Should I recertify for CalFresh with $4500 monthly income for family of 6 with pregnancy?
My transitional CalFresh benefits just ended yesterday and I got the recertification paperwork in the mail. Not sure if it's even worth filling out since our income might be too high now? We're a family of 6 (4 kids) and I'm 5 months pregnant. My husband is bringing home around $4500 a month after taxes from his construction job. Would we even qualify for regular CalFresh with this income? I'm wondering if it's worth the hassle of gathering all the verification documents and doing the interview if we're just going to get denied anyway. Has anyone with similar household size and income still qualified? The transitional benefits were really helpful with our grocery bills.
16 comments
Join the conversation
Brian Downey
It's definitely worth applying! The income limit for a household of 7 (counting your pregnancy) is higher than you might think. For 2025, the gross monthly income limit for a family of 7 is around $5,670. Since your income is $4,500, you're still under that threshold. Also, they take into account certain deductions like housing costs, childcare expenses, and medical expenses for seniors or people with disabilities. So your "net income" after these deductions is what really matters for determining your benefit amount. The recertification process is much simpler than starting a new application. Most of your info is already in the system, so you're mainly just updating what's changed. I'd absolutely recommend completing it!
0 coins
Myles Regis
•Oh wow, I had no idea the limit was that high! I thought for sure we were over. We pay $2300 in rent plus utilities so maybe that would help too? Do they count the baby before it's born when determining household size?
0 coins
Jacinda Yu
I make $4200 a month with 5 kids and still get $380 in CalFresh!!! DEF worth applying. They count ur unborn baby too so ur a family of 7 technically. Make sure u list ALL your bills - rent, utilities, car payment, insurance, childcare, everything! The more expenses u can prove the more benefits u might get. Good luck!
0 coins
Landon Flounder
•Just a small correction - they don't count all bills as deductions. CalFresh specifically looks at shelter costs (rent/mortgage + utilities), childcare expenses necessary for work, child support payments, and medical expenses for elderly or disabled household members. Car payments and insurance don't count as deductions. But yes, listing all qualifying expenses is important!
0 coins
Callum Savage
Dunno if anyone mentioned but u should also see if u qualify for CalWORKs too not just calfresh. With 6 ppl and a baby coming u might get cash aid too until ur husband makes more or something.
0 coins
Brian Downey
•The income limit for CalWORKs is actually much lower than CalFresh. For a family of 7, the CalWORKs income limit would be around $2,900 per month in 2025, so with $4,500 monthly income, they unfortunately wouldn't qualify. But it's always good to check other programs like WIC (especially important during pregnancy and for young children).
0 coins
Ally Tailer
OK SO THEY WILL ABSOLUTELY COUNT YOUR PREGNANCY!! Make sure you tell them you're pregnant in the application and ask if they need verification from your doctor. I didn't know this with my last pregnancy and they denied me benefits because they counted me as a household of 4 instead of 5. Had to appeal and it was a NIGHTMARE dealing with the county. Always always verify they have your household size right!!
0 coins
Myles Regis
•Thank you for the heads up! I'll definitely make sure to mention the pregnancy and ask about verification. I have an ultrasound photo and documents from my prenatal appointments so hopefully that's enough.
0 coins
Aliyah Debovski
Have you tried calling the CalFresh office to ask about income limits? I was in a similar situation last year and wanted to check before going through the whole process. Ended up getting through after trying for 3 days straight. The waiting on hold was ridiculous but worth it for the info.
0 coins
Miranda Singer
•If you're having trouble getting through to CalFresh on the phone, I finally had success using Claimyr last month. It got me through to a live person in about 20 minutes after I had been trying for days. They basically wait on hold for you and call you back when they reach someone. Saved me so much frustration! I watched their demo at https://youtu.be/jzISHxCPLwE and then used their website claimyr.com. Definitely worth it when you need to get verification on income limits before doing all that paperwork.
0 coins
Jacinda Yu
i think they have a calculator online where u can put ur income and household and it tells u how much ull get, maybe try that? just google "calfresh calculator 2025" or something
0 coins
Landon Flounder
•Yes, the GetCalFresh website has an eligibility prescreener that can give you a rough estimate. But these online calculators aren't always 100% accurate since they don't capture all possible deductions. The actual eligibility determination by the county will be more precise. With your family size and income level, it's definitely worth completing the recertification.
0 coins
Callum Savage
my cousin has 5 kids & makes like 5000 a month and still gets calfresh so u should b fine with 6 kids
0 coins
Myles Regis
•That's good to hear! I actually have 4 kids plus the pregnancy (so 5 currently, soon to be 6 total), but it sounds like we might still qualify based on what everyone is saying.
0 coins
Brian Downey
One more thing to consider - you mentioned transitional CalFresh just ended. If you were receiving CalWORKs before and that's why you were on transitional CalFresh, make sure you complete your Semi-Annual Report (SAR 7) for CalWORKs on time if you're still receiving it. Those deadlines can be different from your CalFresh recertification. Many families miss this and lose benefits unnecessarily.
0 coins
Myles Regis
•We actually were on CalWORKs about 8 months ago but my husband got this better paying job so we became ineligible. That's when they switched us to transitional CalFresh. I think we're completely off CalWORKs now, but I'll double check our paperwork to make sure we didn't miss anything!
0 coins