Cottage food laws
What you can legally sell from your home kitchen — state by state.
Every U.S. state lets you sell certain homemade foods without a commercial kitchen — but the rules differ everywhere. Pick your state for a plain-English breakdown of what's allowed, sales limits, online selling, and labeling.
AlabamaAL
Registration requiredCap: No statewide sales cap
AlaskaAK
Registration requiredCap: No statewide sales cap
ArizonaAZ
Registration requiredCap: No statewide sales cap
ArkansasAR
No license to startCap: No statewide sales cap
CaliforniaCA
Registration requiredCap: Class A: $75,000 statutory base (about $88,000 in 2026, adjusted for inflation); Class B: $150,000 statutory base (about $176,000 in 2026, adjusted for inflation). Exact current-year figures are set annually by CDPH via the CA Consumer Price Index
ColoradoCO
Registration requiredCap: $10,000 net revenue per product per year through Dec 31, 2026 (C.R.S. §25-4-1614); rising to a single $150,000 combined gross annual cap (inflation-adjusted) starting Jan 1, 2027 under HB26-1033
ConnecticutCT
Registration requiredCap: $50,000 gross annual sales (Conn. Gen. Stat. §21a-62d; raised from $25,000 by a 2022 law, SB 187)
DelawareDE
Registration requiredCap: No statewide sales cap for Cottage Food Establishments (the prior $25,000 cap was repealed in Dec. 2023); Delaware's separate On-Farm Home Processing program still caps at $50,000
District of ColumbiaDC
Registration requiredCap: No cap (revenue cap removed by DC Law 23-61)
FloridaFL
No license to startCap: $250,000 gross annual sales across all products/locations combined (Fla. Stat. §500.80); exceeding this requires a standard FDACS food establishment permit
GeorgiaGA
No license to startCap: No sales cap — HB 398 (effective July 1, 2025) eliminated the previous $5,000 annual cap
HawaiiHI
Registration requiredCap: No statewide sales cap for homemade food products (a separate 500-gallon/year volume limit applies only to home-based honey producers under HRS 328-79)
IdahoID
No license to startCap: No statewide sales cap
IllinoisIL
Registration requiredCap: No statewide sales cap — the prior cap was removed by the Home-to-Market Act (Public Act 102-0633), effective January 1, 2022
IndianaIN
No license to startCap: No practical cap for most home producers — the law defines a "homestead vendor" as one with under $1.5 million in annual gross sales
IowaIA
No license to startCap: No cap for the basic Cottage Food tier; Home Food Processing Establishments are capped at $50,000 in annual gross sales
KansasKS
No license to startCap: No statewide sales cap
KentuckyKY
Registration requiredCap: $60,000 gross annual sales (applies to both the Home-Based Processor and Home-Based Microprocessor programs)
LouisianaLA
No license to startCap: $30,000 gross annual sales for most cottage foods; breads, cakes, cookies, and pies are exempt from the cap (no statutory limit) as long as they're sold direct-to-consumer without hired help
MaineME
Registration requiredCap: No statewide sales cap for Home Food Processor License holders
MarylandMD
Registration requiredCap: $50,000 gross annual sales (COMAR 10.15.03 / Health-General §21-330.1); a pending bill, HB 535, would raise this to $100,000 effective October 2026 if enacted — not yet in effect, confirm current status before relying on a higher figure
MassachusettsMA
Registration requiredCap: No statewide sales cap (individual boards of health may impose their own conditions as part of the local permit)
MichiganMI
No license to startCap: $50,000 gross annual sales, or $75,000 if every cottage food unit sells for $250 or more (both figures apply through Oct 1, 2026; MDARD may adjust for inflation annually after that)
MinnesotaMN
Registration requiredCap: $78,000 gross annual sales (the Tier 1 / Tier 2 split is at $7,665)
MississippiMS
No license to startCap: $35,000 (gross annual sales)
MissouriMO
No license to startCap: No cap — the former $50,000 annual limit was removed effective Aug 28, 2022 (HB 1697); sales are now unlimited
MontanaMT
No license to startCap: No statewide sales cap
NebraskaNE
Registration requiredCap: No statewide cap
NevadaNV
Registration requiredCap: $35,000 (gross annual, current law; rising to $100,000 when AB352 takes effect July 2027)
New HampshireNH
Registration requiredCap: No statewide cap
New JerseyNJ
Registration requiredCap: $50,000 (gross annual)
New MexicoNM
Registration requiredCap: No statewide cap
New YorkNY
Registration requiredCap: No statewide cap
North CarolinaNC
Registration requiredCap: No statewide cap
North DakotaND
No license to startCap: No statewide cap
OhioOH
No license to startCap: No statewide cap
OklahomaOK
No license to startCap: $75,000 gross annual sales through October 31, 2026. HB 3720, the "Local Food Freedom Act," was signed into law May 2026 and raises the cap to $250,000 effective November 1, 2026 - confirmed via the Oklahoma House of Representatives' official release.
OregonOR
Registration requiredCap: $52,700 for 2026 (adjusted annually from a $50,000 base via the West Region CPI-U, per 2024's SB 643); no cap under the licensed Domestic Kitchen path
PennsylvaniaPA
Registration requiredCap: No statewide cap
Rhode IslandRI
Registration requiredCap: $50,000 gross annual (fixed by statute; does not adjust for inflation)
South CarolinaSC
No license to startCap: No statewide sales cap
South DakotaSD
No license to startCap: No statewide cap
TennesseeTN
No license to startCap: No statewide cap
TexasTX
No license to startCap: $150,000 gross/year (raised from $50,000 by SB 541, effective Sept 1, 2025; indexed to inflation going forward)
UtahUT
Registration requiredCap: No statewide cap under the Food Freedom Act. Any cap on the Cottage Food Act path could not be confirmed from an official UDAF source.
VermontVT
Registration requiredCap: $30,000 gross/year (Cottage Food Operator exemption). A separate general Food Processor exemption (under $10,000 gross/year) can be stacked for other processed foods.
VirginiaVA
No license to startCap: No statewide cap for baked goods, jams, candies, and dried goods. Acidified vegetables (relish/salsa/hot sauce) are capped at $9,000/year; the honey exemption is capped at 250 gallons/year.
WashingtonWA
Registration requiredCap: $35,000 gross annual, per residence (raised from $25,000 in 2023; RCW 69.22.050 requires WSDA to re-adjust the cap every 4 years using the Seattle-area CPI)
West VirginiaWV
No license to startCap: No statewide sales cap
WisconsinWI
No license to startCap: No cap currently for baked goods, since the exemption comes from a court ruling, not a statute with a cap; $5,000/year for high-acid canned goods (the separate 'Pickle Bill' category). SB 739, which would have added a $10,000-$40,000 tiered cap for baked goods, failed in the Legislature in March 2026 - watch for it to be reintroduced in a future session.
WyomingWY
No license to startCap: $250,000 gross annual revenue from Food Freedom Act sales (a 'producer' is statutorily defined as making no more than 250,000 individual units and no more than $250,000 in gross revenue per year - Wyo. Stat. 11-49-101/105)
Nibbles & Bits provides informational guidance and done-for-you setup help for home food businesses. We are not a law firm and this is not legal advice. Cottage-food rules change and vary by state and locality — always confirm current requirements with your state or local health authority before selling.
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