NDIS consumables are everyday, disability-related items you use up and replace regularly, such as continence products, low-cost assistive technology, and home enteral nutrition supplies. Consumables sits inside your flexible Core Supports budget. The amount you receive depends on your assessed needs, not a fixed cap that applies to everyone.

Quick facts, NDIS consumables:

  • What it is: A support category inside Core Supports for disability-related items you use up and replace
  • What’s covered: Continence aids, wound care, low-cost AT, tube feeding supplies, personal care items
  • Budget: Individually assessed, no universal dollar limit; part of your flexible Core budget
  • Where it sits: One of the four NDIS Core Supports categories
  • Pricing: Item price limits are set in the NDIS Pricing Schedule 2026-27

Check current pricing: Use our NDIS Price Guide to look up support item codes and current price limits across every category.

What are NDIS consumables?

NDIS consumables are low-cost items that you buy repeatedly because of your disability. To be funded, an item generally needs to:

  • Be directly related to your disability
  • Need regular replacement because you use it up
  • Cost more than it would for a person without a disability
  • Not be something already covered by another system, such as the health system or the PBS

Consumables is a support category inside your Core Supports budget. Core Supports is the most flexible part of an NDIS plan, so in most plans you can use funding across the Core categories to cover the consumables you need (ndis.gov.au, “Using your plan”, accessed 2 July 2026). For how the wider Core budget works, see our guide to NDIS Core Supports.

Examples of NDIS consumables

The items funded under consumables cover a range of daily disability needs:

Continence and personal care

  • Continence pads, catheters, and drainage bags
  • Disposable gloves for personal care
  • Skin barrier creams and disability-related hygiene items

Clinical and medical

  • Wound care dressings and related supplies
  • Nebuliser solutions and CPAP consumables
  • Home enteral nutrition (tube feeding) products and giving sets

Everyday aids

  • Wheelchair cushions and walking-aid tips
  • Communication device accessories
  • Low-cost assistive technology such as jar openers, reachers, and non-slip mats

Continence products are one of the most common consumables claims. For a deeper look at continence supplies, provider options, and when to escalate to a nurse, see our guide on incontinence care at home.

How much is the NDIS consumables budget?

There is no single dollar cap on consumables that applies to every participant. The amount in your plan is based on your assessed needs and what your planner has included. Because consumables sits inside Core Supports, most participants can move funding between Core support categories as needs change during the plan (ndis.gov.au, “Using your plan”, accessed 2 July 2026).

This flexibility is the point of Core Supports. If you use more continence products one month, you can generally cover that from the same flexible budget rather than needing a plan change. Stated funding limits vary by plan, so check the consumables figure in your own plan or ask your plan manager.

Can I buy household items with consumables funding?

The test is whether an item is disability-related and costs more because of your disability. That means:

  • Usually funded: continence products, gloves used for personal care, wound dressings, tube feeding formula, nebuliser consumables
  • Usually not funded: regular groceries, standard toiletries anyone would buy, medicines covered by the PBS, and items the health system already provides

If an item is something the general public buys anyway, the NDIS generally will not fund it through consumables. When you are unsure, the safest step is to check the item against your plan goals and the NDIS guidance before you buy (ndis.gov.au, “Would we fund it”, accessed 2 July 2026).

Consumables vs low-cost assistive technology

These two are easy to confuse because they are bought the same way in practice.

  • Consumables are items you use up and replace, like pads and dressings.
  • Low-cost assistive technology (AT) is equipment the NDIS classes as under $1,500, such as a shower stool, reacher, or non-slip bath mat (ndis.gov.au, “Low-cost assistive technology under $1,500”, accessed 2 July 2026).

Both can usually be paid from your flexible Core Supports budget without a separate quote, which is why many participants treat them as one shopping list. More expensive AT sits in the Capital Supports budget and needs its own assessment and quote.

How to buy consumables and 2026-27 pricing

You can buy consumables from disability suppliers, pharmacies, and general retailers, then claim through your plan manager, self-management records, or the NDIS portal, depending on how your plan is managed.

Price limits for many consumable and support items are listed in the NDIS Pricing Schedule 2026-27, which applies from 1 July 2026. In this update, support worker and self-care price limits were held at their previous levels (ndis.gov.au, “Pricing arrangements”, accessed 2 July 2026). To check the current limit and code for a specific item, use our NDIS Price Guide.

Carevo platform data: Personal care is the most-requested support across the aged-care and NDIS requests we route (855 recent inquiries), and continence and personal care consumables are a regular part of those plans. See how we calculate these numbers.

Where consumables sit in your budget

Consumables is one of the support categories inside your Core budget. That is the only place consumables funding comes from. For a full breakdown of the Core budget, the other categories it holds, and how flexible funding works, read our dedicated NDIS Core Supports guide.

If your plan is plan-managed, your plan manager pays consumables invoices and tracks your spending against the budget. See our plan management page for how that works.

Frequently asked questions about NDIS consumables

What are NDIS consumables?

NDIS consumables are everyday, disability-related items you use up and replace regularly, such as continence products, wound care supplies, low-cost assistive technology, and home enteral nutrition supplies. Consumables is a support category inside your Core Supports budget. Items must relate to your disability and cost more than they would for someone without a disability.

What are examples of NDIS consumables?

Common NDIS consumables include continence pads and catheters, disposable gloves for personal care, wound dressings, nebuliser and CPAP consumables, home enteral nutrition (tube feeding) products, and low-cost assistive technology such as jar openers or non-slip mats. Everyday items available to the general public, such as standard groceries or toiletries, are usually not funded.

How much is the NDIS consumables budget?

There is no fixed dollar cap on consumables that applies to everyone. The amount in your plan depends on your assessed needs. Consumables sits inside your flexible Core Supports budget, so in most plans you can move funding between Core support categories to cover consumables as your needs change.

Can I buy household items with consumables funding?

You can buy disability-related items you need because of your disability, like continence products or gloves for personal care. General household items that anyone would buy, such as regular groceries, standard toiletries, or medicines covered by the PBS, are not funded through consumables. The test is whether the item is disability-related and costs more than it would otherwise.

What is the difference between consumables and low-cost assistive technology?

Consumables are items you use up and replace, like continence pads or wound dressings. Low-cost assistive technology (AT) is equipment the NDIS classes as under $1,500, such as a shower stool or reacher. Both can usually be paid from your flexible Core Supports budget, so in practice they are bought the same way.

Which NDIS budget do consumables come from?

Consumables is one of the support categories in your Core Supports budget, alongside Assistance with Daily Life, Transport, and Assistance with Social and Community Participation. Core Supports is the most flexible budget, so funding can generally be used across these categories to cover the consumables you need.

Reviewed against ndis.gov.au on 11 July 2026.