Here's how SNAP eligibility and benefits are different in 2024

Sara Chernikoff, USA TODAY

December 20, 2023 at 5:35 AM·3 min read

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, provides food benefits to eligible low-income families. The benefits are sent through an Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) card and help supplement grocery budgets so families can afford nutritious food.

Last year, an average of 41.2 million Americans received SNAP benefits at any given month.

At the beginning of each fiscal year (Oct. 1), the U.S. Department of Agriculture adjusts SNAP maximum allotments, deductions and income eligibility standards. These changes are based on the cost of living, or the amount of money needed to support a basic standard of living.

In October, SNAP benefits increased 12.5% compared to the previous year, according to Forbes Advisor. Eligibility requirements are also set to change, following the Fiscal Responsibility Act (FRA) signed by President Joe Biden in June.

Here's what you need to know about changes to SNAP:

Changes to eligibility by age

Able-bodied adults without dependents between ages 51 and 52 must prove they are actively working, training or in school in order to qualify for SNAP benefits this year. This requirement will expand to age 54 starting in October 2024.

Exemptions to this new rule exist for some able-bodied adults without dependents. Pregnant people, homeless individuals, veterans, those with a physical or mental limitation and people aged 24 or younger and in foster care on their 18th birthday are exempt.

A sign outside of Papa Murphy's Pizza in Sioux Falls, S.D., tells customers that electronic benefits transfer cards, the way recipients receive food stamps now, can be used at the store.

What is the maximum income of someone eligible for SNAP?

The size of a family’s SNAP benefit is based on its income and certain expenses. According to GoBankingRates, these are the maximum gross monthly incomes a household can make in order to qualify.

One-person household:

48 States, District of Columbia, Guam, Virgin Islands: $1,580
Alaska: $1,973
Hawaii: $1,817

Two-person household:

48 States, District of Columbia, Guam, Virgin Islands: $2,137
Alaska: $2,670
Hawaii: $2,457

Three-person household:

48 States, District of Columbia, Guam, Virgin Islands: $2,694
Alaska: $3,366
Hawaii: $3,098

Four-person household:

48 States, District of Columbia, Guam, Virgin Islands: $3,250
Alaska: $4,063
Hawaii: $3,738

Five-person household:

48 States, District of Columbia, Guam, Virgin Islands: $3,807
Alaska: $4,760
Hawaii: $4,378

Six-person household:

48 States, District of Columbia, Guam, Virgin Islands: $4,364
Alaska: $5,456
Hawaii: $5,018

Seven-person household:

48 States, District of Columbia, Guam, Virgin Islands: $4,921
Alaska: $6,153
Hawaii: $5,659

Eight-person household:

48 States, District of Columbia, Guam, Virgin Islands: $5,478
Alaska: $6,849
Hawaii: $6,299

Each Additional Member

48 States, District of Columbia, Guam, Virgin Islands: $557
Alaska: $697
Hawaii: $641

What is the maximum SNAP allotment for 2024?

Maximum allotments have increased for the 48 contiguous states along with Washington, DC, Alaska, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Hawaii is the only location with a decreased maximum allotment from the previous year. A family of four would now see a maximum payment of $1,759 in Hawaii.

The minimum benefit for the 48 states and D.C. is the same as 2023 at $23.

Here are the maximum allotments for SNAP in 48 states and Washington, DC — between Oct. 2023 to Sep. 2024 — according to the USDA:

Household size 1: $291
Household size 2: $535
Household size 3: $766
Household size 4: $973
Household size 5: $1,155
Household size 6: $1,386
Household size 7: $1,532
Household size 8: $1,751
Each additional person: $219

How to qualify for SNAP benefits?

To get SNAP benefits, you must apply in the state you currently reside in and meet certain requirements.

Details of eligibility are outlined by the USDA here.

GoBankingRates contributed to this reporting

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: SNAP benefits increase 12.5% for 2024: What to know about food stamps

CNN
Syrian rebels enter Aleppo for first time in eight years during shock offensive
Syrian armed opposition forces have entered Aleppo just three days into their surprise offensive, marking the first time they have set foot in the country’s second largest city since government forces recaptured the city in 2016.
Politico
Justin Trudeau visits Trump at Mar-a-Lago
Canada’s prime minister said he looks forward to “lots of great conversations” with the president-elect.
Reuters
Senior Russian diplomat says possibility of new nuclear tests remains open question
"This is a question at hand," Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told TASS news agency when asked whether Moscow was considering a resumption of tests. In September, Ryabkov referred to President Vladimir Putin as having said that Russia would not conduct a test as long as the United States refrained from carrying one out. Moscow has not conducted a nuclear weapons test since 1990, the year before the collapse of the Soviet Union.
AFP
Trudeau in Florida to meet Trump as tariff threats loom: media
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau arrived in Palm Beach, Florida, on Friday for what Canadian and American media said was a meeting with US President-elect Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago luxury estate.According to the website Flightradar, the Canadian leader's plane landed at Palm Beach International Airport late in the afternoon.
Reuters
As Syrian rebels sweep into Aleppo, army closes airport and roads, sources say
AMMAN (Reuters) -Syrian authorities closed Aleppo airport as well as all roads leading into the city on Saturday, three military sources told Reuters, as rebels opposed to President Bashar al-Assad said they had reached the heart of Aleppo. The opposition fighters, led by the Islamist militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, carried out a surprise sweep through government-held towns this week and reached Aleppo nearly a decade after having been forced out by Assad and his allies. Russia, one of Assad's key allies, has promised Damascus extra military aid to thwart the rebels, two military sources said, adding new hardware would start arriving in the next 72 hours.
USA TODAY
Detective killed in line of duty after responding to armed person leaving Chicago-area bank: police
Oak Park Police detective Allan Reddins was killed in the line of duty after responding to a report of an armed person who was exiting a bank on Friday.
CNN
Brutally cold temps covering half the US and paralyzing lake-effect snow are on tap as Thanksgiving travelers try to get home
While ferocious snowfall threatens to trap residents in parts of the Great Lakes region, millions of holiday travelers face bitter Arctic air that will soon blast half of the entire country.
USA TODAY
New Zealand joins Australia in rejecting Candace Owens' visa ahead of speaking tour
New Zealand confirmed it denied a visa application from Candace Owens because she has been barred from another country. Australia also barred her.
CNN
Recalled cucumbers linked to multistate salmonella outbreak, health agencies warn
Cucumbers distributed to more than two dozen US states and Canada are being recalled after 68 reported salmonella infections. Health agencies are warning that the contaminated cucumbers may still be in people’s refrigerators and should not be eaten.
NBC News
New England Congress members targeted with bomb threats on Thanksgiving
Most of Connecticut's congressional delegation said they were the subject of bomb threats at their homes as they were preparing to celebrate Thanksgiving, although no bombs ultimately were found.
Politico
In a shock offensive, insurgents breach Syria’s largest city for the first time since 2016
The attack injected new violence into a region experiencing dual wars in Gaza and Lebanon involving Israel.
Associated Press
Lake-effect snow heading for New York state could disrupt travel and football
Black Friday was giving way to a white weekend in parts of New York state, with the first big snow of the season threatening to bury towns along lakes Erie and Ontario during a hectic holiday travel and shopping weekend. As flakes began flying Friday, forecasters warned 4 to 6 feet (1.2 to 1.8 meters) of blowing and drifting snow could fall in Watertown and other areas east of Lake Ontario through Monday. After an unusually mild fall, as much as 2 to 3 feet (0.6 to 0.9 meters) of snow were possible along Lake Erie and south of Buffalo from lake-effect bands notorious for pummeling the region with snowfall rates of 2 to 4 inches (5 to 10 centimeters) per hour.
USA TODAY
Hiker who vanished mid-October in frigid Canadian wilderness found alive over a month later
Two men found Sam Benastick earlier this week after he was first reported missing on Oct. 19 in remote British Columbia, Canada.
CNN
A woman bypassed multiple security checkpoints to get on a Delta flight to Paris. Here’s what we know
Investigators are trying to determine how a woman got past multiple security checkpoints this week at New York’s JFK International Airport and boarded a plane to Paris, apparently hiding in the aircraft’s bathrooms during the flight.
Associated Press
What to know about sudden rebel gains in Syria's 13-year war and why it matters
The 13-year civil war in Syria has roared back into prominence with a surprise rebel offensive on Aleppo, one of Syria's largest cities and an ancient business hub. It was the first opposition attack on Aleppo since 2016, when a brutal air campaign by Russian warplanes helped Syrian President Bashar Assad retake the northwestern city. Intervention by Russia, Iran and Iranian-allied Hezbollah and other groups has allowed Assad to remain in power, within the 70% of Syria under his control.
Associated Press
Missouri's GOP attorney general says abortions after viability remain illegal under new amendment
Missouri's Republican attorney general has pledged to enforce some laws restricting abortion despite a new constitutional amendment widely expected to undo the state's near-total ban on the procedure. In an opinion requested by incoming GOP governor Mike Kehoe, Attorney General Andrew Bailey wrote that his office will continue enforcing a ban on abortion after fetal viability. There is an exception carved out in the amendment for cases in which a health care provider deems an abortion necessary to “protect the life or physical or mental health of the pregnant person.”
CNN
Georgia rocked by fierce protests after government puts EU hopes on ice
Georgia has been rocked by protests after its increasingly autocratic government said it would halt the former Soviet country’s bid to join the European Union.
Reuters
Peru takes step to extend permit scheme for informal miners
A Peruvian congressional committee on Friday took an initial step to extend a scheme that allows temporary permits to be given to small-scale informal miners, controversial due to accusations by opponents that it has been misused to expand illegal mining. The Energy and Mining Legislative Committee approved a bill that would extend for six months a registry called REINFO, which allows small-scale miners to continue working while seeking formalization. REINFO, which has already been extended multiple times, expires on Dec. 31.
Reuters
Explosion damages canal feeding Kosovo's main power plants
PRISTINA (Reuters) -An explosion on Friday evening damaged a canal in northern Kosovo supplying water to two coal-fired power plants that generate nearly all of the country's electricity, Prime Minister Albin Kurti said, blaming what he called "a terrorist act" by neighbouring Serbia. Serbian officials did not respond to requests for comment, and Reuters found no immediate evidence of Belgrade's involvement. "This is a criminal and terrorist attack with the aim to destroy our critical infrastructure," Kurti said in a televised address.
Associated Press
First popularly elected Black mayor in New England, Thirman Milner, has died at 91
Former Hartford Mayor Thirman Milner, the first popularly elected Black mayor in New England, has died, the Connecticut NAACP said on Friday. Milner's death was announced Friday afternoon in a statement on the Instagram page for the Connecticut Conference of the NAACP. The statement did not specify exactly when or where Milner had died.