Kentucky SNAP Benefits Calculator and Income Limits (Food Stamps), 2026-27

Kentucky's rules use the federal gross limit of 130% of the poverty level: $1,729 a month for one person and $3,575 for four, with net income at or below $1,330 for one and $2,750 for four. A household with an elderly or disabled member only has to meet the net limit.

SNAP (food stamps), run by the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services and applied for through kynect benefits. SNAP and food stamps are the same program, and the figures here are for October 1, 2026 to September 30, 2027; the FY 2026 figures (October 1, 2025 to September 30, 2026) are on the SNAP income limits page.

Maintained by Archie Chang · Limits and sources checked October 31, 2026 · Methodology & sources

Estimate your SNAP benefit

In SNAP, a member counts as elderly or disabled if they are 60 or older, or receive Supplemental Security Income, certain Social Security, railroad, veterans or state disability payments, or meet another test in the definition in 7 CFR 271.2.

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Enter your monthly utility costs for Kentucky; the state applies its own standard utility allowance when a household qualifies for one. Do not include internet: since Public Law 119-21 it no longer counts.

Your estimate

Estimated SNAP benefit: $306 a month.

Gross income test (October 1, 2026 to September 30, 2027)
Pass: $0 is at or below $1,729
Net income test
Pass: $0 is at or below $1,330
Maximum allotment for 1 person
$306
30% of net income (rounded up)
$0
Step by step SNAP calculation
StepAmount
Gross monthly income (earned plus unearned)$0
Minus: 20% earned income deduction$0
Minus: Standard deduction for 1 person$217
Minus: Dependent care costs$0
Legally owed child support paid (already taken out of gross income above)$0
Income after the deductions above$0
Shelter costs (rent or mortgage, taxes, insurance)$0
Half of income after the deductions above$0
Minus: Excess shelter deduction (capped at $769)$0
Net monthly income$0
Minus: 30% of net income, rounded up to the next dollar$0
Maximum allotment for 1 person$306
Estimated monthly benefit$306

This is an estimate, not an eligibility decision. Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services (CHFS) decides who is in the household, what income counts and the final benefit. Not modeled: asset (resource) limits, which can decide eligibility for households that are not categorically eligible; work-requirement time limits for able-bodied adults without dependents; student rules and noncitizen eligibility; self-employment cost rules and income exclusions; prorated first months and the $10 initial-month rule; state options beyond the ones sourced on the state pages (for example a standard medical deduction). Apply: kynect benefits.

Kentucky SNAP income limits by household size

Monthly limits effective October 1, 2026. The federal columns are the standard limits: a household with an elderly or disabled member skips the gross test, and a categorically eligible household skips both tests. The Kentucky column is the categorical eligibility limit, which is the same as the federal gross limit.

Kentucky SNAP monthly income limits by household size
Household sizeFederal gross, 130%Federal net, 100%Maximum benefit
1$1,729$1,330$306
2$2,345$1,804$562
3$2,960$2,277$808
4$3,575$2,750$1,023
5$4,191$3,224$1,217
6$4,806$3,697$1,463
7$5,421$4,170$1,616
8$6,037$4,644$1,841
Each additional member+$616+$474+$225 (9th to 17th person)

Kentucky's regulation 921 KAR 3:030 treats a household that receives a TANF information sheet at application as expanded categorically eligible. For that household the regulation waives verification of only resources, Social Security number, sponsored immigrant information and residency; unlike regular categorical eligibility for SSI or TANF recipients, it does not list gross and net income. The regulation text states no gross income percent, so the calculator applies the gross and net income tests: the federal 130% gross limit (not required for a household with a member who is 60 or older or disabled) and the net limit.

“A household that receives a TANF information sheet at application, which makes the household aware of other programs for which the household may qualify, shall be considered expanded categorically eligible.”
921 KAR 3:030 Section 6(6) (source)
“If verified by the program, an expanded categorically eligible household shall not be required to verify the following factors:(a) Resources;(b) Social Security number;(c) Sponsored immigrant information; and(d) Residency.”
921 KAR 3:030 Section 6(7); the list names resources, Social Security number, sponsored immigrant information and residency, not income (source)

Kentucky SNAP asset test

Under 921 KAR 3:030, an expanded categorically eligible household is not required to verify its resources. For other households the federal limits apply: $3,000, or $4,750 with a member who is 60 or older or disabled (FY 2027).

The federal asset limits for households that are not categorically eligible are $3,000, or $4,750 when a member is 60 or older or disabled (FY 2027).

Kentucky SNAP utility allowances

This page shows no Kentucky standard utility allowance amount for FY 2027, so the calculator uses the utility costs you enter. Kentucky sets its own allowance; check the amount on your notice from the Department for Community Based Services.

Internet costs no longer count toward shelter or utility costs under Public Law 119-21 section 10104, and a LIHEAP or similar payment gives the heating and cooling allowance only to a household with an elderly or disabled member (section 10103).

How to apply for SNAP in Kentucky

Kentucky takes SNAP applications on kynect benefits; the Department for Community Based Services decides the case.

kynect benefits

What the Kentucky calculator uses

  • Gross test: the federal 130% limit for every household without an elderly or disabled member; the net income test also applies to every household.
  • Deductions and maximum benefit: the FY 2027 federal figures shown on this page.
  • Child support you pay: taken out of income by default (7 CFR 273.9(c)(17)); if treating it as a deduction would change your result, the estimate says "possible".
  • Utilities: the utility costs you enter; this page lists no state allowance amounts.

Frequently asked questions

What are the Kentucky SNAP income limits for 2026-27?

Kentucky's rules use the federal gross limit of 130% of the poverty level: $1,729 a month for one person and $3,575 for four, with net income at or below $1,330 for one and $2,750 for four. A household with an elderly or disabled member only has to meet the net limit.

Is there an asset test for SNAP (food stamps) in Kentucky?

Under 921 KAR 3:030, an expanded categorically eligible household is not required to verify its resources. For other households the federal limits apply: $3,000, or $4,750 with a member who is 60 or older or disabled (FY 2027).

What is Kentucky's standard utility allowance for SNAP?

This page shows no Kentucky standard utility allowance amount for FY 2027, so the calculator uses the utility costs you enter. Kentucky sets its own allowance; check the amount on your notice from the Department for Community Based Services.

How do I apply for SNAP in Kentucky?

Kentucky takes SNAP applications on kynect benefits; the Department for Community Based Services decides the case. Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services (CHFS) decides eligibility and the benefit amount.

How much SNAP could a Kentucky household get?

The maximum allotment is the same in every one of the 48 states and DC: $306 a month for one person, $562 for two, $1,023 for four. The benefit is that amount minus 30% of net income, rounded up to the next dollar, and a one or two person household that is eligible gets at least $25. The calculator on this page shows every deduction.

Is Kentucky SNAP the same as food stamps?

Yes. In Kentucky the program is described as: SNAP (food stamps), run by the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services and applied for through kynect benefits. The federal program is SNAP, formerly called Food Stamps, so the income limits and benefit formula on this page apply under every one of those names.

Related pages

FedRateCalc is not a government site and cannot decide eligibility. Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services (CHFS) decides each case, and its figures change when it updates them.

Sources

All sources are government pages, read October 31, 2026, except the pages marked below, which were read from Internet Archive captures of the agency page on the date shown.