash help for families with children. Where to apply.

Source: TANF Programs by State (Help for Families map) (HHS/ACF/Office of Family Assistance). Checked October 31, 2026.

Phone numbers and where to go in Illinois

Each number and address below is the one Illinois's own page printed when we checked it, with that page and the day under it. Where we could not read the state's page, it says "Not checked yet". Numbers change: if one does not work, the state's main page has the current one.

Applying is free. Start from the addresses here or the state's own page, not an ad or a link someone texts you, and never pay anyone to apply for you. Is this real?

How to ask for a hearing in Illinois

If you think a decision on your benefits is wrong, you can ask for a fair hearing: a meeting with someone outside the office that decided. Asking is free. Here is how Illinois says to ask, program by program.

Federal rules set the outer limits: a SNAP household can ask about anything the office did in the past 90 days (7 CFR 273.15), and for Medicaid a state must allow a reasonable time of up to 90 days from the day the notice was mailed (42 CFR 431.221), so a state can set a shorter Medicaid limit. Whether your benefits keep coming while you wait depends on how soon you ask: your notice says by when. Only the agency and the hearing officer decide your case.

When benefits are paid in Illinois

Each state sets the days its SNAP benefits arrive. This is Illinois's rule as its own page states it; the exact day for your case is on your approval notice. SSI, Social Security and tax refund dates, and every state's SNAP rule, are on the payment dates page.

SNAP

1st through 10th for newly approved cases

For newly approved cases, the availability date is between the 1st and the 10th of the month.

Source: dhs.state.il.us, checked November 1, 2026

Illinois Temporary Assistance for Needy Families

If you are eligible for cash and SNAP benefits, you will access both with the same card.

Source: dhs.state.il.us, checked November 1, 2026

Summer EBT (SUN Bucks) in 2026

Illinois took part in 2026, paying $120 for each child who qualified. The state calls it Summer EBT (aka SUN Bucks).

Summer EBT 2026 (aka SUN Bucks) is a benefits program that provides families a $120 one-time benefit for each eligible school-aged child.

Source: dhs.state.il.us, checked November 1, 2026

Free help from a person in Illinois

These are free. None of them can approve benefits, but they can help you apply, answer a letter or get ready for a hearing.

Updated November 1, 2026