LIHEAP income limits by state.

The federal rule behind every state limit

LIHEAP, the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, is a block grant, so each state, territory and tribe sets its own income limit inside a federal range. The statute allows grantees to go up to the greater of 150% of the federal poverty guidelines or 60% of the state's median income, and since fiscal year 1995 a grantee may not set the limit below 110% of poverty. Within that range a grantee can give priority to households with the highest energy costs or needs in relation to income.

That is why there is no single national LIHEAP number. For a four-person household in the 48 states and D.C. the federal floor for the 2025-26 program year is $35,365 (110% of poverty), 150% of poverty is $48,225, and 60% of state median income runs from $51,424 in Mississippi to $118,926 in the District of Columbia.

LIHEAP income limits by state, FFY 2026 (October 2025 to September 2026)

The table shows each state's standard for heating assistance and the annual income limit that standard produces for one-person and four-person households. Dollar figures come from the federal tables that were mandatory for FFY 2026; the standards come from the LIHEAP Clearinghouse, which compiles each grantee's percentage by component. 12 states use 150% of poverty and 31 use 60% of state median income, with the rest using other percentages (110% to 200% of poverty, or 50% of median income). Use the calculator above for any household size from 1 to 12.

How household size changes a state-median-income limit

A limit based on state median income (SMI) starts from 60% of the state's four-person median income and is adjusted for size under 45 CFR 96.85: 52% for one person, 68% for two, 84% for three, 100% for four, 116% for five and 132% for six. Each person above six adds three percentage points to the six-person figure. In Alabama, 60% of the $98,700 four-person median is $59,220, so a single person is limited to $30,794 and a household of six to $78,170.

A poverty-based limit scales the same way the poverty guidelines do: a flat amount per extra person, with Alaska and Hawaii using their own higher guidelines. A state that picks 150% of poverty therefore has the same dollar limit as every other 150% state (Alaska and Hawaii aside), however high or low its median income is.

Worked example

This is a hypothetical household of four with a gross income of $55,000 a year. In Alabama, which uses 150% of poverty, the heating limit is $48,225, so the household is over by $6,775. In Ohio, which uses 175% of poverty for households of one to eight, the limit is $56,263 and the household is under by $1,263. In California, which uses 60% of state median income, the limit is $76,886. The same family can be eligible in one state and not in the next, which is why the state matters more than the federal rule.

Ohio's limit also sits inside the federal range for four people: $35,365 at the floor, $68,755 at the ceiling.

Common mistakes and edge cases

• Treating one number as national. A four-person limit of $48,225 in Alabama and $76,886 in California are both legitimate.
• Assuming heating, cooling and crisis help share a limit. Grantees can use a different percentage for each component, and weatherization is often at 200% of poverty. The majority use the same level for all, but check the component you need.
• Using the wrong program year. Grantees must adopt new tables by October 1 or the start of their own fiscal year, and most keep the prior year's poverty guidelines until then. A table from last winter can be a year behind.
• Large households. Some states switch to 150% of poverty at 8 to 14 members, and South Dakota applies three different rules by household size. The calculator applies these size rules for households up to 12; beyond 12 ask the state.
• Maryland. The Clearinghouse reports a sliding percentage by household size rather than a single rate, so no single dollar figure is shown.

Who this is for and what it does not cover

This page is for households deciding whether to apply, and for helpers who need to compare states quickly. It shows the income test only. It does not show benefit amounts, application dates, funding status, asset tests or categorical eligibility, which vary by state. Tribal LIHEAP programs and U.S. territories publish their own percentages and are not in the table. The figures are the FFY 2026 tables; ACF issues updated tables every year, and the next set becomes mandatory with the FFY 2027 program year, so check your state's current notice before relying on a dollar amount.