Characteristics of U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Supplemental 

Nutrition Assistance Program Households: Fiscal Year 2020

Background Key Findings

In Fiscal Year (FY) 2020, about 39.9 million people living in 20.5 million U.S. 

households participated in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) 

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in an average month.

This report provides information about the demographic and economic 

circumstances of SNAP households in FY 2020 (October 2019 through 

September 2020). Because the coronavirus COVID-19 public health 

emergency affected data collection starting in March 2020, this summary 

only covers the prepandemic period of October 2019 through February 

2020; additional information about the characteristics of SNAP households 

from June through September 2020 can be found in the full report.

Following the publication of this report, USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service 

(FNS) will publish a supplemental report that examines in more detail key 

differences between household characteristics in the prepandemic and 

waiver periods.

• Four in five SNAP households included 

either a child, an elderly individual, or 

an individual with a disability.

• The average SNAP household received 

a monthly benefit of $230 in the 

prepandemic period of FY 2020.

• Eighty-one percent of households had 

gross monthly income less than or 

equal to the poverty line.

• More than one quarter of SNAP 

households—and half of households 

with children—had earnings.

Methods

Analyses in this report utilize SNAP Quality Control (QC) 

data, which is an annually collected sample of SNAP 

administrative data from State agencies. The sampled data 

undergo a QC review in which States verify case

information. In March 2020, at the onset of the COVID-19 

public health emergency in the United States, FNS provided 

temporary waivers on conducting QC reviews. Analysis of 

QC data for the prepandemic period determined that 

sample sizes for the initial 5 months of FY 2020 were 

sufficient for producing precise estimates of SNAP caseload 

characteristics for that period. 

Findings

Four in five (81 percent) SNAP households included a child

younger than age 18, an elderly individual (aged 60 or 

over), or an individual with a disability in the 

prepandemic period (See Figure 1). These households 

contained 90 percent of all participants and received 85 

percent of all SNAP benefits. 

Sixty-five percent of participants were in a household 

with children; 18 percent in a household with elderly 

individuals; and 20 percent in households with nonelderly adults with disabilities. Eight percent of 

participants resided in childless households with ablebodied adults ages 18–49.

Most SNAP households were small. The average SNAP 

household size was roughly two people, with over 56 

percent of SNAP households containing only one person. 

Households with children were larger, averaging 3.3 

members, while households with elderly participants were 

smaller, averaging 1.2 members.

Research Summary November 2022

Figure 1: Households receiving SNAP by composition,

prepandemic

*Categories are not mutually exclusive and do not add to 100%.

56.5

13.4

18.9

21.8

28.6

38.1

Single-person Households

With Adults Ages 18–49 Without 

Disabilities in Childless Households

Other Households

With Nonelderly Individuals With

Disabilities

With Elderly Individuals

With Children

Percentage of households*
USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.

For More Information:

Cronquist, K.; Eiffes, B. (2022). Characteristics of U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Households: 

Fiscal Year 2020, Contract No. 12-3198-21-F-0034. Alexandria, VA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service, Office of Policy 

Support, Project Officer: Kameron Burt. Available online at: www.fns.usda.gov/research-and-analysis. 

The average SNAP household received a monthly benefit 

of $230 in the prepandemic period of FY 2020. 

About 36 percent of SNAP households received the 

maximum benefit for their family size. Only 11 percent 

received the minimum benefit ($16), which is only 

available to households with one or two members.

Most SNAP households were living at or below the 

poverty line. In the prepandemic period, 81 percent of 

households had gross monthly income—cash income 

without SNAP deductions—less than or equal to the 

Federal poverty line. In the same period, 36 percent of 

SNAP households had gross monthly income that was less 

than or equal to half of the poverty line, and these 

households received 54 percent of all SNAP benefits. When 

including SNAP benefits with cash gross income, the 

program lifted over 9 percent of SNAP households out of 

poverty. See Figure 2.

Average gross income for all SNAP households was $890 

per month, which was slightly less than 65 percent of the 

Federal poverty line. About 19 percent of SNAP households 

reported no countable income.

Over a quarter of SNAP households reported earnings

from employment. Prepandemic, nearly 28 percent of 

SNAP households had countable earned income from 

employment and received an average of $1,242 in monthly 

earnings.

Roughly 63 percent of SNAP households received income 

from at least one source of income from a source other 

than employment earnings. Social Security was the largest 

source of unearned income: 32 percent of SNAP 

households received an average of $907 in Social Security 

monthly. In the prepandemic period, 25 percent of 

households received Supplemental Security Income (SSI) 

benefits (an average of $631 in SSI monthly), about 4

percent received Temporary Assistance for Needy Families 

(TANF) benefits (an average of $506 monthly), and only 4

percent received State General Assistance (GA) benefits

(an average of $342 monthly). See Table 1.

Earnings from employment varied among SNAP 

household subgroups. More than half (53 percent) of 

households with children had earned income from 

employment, while 6 percent of SNAP households that 

included elderly individuals had earned income. 

Additionally, 27 percent of households with adults ages

18–49 without disabilities in childless households had 

earned income. 

Table 1: Percent of SNAP households receiving select 

income sources and average amount received

Income Source

Percent of 

households

Average income 

from source

($/month)

Countable earned income 27.7 1,242

TANF 3.6 506

GA 4.1 342

SSI 25.0 631

Social Security 31.8 907

Unemployment income 1.1 1,093

Veterans’ benefits 0.7 576

Workers’ compensation 0.1 718

Most SNAP households lived in metropolitan areas, with 

very few living in rural areas. Over 82 percent of SNAP 

households lived in or near large cities, while about 10 

percent lived in or near smaller cities, and under 6 percent 

lived in rural areas.

Figure 2: Effect of SNAP benefits on the poverty status 

of SNAP households in the prepandemic period

*“Cash gross income” does not sum to 100% due to rounding.

35.7%

26.1%

45.4%

45.8%

18.9%

28.0%

0% 100%

Cash gross income only

Cash gross income and

SNAP benefits

Percentage of Federal poverty guidelines* 

50 percent

or less

51 percent to

 100 percent

101 percent

or more