TANF Benefits by State: Maximum Cash Assistance Compared

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) is the federal cash assistance program, and each state sets its own benefit amount, time limit and resource limit.¹ This analysis compares all 50 states and the District of Columbia on the maximum monthly benefit for a family of three.

Key findings

The median maximum monthly TANF cash benefit for a family of three is $583 across 51 jurisdictions (the 50 states and the District of Columbia). #
New Hampshire pays the highest maximum benefit, $1,366 a month, and Arkansas pays the lowest, $204 a month. The highest figure is 6.7 times the lowest. #
20 of 51 jurisdictions (39%) set the maximum monthly benefit for a family of three below $500. #
19 of 51 jurisdictions (37%) set the maximum monthly benefit for a family of three below 20% of the federal poverty guideline, which is $455 a month for 2026. #
Most jurisdictions (36 of 51, 71%) apply the federal limit of 60 months of assistance; 15 set a shorter limit. #
The shortest time limit is 12 months, in Arizona and Arkansas. #
9 of 51 jurisdictions (18%) have no resource limit for most households. Among the other 42, the median limit is $2,625, ranging from $1,000 to $15,000. #

Resource limits for most jurisdictions rest on state profiles published by the National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP).²

Maximum benefit by band

The 51 jurisdictions fall into 4 bands of maximum monthly benefit for a family of three. The most common band is $400 to $699, with 19 jurisdictions.

Group	Jurisdictions	Share	Listed
Under $400	14	27%	14 jurisdictions
$400 to $699	19	37%	19 jurisdictions
$700 to $999	16	31%	16 jurisdictions
$1,000 or more	2	4%	California, New Hampshire

Time limit by length

Time limits range from 12 months to 60 months. The most common limit is 60 months, set by 36 jurisdictions.

Group	Jurisdictions	Share	Listed
12 months	2	4%	Arizona, Arkansas
24 months	5	10%	Idaho, Kansas, Massachusetts, Nevada, South Carolina
36 months	4	8%	Connecticut, Delaware, Ohio, Utah
45 months	1	2%	Missouri
48 months	3	6%	Florida, Georgia, Wisconsin
60 months	36	71%	36 jurisdictions

All jurisdictions, highest benefit first

Rank	Jurisdiction	Maximum monthly benefit	Time limit	Resource limit
1	New Hampshire	$1,366	60 months	$1,000 at application
2	California	$1,175	60 months	$12,552 ($18,829 with an elderly or disabled member)
3	Hawaii	$985	60 months	None for most households
4	North Dakota	$962	60 months	$6,025 for a three-person household
5	Wyoming	$939	60 months	$5,000
6	Alaska	$923	60 months	$2,000
7	Maine	$917	60 months	$10,000 per family
8	Connecticut	$915	36 months	$6,000
9	Rhode Island	$865	60 months	$5,000
10	Massachusetts	$861	24 months	None for most households
11	Vermont	$856	60 months	$9,000
12	District of Columbia	$803	60 months	$3,000
13	Minnesota	$799	60 months	$10,000
14	Illinois	$797	60 months	None for most households
15	New York	$789	60 months	$2,500 in most cases
16	Maryland	$773	60 months	None for most households
17	Montana	$725	60 months	$3,000
18	Washington	$706	60 months	$12,000
19	South Dakota	$672	60 months	$2,000
20	Utah	$662	36 months	$2,000
21	Wisconsin	$653	48 months	$2,500 at application
22	Ohio	$640	36 months	None for most households
23	Colorado	$620	60 months	None for most households
24	Virginia	$587	60 months	None for most households
25	Nebraska	$584	60 months	$4,000 for one parent, $6,000 for two adults
26	Michigan	$583	60 months	$15,000 in cash, investments and retirement plans
27	New Jersey	$559	60 months	$2,000
28	New Mexico	$550	60 months	$1,500 in liquid assets
29	West Virginia	$542	60 months	$2,000
30	Indiana	$513	60 months	$1,000 at application
31	Oregon	$506	60 months	$10,000
32	Louisiana	$484	60 months	None for most households
33	South Carolina	$449	24 months	$2,500
34	Kansas	$429	24 months	$2,750
35	Iowa	$426	60 months	$2,000 per household
36	Delaware	$405	36 months	$10,000
37	Pennsylvania	$403	60 months	$1,000
38	Texas	$388	60 months	$1,000
39	Tennessee	$387	60 months	$2,000
40	Nevada	$386	24 months	$10,000
41	Arizona	$347	12 months	$2,000
42	Alabama	$344	60 months	None for most households
43	Kentucky	$341	60 months	$10,000
44	Idaho	$309	24 months	$5,000
45	Florida	$303	48 months	$2,000
46	Missouri	$292	45 months	$1,000 at application
47	Oklahoma	$292	60 months	$2,250
48	Georgia	$280	48 months	$1,000
49	North Carolina	$272	60 months	$3,000
50	Mississippi	$260	60 months	$2,000
51	Arkansas	$204	12 months	$3,000

Each jurisdiction links to its state page, which describes the benefit, eligibility and how to apply, and cites the state’s official payment schedule.³

Questions

What is the median TANF maximum benefit for a family of three?

The median maximum monthly TANF cash benefit for a family of three is $583 across 51 jurisdictions (the 50 states and the District of Columbia). 20 of 51 jurisdictions (39%) set the maximum monthly benefit for a family of three below $500. #

Which states pay the highest and lowest TANF benefits?

New Hampshire pays the highest maximum benefit, $1,366 a month, and Arkansas pays the lowest, $204 a month. The highest figure is 6.7 times the lowest. #

How many states have a TANF resource limit?

9 of 51 jurisdictions (18%) have no resource limit for most households. Among the other 42, the median limit is $2,625, ranging from $1,000 to $15,000. #

Suggested citation

Single Mother Guide. “TANF Benefits by State: Maximum Cash Assistance Compared.” November 2026. https://singlemotherguide.com/research/tanf-benefits

A plain-text copy of this analysis is available as Markdown.

Methodology and definitions

The figures above are compiled from each state’s published TANF payment schedule and eligibility rules, as recorded in the site’s state data and refreshed once a year. Medians and shares are calculated from the compiled values.

What is the maximum monthly benefit?

The maximum monthly benefit is the cash grant for a household of three with no other countable income. It is not the average payment, and many households receive less.

Where a state publishes several schedules, the column recorded for that state is the one described on its state page. California uses Region 1 non-exempt, and Minnesota uses the cash portion only.

What is the time limit?

The time limit is the number of months an adult may receive assistance. Federal law bars a state from using federal TANF funds for adult assistance beyond 60 months (42 U.S.C. 608(a)(7)), and a state may set a shorter limit.

What is the resource limit?

The resource limit is the most a household may own in countable resources at application. A figure of none means the state applies no limit to most households.

8 jurisdictions were checked against state law or the state eligibility manual in November 2026. The remaining figures rest on the National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP) 2025-26 state profiles.

Data sources, refresh and rounding

Every figure comes from a published state or federal source. No field is entered by users. Figures are refreshed yearly.

Dollar amounts are whole dollars and shares are rounded to the nearest whole percent. The median of an even count is the mean of the two middle values.

Sources & notes

Data and figures on this page come from the sources and notes below:

42 U.S.C. 608(a)(7) , Prohibitions; requirements: the 60-month limit on federally funded assistance, with state discretion to set a shorter limit. ↩
National Center for Children in Poverty, TANF Cash Assistance Resources, 2025-26 , state profiles, row “Asset limit”. ↩
The official schedule, manual or statute for each state is cited in the footnotes of its state TANF page. ↩