CalWORKs (Cash Aid for Families)

CalWORKs gives monthly cash aid to California families with children who have low income and limited savings. Pregnant people can also qualify. Apply online at BenefitsCal.com or through your county welfare department. All 58 counties take applications. The program also comes with job help, supportive services, and child care.

The monthly grant is called the Maximum Aid Payment, or MAP, and it differs by region. For a family of three, higher-cost counties like Los Angeles pay $1,175 a month, or $1,314 for exempt families. Lower-cost counties like Sacramento pay $1,115, or $1,248 for exempt families. These levels took effect October 1, 2024. Your amount depends on your income and family size.

If your family has an emergency while your application is still being processed, you can get an immediate need payment of up to $200. CalWORKs Homeless Assistance can pay for up to 16 days of temporary shelter, usually once every 12 months. Permanent Homeless Assistance can pay a security deposit and last month's rent, or up to two months of back rent to stop an eviction.

Adults can get CalWORKs for a lifetime total of 60 months. The limit dropped to 48 months in the past but went back to 60 months on May 1, 2022, and the separate 24-month work clock was removed. The 60-month clock can be paused or extended in some cases. Children keep getting aid even after a parent reaches the limit or is sanctioned, so the family does not lose everything.

Adults must join Welfare-to-Work activities for 20, 30, or 35 hours a week, unless they are exempt, for example while caring for a child under 2, having a disability, or being 60 or older. The program pays for child care, transportation, books and supplies, even diapers. If an adult is sanctioned, only the adult's share of the grant stops. To qualify, the county subtracts $450 from each worker's earnings and compares the rest to the MBSAC level for your family size, about $1,859 a month for three people on the July 2026 chart in lower-cost counties. If the county denies you, you have 90 days to ask for a state hearing at (800) 743-8525.