KEY POINTS
- Starting Oct. 1, 2023, the maximum monthly benefit for a family of four will be $973, up from $939.
- SNAP benefits will increase by about 3.6% for the 2024 fiscal year, which is not enough to cover the rise in food-at-home costs in the past year.
- If you’re struggling to feed your family, find out what assistance is available locally.
Once a year, the USDA makes cost-of-living revisions to the amount that families receive in food benefits. It has just announced the new amounts households will receive for the 2024 fiscal year, starting Oct. 1, 2023. Under the new provisions, a family of four can receive a maximum of $973 a month, up from $939 in the current fiscal year.
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) helps millions of low income American households keep food on the table. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) says that, “SNAP reduces hunger by as much as 30% and is even more effective among children.”
SNAP benefits for 2024
The USDA bases food benefit payments on something called a Thrifty Food Plan, which it uses to estimate the cost of providing low-cost meals. SNAP benefits are calculated for each fiscal year, which is why the 2024 allocations kick off in October. The maximum payments for 2024 are up between 3.5% and 3.7% on the 2023 allocations.
The amount a household receives depends on a number of factors, including income and location. Payments are higher in states with higher living costs like Alaska and Hawaii. SNAP benefits are calculated by making deductions from the maximum payment, and many households will not receive the maximum amount. Broadly speaking, eligibility depends on income and the amount of money in your bank account.
Here’s how the maximum SNAP monthly allocations will change from 2023 to 2024 in most U.S. states:
| Household size | 2023 | 2024 | Percentage increase |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $281 | $291 | 3.6% |
| 2 | $516 | $535 | 3.7% |
| 3 | $740 | $766 | 3.5% |
| 4 | $939 | $973 | 3.6% |
| 5 | $1,116 | $1,155 | 3.5% |
| 6 | $1,339 | $1,386 | 3.5% |
| 7 | $1,480 | $1,532 | 3.5% |
| 8 | $1,691 | $1,751 | 3.5% |
| Each additional person | $211 | $219 | 3.8% |
Are SNAP benefits enough?
A monthly payment of $973 for a household of four equates to around $8 per person per day. While SNAP benefits aren’t designed to cover everything, it isn’t easy to feed a family on around $2.66 per person per meal. Indeed, research from the Urban Institute showed that the maximum benefits often don’t cover a family’s food costs. “Amid inflation, SNAP benefits did not cover the cost of a meal in 99 percent of counties in 2022,” said the report.
The new benefit amount — a monthly increase of $34 for a household of four — is roughly in line with cost-of-living increases measured by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Its latest Consumer Price Index figures show that the cost of all items in June, 2023 was up 3% over the year before. However, inflation does not impact all aspects of life equally.
The BLS data also shows that food at home increased by 5.7% year over year. The new SNAP benefits do not match this. Hypothetically, a 5.7% increase in benefits for a family of four would mean a new monthly payment of $992, rather than the planned $973.
In addition, this year brought the end of the pandemic-era emergency food benefits throughout the country. According to CBPP calculations, this meant the averageperson received about $90 a month less in SNAP benefits. Even factoring in the increased SNAP benefit amount, many households have seen a significant drop in their food benefit amount, and the revised 2024 payments will do little to close this gap.
