What is the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program?
WIC (the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children) is a government program run by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) that provides federal grants to states for food assistance, nutrition education, breastfeeding support, and health referrals to low-income pregnant, postpartum, and breastfeeding women, as well as infants and children under age 5. WIC began as a pilot program in 1972 and became permanent in 1975.
$7.8B
$64.98
How much does the federal government spend on WIC funding?
In FY 2025, the WIC program spent $7.8 billion. This funding amount is about 0.1% of FY 2025’s total government spending of $7.04 trillion. After adjusting for inflation, WIC funding peaked in FY 2011 at $10.3 billion.
The federal government spent $7.8 billion on WIC in FY 2025.
WIC spending, adjusted to FY 2025 dollars, FY 1974–2025
Total WIC spending included 68.6% for food cost support and 29.9% for Nutrition Services and Administration costs, which fund nutrition education, and healthcare services such as vaccines and breastfeeding support.
Food costs were $5.3 billion in FY 2025, down from $7.2 billion in FY 2011.
WIC spending by category (FY 1974–2025), inflation-adjusted to FY 2025
Spending on the program has not kept up with inflation. In FY 2025, WIC’s monthly food spending per participant was lower than historical amounts when adjusted for inflation. Funding per participant was highest just after the program’s launch — in FY 1975, WIC provided participants with an average of $112.43 per month for food.
Per participant food spending declined every year from 1975 to 1998, when the average monthly food cost was $62.59. In FY 2025, WIC provided an average of $64.89 in food costs per participant.
On average, a WIC participant received $64.89 in monthly benefits in FY 2025.
Monthly WIC benefits per person (FY 1974–2025), inflation-adjusted to FY 2025
What are the income eligibility guidelines for WIC?
To be eligible for WIC, applicants must:
- Belong to an eligible group — pregnant women, mothers (up to six months after pregnancy), breastfeeding women (up to the infant’s first birthday), infants, or children younger than 5
- Live in the state or area where they apply for benefits
- Meet income guidelines — generally at or below 185% of the federal poverty level — or already be a participant in programs such as Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Medicaid, or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
- Be deemed at nutritional risk by a health professional, based on medical or dietary factors such as underweight, anemia, or poor diet
WIC is available in all 50 states plus Washington, DC, US territories, and tribal organizations.
A mother of two children would be eligible for WIC food assistance if her annual income is $50,542 or below.
Income eligibility thresholds for WIC program by household size, FY 2026
How many people receive WIC benefits?
In FY 2025, 6.9 million women, infants, and children received WIC benefits on average each month. For comparison, 42.1 million people received SNAP benefits on average each month in FY 2025, or 6.1 times as many as received WIC.
WIC participation has changed over time: It grew every year except for three from FY 1974 until 2010 when an average of 9.2 million people received benefits each month.
In FY 2025, 6.9 million people received WIC benefits.
Average monthly WIC recipients, FY 1974–2025
Based on demographic data, children ages 1 to 5 accounted for 55.9% of average monthly WIC participants in FY 2025. Over time, children were between 45.2% (in 1991) and 56.0% (in 1976) of certified WIC recipients. In FY 2025, women were 22.4% of certified recipients and infants accounted for 21.7%.
Children, ages 1 to 5 years, made up 3.8 million out of 6.9 million total people with WIC benefits in FY 2025.
Average monthly WIC recipients, by participant type, FY 1974–2025
Which states have the most WIC recipients?
In FY 2025, state-level participation rates ranged from a low of 0.9% in New Hampshire to a high of 2.6% in California.
While WIC is a federally funded program led by the USDA, state governments administer it primarily. State and local WIC agencies provide participants with food benefits through Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) cards, along with nutrition education, breastfeeding support, and referrals to health and social services. Participation differs across states, reflecting both economic situations and local program policy.
California had the highest share of its population receiving WIC benefits at 2.6% in FY 2025.
Percentage of population receiving WIC benefits, by state, FY 2025
Keep exploring
- How will the government shutdown impact SNAP? - Without federal funding during the shutdown, over 40 million people may lose access to SNAP benefits.
- How many people receive government assistance? - In 2022, around one in three Americans was enrolled in at least one government assistance program.
- What does the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) do?
- How are public schools funded? - Public school funding comes primarily from local and state governments, while the federal government provides about 8% of local school funding.
Methodology
USAFacts standardizes data, in areas such as time and demographics, to make it easier to understand and compare.
Page sources
USAFacts endeavors to share the most up-to-date information available. We sourced the data on this page directly from government agencies; however, the intervals at which agencies publish updated data vary.
