Fact check: What was the average monthly SNAP benefit per recipient in 2024 and how did it change going into 2025?

Executive Summary — Straight to the Numbers

The best available federal figures show the average monthly SNAP benefit per participant was about $187 in fiscal year 2024 and roughly $190.6 in fiscal year 2025, implying a small net increase going into 2025 of about $3–$4 per person or roughly a 1.5–2.0% change. Different government releases and news reports report closely clustered but not identical figures because they use different baselines (per person vs. per household), fiscal-year timing, and preliminary versus revised data; readers should expect modest differences in published averages depending on the dataset cited ^{[1] [2] [3]}.

1. What the main sources actually claim and where they agree

Primary USDA tabulations and reporting converge on an average near $187 per person for FY2024 and an average near $190.59 for FY2025, with households receiving substantially more per household—commonly reported around $350–$356 per month on average. These figures come from USDA program statistics and contemporary reporting summarizing those statistics. The data agree that the program’s per-person average dipped from 2023 to 2024 (from about $211 to $187) and then rose or stabilized into 2025, depending on the specific measure used. The consistency across USDA releases and major reporting is that the year-to-year movement is modest rather than dramatic ^{[1] [4] [2] [3]}.

2. Why different reports show slightly different numbers — and which number answers the question asked

Discrepancies appear because some sources report per-person averages, others report per-household averages, and some use preliminary versus final fiscal-year calculations. Per-person averages (the direct answer to “per recipient”) are in the high-$180s to low-$190s; per-household averages are roughly $350–$356 because households contain multiple recipients. Timing matters too: fiscal-year labels (FY2024 vs. calendar-year 2024) and when the agency publishes revised numbers produce small shifts. Reporting outlets also sometimes round or present estimates ahead of final USDA reconciliation. For a direct answer to “per recipient,” rely on the USDA per-participant figures around $187 (FY2024) and $190.59 (FY2025) ^{[1] [4] [2]}.

3. How big was the change going into 2025 — the math and what it means

Using the USDA’s per-participant numbers yields a change from about $187.17–$187.20 in FY2024 to $190.59 in FY2025, a rise of about $3.39–$3.42 per person — roughly a 1.8% increase. This magnitude is small relative to household food budgets and cost pressures; the per-household average did not move by a large dollar amount either, typically staying in the mid-$300s. Some reporting and agency summaries present an FY2025 estimate of $187 in some contexts, reflecting revisions or different averaging methods; those differences do not alter the overall picture that changes were modest, not large ^{[1] [2] [3]}.

4. Policy context: why 2025 figures matter and where COLA fits in

Annual SNAP adjustments are influenced by statutory Cost-of-Living Adjustments (COLA) and occasional policy changes; USDA announced FY2026 COLA adjustments and states updated maximums for 2025–2026, but those actions do not retroactively change FY2024 or FY2025 per-participant averages. State-level maximum benefit increases (for example, a family-of-four maximum moving toward $994 in 2025–2026) affect household ceilings but not the national per-person average directly. The modest per-person change into 2025 reflects program mechanics, caseload composition, and benefit formulas, not a single dramatic policy shift in that year ^{[5] [6] [7]}.

5. Bottom line, reader caveats, and what to watch next

The authoritative short answer: about $187 per recipient in FY2024 and about $190.6 in FY2025, a small rise of roughly $3–$4 per person. Important caveats: averages hide large variation by household size, state, and income; per-household averages are higher and are often reported instead; and USDA figures can be revised. Watch USDA fiscal-year tables and state-level COLA and maximum allotment announcements for future movement — those drive the program’s cash ceilings and will determine whether the modest upward trend continues or reverses in subsequent years ^{[1] [2] [5]}.