There is no single dollar figure that defines what is considered low income in Wyoming. The starting point is the 2026 Federal Poverty Guidelines, which set the poverty line at $15,960 for a single person and $33,000 for a family of four. From there, each assistance program picks its own cutoff: SNAP uses 130% of that figure, WIC uses 185%, Weatherization uses 200%, and federal housing programs ignore the poverty guidelines altogether and use Area Median Income for your county. Your household size, where you live, and which program you’re applying for determine whether you qualify.
The 2026 Federal Poverty Guidelines
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services updates the Federal Poverty Guidelines (FPG) each year, and Wyoming follows the schedule used by the 48 contiguous states. For 2026, the annual figures are:
- 1 person: $15,960
- 2 people: $21,640
- 3 people: $27,320
- 4 people: $33,000
- 5 people: $38,680
- 6 people: $44,360
- 7 people: $50,040
- 8 people: $55,720
For households larger than eight, add $5,680 for each additional person.1U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. 2026 Poverty Guidelines
These numbers rarely function as the eligibility cutoff on their own. Programs multiply them by a percentage — 130%, 185%, 200%, 250% — to set their own thresholds. A program that uses 200% of the FPG, for example, treats a single person earning up to $31,920 as eligible, and a family of four earning up to $66,000.
SNAP Income Limits in Wyoming
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program uses the federal standard tests. Most households must have gross monthly income at or below 130% of the FPG. Households with an elderly or disabled member qualify under a higher gross limit of 165%.2Wyoming Department of Family Services. Table I – SNAP Income Limits
For FY 2026, the 130% gross monthly income limit is $1,696 for a single person and $3,483 for a four-person household. At 165%, those figures rise to $2,152 and $4,421.3USDA Food and Nutrition Service. SNAP FY2026 Income Eligibility Standards
Most households also have to pass a net income test at 100% of the FPG after allowable deductions for shelter, dependent care, and other expenses. SNAP adds an asset test on top: in 2026, countable resources generally cannot exceed $3,000, or $4,500 if the household includes someone elderly or disabled. Retirement accounts, your home, and most vehicles do not count.
Medicaid and Kid Care CHIP
Wyoming has not expanded Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, so adults without dependent children generally cannot qualify no matter how low their income, unless they have a disability or are age 65 or older. For the groups the program does cover, limits are set as percentages of the FPG:
- Children ages 6–18: 133% of the FPG
- Pregnant women and children under 6: 154% of the FPG
- Kid Care CHIP (children): between 154% and 200% of the FPG
- Breast and cervical cancer treatment: 250% of the FPG
For a family of four, 133% of the 2026 FPG works out to roughly $43,890 per year, and 200% reaches $66,000.4Wyoming Department of Health. Medicaid Income Requirements
Kid Care CHIP covers children in families that earn too much for Medicaid but still need help affording coverage. Eligibility is calculated using Modified Adjusted Gross Income.5Cornell Law Institute. 048-5 Wyoming Code R 5-6 – Kid Care CHIP Eligibility Requirements
Housing Assistance Uses a Different Yardstick
Federal housing programs do not use the poverty guidelines at all. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development sets eligibility based on Area Median Income (AMI), which reflects what a typical family earns in a specific part of Wyoming. The income limit for Section 8 vouchers or public housing in Teton County differs significantly from the limit in Fremont County.
HUD groups applicants into three tiers based on local AMI:
- Low-income: up to 80% of AMI
- Very low-income: up to 50% of AMI
- Extremely low-income: up to 30% of AMI, or the poverty guideline if that is higher
Statewide Wyoming figures for FY 2025 put a one-person household at $20,900 at the 30% level and $34,800 at the 50% level. For a four-person household, those figures are $29,800 and $49,650.6HUD USER. FY 2025 State Income Limits Report Casper, Cheyenne, and other metropolitan areas publish their own limits that may differ from the statewide numbers. HUD maintains a lookup tool for exact figures by location.7HUD USER. Income Limits
One quirk: HUD will not let the extremely low-income limit fall below the poverty guideline for a given family size. In small households in higher-income areas, the poverty guideline often ends up being the binding floor.
Energy, Utility, and Phone Assistance
Wyoming’s Low Income Energy Assistance Program (LIEAP) helps with winter heating costs and sets eligibility at 60% of state median income rather than a percentage of the FPG.8Wyoming Department of Family Services. Low Income Energy Assistance Program (LIEAP) Because Wyoming’s state median income runs higher than the national average, this cutoff is more generous than a straight poverty-based test. The federal LIHEAP statute sets a floor of 110% of the FPG and a ceiling of 150% of the FPG or 60% of state median income, whichever is higher.9LIHEAP Clearinghouse. LIHEAP Income Eligibility for States and Territories
The federal Weatherization Assistance Program, which pays for insulation and furnace repairs in qualifying homes, caps eligibility at 200% of the FPG — $66,000 a year for a family of four in 2026.
The Lifeline program discounts phone or internet service for households at or below 135% of the FPG. You also qualify automatically if you already receive SNAP, Medicaid, federal public housing assistance, Supplemental Security Income, or a Veterans Pension.10Federal Communications Commission. Lifeline Support for Affordable Communications
School Meals and WIC
Families with children run into “low income” thresholds through school meals and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children:
- Free school meals: household income at or below 130% of the FPG
- Reduced-price school meals: household income between 130% and 185% of the FPG
- WIC: household income at or below 185% of the FPG
For a family of four, the 185% threshold works out to roughly $61,050 a year in 2026.11USDA Food and Nutrition Service. Child Nutrition Programs – Income Eligibility Guidelines (2025-2026) Families already receiving SNAP, TANF, or certain other benefits qualify for free school meals automatically, regardless of income.
How Programs Count Your Income
The income figure that matters depends on which program you’re applying to. Most start with gross income — wages, self-employment earnings, Social Security, unemployment, child support, and alimony, all before taxes and deductions. For self-employed applicants, programs usually look at net earnings after ordinary business expenses.12Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 554, Self-Employment Tax
Health coverage programs — Medicaid, CHIP, and the Marketplace — use Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI) instead. MAGI starts with your adjusted gross income from your tax return and adds back untaxed foreign income, non-taxable Social Security benefits, and tax-exempt interest.13HealthCare.gov. Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI) Your qualifying income for Medicaid can look different from your qualifying income for SNAP, even in the same month.
Several categories of income are excluded across programs. SNAP benefits you already receive, energy assistance payments, educational grants and loans, and lump-sum tax refunds (generally for 12 months after receipt) usually do not count. Each program keeps its own list of exclusions and deductions, so two programs can review the same household and arrive at different income numbers.
Household size shifts every threshold. Limits rise with each additional member, and each program defines “household” differently. Spouses and dependent children living with you almost always count; other relatives or unrelated roommates may or may not.
What the Poverty Guidelines Miss
The Federal Poverty Guidelines were never built to reflect what it actually costs to live in a particular place. The Wyoming Self-Sufficiency Standard calculates the income a family needs to cover housing, food, childcare, healthcare, transportation, and taxes in each county without any public assistance, and the differences across the state are substantial. In 2024, a single adult in Teton County needed $39,882 a year to be self-sufficient; in Uinta County, the figure was $26,744. For a single parent with one preschooler, the number ranged from $44,518 in Goshen County to $76,105 in Teton County.
The Self-Sufficiency Standard does not determine eligibility for any program. It does show why a Wyoming household earning well above the poverty line can still struggle, and why checking several program thresholds separately — rather than assuming one income figure answers the question — is the right approach.