The 15 states where the most people receive SNAP benefits in 2024
SNAP benefits or food stamps are sent each month to help Americans purchase nutritious food. Find out the states where the most people receive them.
The federal government has several nutrition assistance programs, the best known being the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as food stamps. food.
This program is federal, but it is administered by the states, which send money monthly to eligible low-income families. Benefits are deposited each month into an electronic benefit transfer (EBT) card, which works like a debit card to purchase food at certain stores.
The amount sent, as well as who is eligible to receive the financial assistance, varies in each state. We share with you the states in which the most people receive SNAP benefits.
The states where the most people receive SNAP
The financial portal Insider Monkey did an analysis of the states with the highest percentage of beneficiaries in terms of the total population. The report was based on the percentage according to the total population and not on the total number of beneficiaries, since, for example, California would occupy first place because it is the state with the largest population in the country
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To determine the 15 states with the highest rates of SNAP recipients in the United States, the portal consulted the most recent SNAP data from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), corresponding to January 2024.
The SNAP beneficiary rate, that is, the percentage of people receiving food stamps, was calculated by dividing the number of SNAP participants by state by the population estimates of the respective states, from the census data of 2023. After the analysis, these are the 15 states in which the most people receive SNAP:
Percentage of residents receiving food stamps:
- New Mexico: 19.48%
- Louisiana: 18.58%
- Oregon: 17.67%
- Oklahoma: 16.73%
- Nevada: 15.72%
- Nevada: 15.72%
- West Virginia: 15.54%
- Illinois: 15.32%
- Pennsylvania: 15.31%
- Michigan: 14.98%
- New York: 14.80%
- Alabama: 14.62%
- California: 13.69%
- Mississippi: 13.24%
- Kentucky: 12.98%
How much money is sent from SNAP benefits?
The average payment varies from state to state, but the maximum amount beneficiaries can receive is the same for most of the 50 states in the US and the District of Columbia. The amounts are different for Alaska and Hawaii.
Amounts sent depend on household size, as well as other income factors and other requirements. These are the amounts in force until September 30:
- 1 household member: $291 dollars
- 2 members: $535
- 3 members: $766
- 4 members: $973
- 5 members: $1,155
- 6 members: $1,386
- 7 members: $1,532
- 8 members: $1.1751
- Additional member: +$219
On the other hand,maximum allowances for a family of four range from $1,248 to $1,937 in Alaska. The maximum allowances for a family of four in Hawaii are $1,759.
The minimum benefit for the 48 states and Washington DC is $23 dollars. The minimum monthly payment in Alaska ranges between $30 and $46, while in Hawaii it is $42. Here you can see the complete payment tables and all the details about your 2024 SNAP benefits.
What can you buy with the EBT card and where?
According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service, the EBT card can be used anywhere that accepts food stamps or SNAP.
You can buy the following food for the home:
- Fruits and vegetables
- Meat, poultry and fish
- Dairy products
- Breads and cereals;
- Other foods such as snacks and non-alcoholic drinks
- Seeds and plants, which produce food for the home
On the other hand, recipients cannot use food stamps or the EBT card to purchase: beer, wine, liquor, cigarettes or tobacco, vitamins, medications and supplements, live animals, foods that are hot at the point of sale and any non-food item.