JUST THE FACTS · 9:17M
4. How do SNAP benefits impact food insecurity?
October 29, 2025 · Before we talk about the American dream, we have to talk about dinner. One in eight Americans gets help buying groceries, and more than a third of them are kids. In this episode of “Just the Facts: Do You Qualify?”, USAFacts founder Steve Ballmer digs into who struggles to afford food, how programs like SNAP and WIC keep families fed, and what changed under the 2025 One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
Just the Facts: Do You Qualify?
4. How do SNAP benefits impact food insecurity?
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9m
Transcript
Let’s talk about something we all need to live: food.
In this video, we'll explore who struggles to afford it and how the government provides support.
Just the Facts. Do you qualify? A look at government support in America. A six part series from USAFacts. In this episode: food.
What does it look like to struggle to afford food? It might be parents working full time minimum wage jobs unable to afford enough food so their kids eat reliably only when they're at school.
A retired couple living off Social Security and watching grocery prices rise faster than their income. Or a disabled individual who has limited employment opportunities and health care expenses to pay.
Now let's look at how the government categorizes Americans’ access to food.
The US Department of Agriculture, the USDA, tracks what they call food security through an annual household food security survey.
Responses sort households into four categories:
- High food security: no reported indications of food access problems.
- Marginal food security: 1 or 2 reported concerns, typically anxiety over food sufficiency.
- Low food security: reduced quality, variety or desirability of diet with little or no indication of reduced food intake, however.
- And fourth, very low food security: multiple indications of disrupted eating patterns and reduced food intake."
The survey is conducted by the Census Bureau and asks individuals to self-report on their experiences with food insecurity, such as being unable to afford food or being hungry from not having enough food.
So now that we understand food security, let's look at the data.
In 2023, about 1 in 7 households, about 18 million, fell into the bottom two categories, indicating they struggle with access to food.
About 5% of families fell into the very low food security category, meaning they had to cut back on how much or how often they ate.
The government has tracked food insecurity since 1995. In 2023, the level was 14%.
The federal government uses three primary programs to address food insecurity.
First: SNAP, or the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known as food stamps. This is the biggest food security program, and I'm going to get back to it in a minute.
Then there's WIC. The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children. This program supports low-income pregnant women, new mothers, infants, and young children at nutritional risk.
All states must cover everyone at or below the poverty line. And then states can choose to cover those making up to 185% of the poverty guideline. In 2024, it cost $7.3 billion, or less than 0.1% of federal spending.
WIC enrollment is rising after 11 years of decline.
Average monthly WIC recipients, FY 1975–2024
The National School Lunch Program is the biggest school meal program.
Students qualify based on their family’s income. Children from families who earn below 130% of the federal poverty guidelines are eligible for free school meals, and those from families making between 130% and 185% of the poverty level are eligible for reduced prices.
About half of public school students across the country – half! – are eligible for free or reduced price lunches. But in some high poverty areas, every kid eats free. No paperwork needed.
Among those in schools who participate, 69% of children get free lunch, 3% pay reduced prices, and 28% pay full price. In 2024, it cost
$17.8 billion, which is still less than 0.3% of federal spending.
More students are receiving free lunch than before the pandemic.
Average number of students receiving school-served lunches, FY 1969–FY 2024
Now, let's go back to the largest support program, SNAP, originated from the time of President Lyndon Johnson in 1964.
SNAP is a federally funded program with national income thresholds. If a household makes up to 130% of the poverty line, they are eligible. States manage applications, verify eligibility, enroll the participants, and distribute the benefits. Some states even provide additional food support.
There are also work requirements.
People aged 16 to 59 with children have to either look for work, take a job if offered, or join a job training program.
For adults without kids, the rules are actually stricter. You need to work at least 80 hours a month. If you don't, you could lose benefits after three months - unless you're pregnant, have a disability, or meet the rules through another program.
And there are restrictions on what you can buy with SNAP benefits.
It's got to be groceries and can't be items such as alcohol, tobacco, or foods that are hot at the point of sale. Just three examples.
SNAP in 2024 covered 41.7 million people. That's about 1 in 8 Americans. More than a third of people covered under SNAP are children.
The program cost around $100 billion, with about 94% going to food benefits and the rest to administering the program.
The average benefit: $188 per person per month. And the benefits are capped. For example, for a family of four, it's $994 per month.
As for the average benefit of $188 a month, that comes out to about $6 a day per person.
On average, a SNAP participant received $188 in monthly benefits in FY 2024.
Monthly SNAP benefits per person, adjusted to FY 2024 dollars
And just to compare: a gallon of milk costs a little over $4; and a pound of ground beef is about $5.50; a loaf of bread $2, though that all depends on where you live.
SNAP is what is called a mandatory program, meaning it is essentially on autopilot and does not need congressional approval each year.
It expands and contracts automatically when the number of people eligible grows or shrinks.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, participation surged.
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, passed in July 2025, made changes to SNAP which may impact the number of people receiving benefits and the cost of the program in the coming years.
For example, the bill limited SNAP eligibility primarily to citizens and lawful permanent residents, and expanded the work requirements up to people 65 years old.
It also shifted some of the costs to states, meaning they will have to pay more than they used to moving forward.
New restrictions on Medicaid and SNAP start as early as 2025 under the OBBB
Effectiveness dates for government assistance policies in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act
Now, do you think SNAP is working? As I mentioned earlier, food security is measured after these programs are in place.
That means even with SNAP, school meals and WIC, millions of Americans still don't have reliable access to food. These programs are designed to help, and they reach tens of millions. But some people still say they're food insecure.
In September 2025, the Trump administration announced it is cancelling the annual food insecurity survey, making the 2024 release the last. Data is essential to understanding how government efforts are working. And without this survey, the government must establish a new, reliable way to measure food security moving forward.
So how well are we addressing food insecurity in America? That's for you to decide.
Thanks for watching. And please share the entire series. Do you qualify? A look at government support in America. Subscribe to our newsletter at USAFacts.org and our YouTube channel. At USAFacts, we give you the data, you make up your own mind. Stay tuned for the next episode: Education.
Page sources and methodology
All of the data on the video and page was sourced directly from government agencies. The analysis and final review was performed by USAFacts.
Food and Nutrition Service
Program Data Overview
Economic Research Service
Current Population Survey Food Security Supplement
