Minimum subsistence level per child in 2026: how much across Russia and in the regions
The minimum subsistence level per child for 2026 across Russia is 18,371 rubles per month. In 2025 it was 17,201, an increase of 6.8%. For a family this amount is important for two reasons: it is used to calculate the size of the universal benefit for each child and it is also used to index alimony payments set at a fixed amount. In Moscow the minimum per child is 21,903 rubles, in Saint Petersburg 20,025, in the Moscow region 19,677. It is lowest in the Lipetsk and Tambov regions, at 15,247 rubles, and highest in Chukotka, 47,948. The figures are from Rosstat, below they are broken down with examples and compiled into interactive charts.
How much the unified benefit will give per child
The unified benefit is structured in two steps, and the subsistence minimum participates in both, but differently.
Step one: does the family qualify. The family’s income is divided among all its members and compared with the per‑capita minimum in the region. If the amount per person is lower, the family is entitled to the benefit. For a family of two adults and two children the threshold for Russia is 4 × 18,939 = 75,756 ruble monthly income for everyone. In Moscow the same threshold is 101,368 ruble, in Tambov Oblast 62,876 ruble.
Step two: how much to pay. Here the child minimum is used. The basic payment is half of the regional child minimum. If with it the per‑person income is still below the per‑capita minimum, the benefit is raised to 75 %, and if that is still insufficient, to 100 %.
This is what it means in rubles per child per month in 2026:
| Where | 50% | 75% | 100% |
|---|---|---|---|
| Russia overall | 9,185.5 | 13,778.25 | 18,371 |
| Moscow | 10,951.5 | 16,427.25 | 21,903 |
| Saint Petersburg | 10,012.5 | 15,018.75 | 20,025 |
| Moscow Oblast | 9,838.5 | 14,757.75 | 19,677 |
| Tambov Oblast | 7,623.5 | 11,435.25 | 15,247 |
A family with two children in Tambov Oblast will receive the full amount of 2 × 15,247 = 30,494 ruble per month, the same family in Moscow 43,806 ruble. The difference of about 13 thousand arises solely because regions assess the cost of living differently.
The child minimum for each region with all years is available on a separate page, for example in Moscow, in Moscow Oblast or in Tambov Oblast.
Minimum subsistence level per child and alimony
When the payer has irregular earnings or the court decides that a share of income is unsuitable, alimony is set as a fixed amount. Under article 117 of the Family Code, such an amount is set as a multiple of the minimum subsistence level per child in the region where the child lives, and is then indexed together with that minimum.
Thus, from 1 January 2026 alimony in a fixed amount increased in the same way as the regional child minimum. In most subjects this is 6.8%. But there are exceptions: in Moscow 6.0%, in Amur Oblast 5.6%, in Kamchatka Krai 5.3%, in Moscow Oblast 5.1%, in Nenets Autonomous Okrug 4.3%. The lowest, 4.0%, was raised in Murmansk and Magadan Oblasts, Khabarovsk Krai and Yugra.
Example. If the court set alimony at half of the child minimum, in Moscow this is 10,951.5 rubles per month, in Sverdlovsk Oblast 9,094 (the minimum there is 18,188), and on average across the country 9,185.5.
How often alimony is not paid
Rosstat asks families receiving court‑ordered alimony whether there is any debt. In 2024, 9.8% of children with such alimony had arrears. In families with two children the share is higher, 13.6%.
Just over ten years ago the number of debtors was twice as high: in 2011 arrears were recorded for 20.2% of children, in 2015 for 21.3%. A noticeable decline occurred in 2020 and 2022, and since then the share has stayed around 9–10%. Open the share of children with alimony debt by year →
Minimum subsistence level per child by region in 2026
The difference between the extreme regions is 3.1 times: 47,948 rubles in Chukotka and 15,247 in Lipetsk and Tambov oblasts.
The top rows are almost entirely occupied by the North and the Far East. After Chukotka come Kamchatka Krai (32,333), Magadan Oblast (32,062), Nenets Autonomous Okrug (32,026) and Yakutia (27,740). Moscow with 21,903 rubles is in twelfth place, preceded by Khabarovsk Krai (23,758), the Jewish Autonomous Oblast (22,964) and Yugra (22,137).
At the bottom are the Black Earth region and the Volga region. Besides Lipetsk and Tambov, there are Belgorod, Penza and Saratov oblasts, each with 15,432 rubles. Exactly at the national level, 18,371 rubles, the minimum in Tula and Yaroslavl oblasts and in the southern part of Tyumen Oblast.
Full list for all subjects: regional ranking by minimum subsistence level per child. Open the original Rosstat table from 2013 →
Why the child minimum in Moscow is noticeably lower than the per‑capita one
Across the country the child minimum equals 97% of the per‑capita minimum, and this is the case in almost all regions: in 84 rows of the table out of 90 the ratio is exactly 97.0%. Moscow stands out the most. There the amount per child is set at 21,903 rubles while the per‑capita minimum is 25,342 rubles, i.e., 86.4%.
The opposite case occurs in three northern subjects: in Nenets Autonomous Okrug the child minimum is higher than the per‑capita one (103.1%), in Khabarovsk Krai as well (102.8%), and in Yugra almost equal (100.2%). This matters for families because benefits are calculated from the child minimum, while eligibility is checked against the per‑capita figure. In Moscow the gap between these two amounts is the largest in the country.
Minimum subsistence level per child by year
In 2013 the minimum per child in Russia was 7,022 rubles, in 2026 it was 18,371, 2.6 times more.
The chart shows three periods. From 2015 to 2021 the amount was almost unchanged: 9,472 rubles in 2015, 11,303 in 2021. Between 2020 and 2021 the increase was 87 rubles. In 2021 the minimum stopped being calculated by the consumer basket and began to be set once a year for the whole year.
Then came 2022, the only year when the amount was changed mid‑year. From January 1 the minimum per child was 12,274 rubles, from June 1 it was raised by 10% to 13,501. In 2023 it was increased by another 3.3% to 13,944.
The third period started in 2025: plus 14.8% at once, from 14,989 to 17,201 rubles. For 2026 the growth is more modest, 6.8%.
Open the minimum amounts for Russia for all groups since 2021 → The entire series of per‑capita minimums since 2013 is collected in the summary "Minimum subsistence level by year". What 7,022 rubles from 2013 will become in today's prices is shown by the inflation calculator.
How many children live in poor families
The minimum is intended as a line below which life is difficult. How many children live below the poverty line, Rosstat counts based on a sample income survey. In 2024, 9.2% of children in households with children under 18 were below the poverty line.
The main factor affecting the risk is the number of children in the family.
If the child is the only one in the family, poverty affects 3.4% of children. If there are two children, it is 6.6%. In families with three or more children it is 20.8%, that is roughly one in five. Another vulnerable group: families with toddlers up to three years old, where 17.8% of children are below the poverty line. This is exactly the group for which the unified benefit works, the amount of which is linked to the minimum per child.
Open poverty level by socio-demographic groups → More about poverty over the years in the article "Poverty level in Russia over the years".
Questions and Answers
What is the subsistence minimum per child in 2026?
Across Russia 18,371 rubles per month. For benefits and alimony the amount of the respective region is used: in Moscow 21,903, in Saint Petersburg 20,025, in the Moscow region 19,677.
What will be the unified benefit per child in 2026?
Half, three quarters or the full regional child minimum, depending on the family’s income. At the all‑Russia level this is 9,185.5, 13,778.25 or 18,371 rubles per child per month. In Moscow 10,951.5, 16,427.25 or 21,903 rubles.
How much did the child minimum increase in 2026?
By 6.8% compared with 2025 across Russia and in most regions. In Moscow by 6.0%, in the Moscow region by 5.1%, in Murmansk, Magadan regions, Khabarovsk Krai and Yugra by 4.0%.
Where is the highest and the lowest child minimum?
The highest is in Chukotka, 47,948 rubles. The lowest are in Lipetsk and Tambov regions, 15,247 rubles.
Why is the child minimum lower than that for a working‑age adult?
The calculation is designed differently for different groups. Across Russia in 2026 the child minimum is 18,371 rubles, for working‑age adults 20,644 rubles, per capita 18,939 rubles, for pensioners 16,288 rubles.
In Brief
- The subsistence minimum per child for 2026 across Russia is 18,371 rubles, 6.8% higher than in 2025.
- In Moscow 21,903 rubles, in Saint Petersburg 20,025 rubles, in the Moscow region 19,677 rubles. The maximum is in Chukotka (47,948 rubles), the minimum in Lipetsk and Tambov regions (15,247 rubles).
- The child minimum is used to calculate the unified benefit (50%, 75% or 100% per child) and to index alimony at a fixed amount.
- In most regions the child minimum equals 97% of the per‑capita minimum, in Moscow only 86.4%.
- Since 2013 the child minimum has increased 2.6 times. In large families, every fifth child falls below the poverty line, with one child the share is 3.4%.