Nursing home care can cost over $10,000 a month, and most families eventually rely on Medicaid to pay for it. But Medicaid has strict asset, income, and home-equity limits — and they differ by state. Pick your state, enter your household finances, and instantly see how far you are from qualifying, how much a spouse can keep, and the legal options if you are over the limit.
All 50 States + DC · 2026 Long-Term Care Medicaid Limits
The table below shows approximate limits for nursing home Medicaid and home- and community-based services (HCBS). Click any row to load that state into the estimator above. Some states set slightly different limits by program (nursing home / HCBS / regular Medicaid for seniors); always confirm with your state Medicaid office before applying.
In “income cap” states, excess income must go through a Qualified Income Trust; in “medically needy” states, you can spend down on medical costs.
State
Asset limit (single)
Income limit (monthly)
Home equity limit
If income is over
Understand the Rules Before You Plan
Which assets count — and which are exempt
Countable assets (count toward the limit):
Bank deposits, cash, certificates of deposit
Stocks, mutual funds, bonds and other investment accounts
IRAs, 401(k)s and other retirement accounts (counted in most states)
A second property, rental property, or land
Life insurance with significant cash (surrender) value
A second vehicle or more
Usually exempt (not counted):
Your primary home (with conditions — see the equity limit)
One vehicle (most states set no value limit)
Furniture, appliances, clothing, jewelry and other personal items
Irrevocable prepaid funeral arrangements
Term life insurance (no cash value)
Spousal protections: keep the healthy spouse from being impoverished
When only one spouse applies, federal “spousal impoverishment” rules let the spouse who stays home (the community spouse) keep:
Community Spouse Resource Allowance (CSRA): the 2026 federal range is $32,532 – $162,660, generally half of the couple's countable assets. Some states simply allow the maximum (California and Florida are examples); Illinois allows $143,172 and South Carolina $66,480.
Monthly Maintenance Needs Allowance (MMNA): if the spouse's own monthly income is below the state standard (minimum $2,705 from July 2026, maximum $4,066.50), the shortfall can be transferred from the applicant's income.
The home: a primary home occupied by the spouse is fully exempt, with no equity limit.
Only the applicant's own income counts toward the income limit — the spouse's income never does, no matter how high it is.
The 5-year look-back: the costliest mistake
Transferring assets below market value — or simply giving them to your children — within 60 months (5 years) before applying will be discovered by the state. The gift amount divided by the local monthly nursing home cost becomes a “penalty period” during which Medicaid pays nothing and care is on you.
So “transfer the house to the kids and move the savings, then apply” is the most expensive way to do it. Legal spend-down and exempt purchases are not affected by the look-back, but any major asset move should be planned 5 years ahead, or reviewed by an elder law attorney first.
After approval, two more things
Most income goes to the facility: while in a nursing home, the applicant's income — minus a small personal needs allowance (tens to a couple hundred dollars a month), health insurance premiums, and the spouse's allowance — must be paid to the facility (patient liability); Medicaid covers the rest.
Estate recovery (MERP): after the beneficiary dies, the state may recover long-term care costs from their estate — a home that was exempt during life is not necessarily protected after death. Recovery is generally deferred while a spouse is still living.
Level of care must also be met: beyond the financial tests, the state must assess the applicant as needing a nursing facility level of care.