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Can You Use Food Stamps on Amazon?

(Last updated on 10/26/20)

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You can now use food stamps on Amazon and that’s great news for all SNAP benefit holders who have been wanting to use their EBT Cards online to buy food at FreshDirect and other grocers that deliver food.

"Can You Use Food Stamps on Amazon?"

 

Starting in the summer of 2017, seven online food retailers, will start accepting food stamps and allow EBT Card holders to buy food online. Here is the list below of the retailers approved for the program.

Also, as an extra incentive, Amazon.com now offers EBT cardholders a special discount on Amazon Prime, which allows you to pay 5.99% a month, compared to the recently announced new fee of $12.99 – that is close to 60% discount. Click here to sign up for the Amazon Prime EBT Discount.

Amazon.com
FreshDirect
Safeway
ShopRite
Hy-Vee
Hart’s Local Grocers
Dash’s Market.

This is a two-year pilot program that the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), which administers the Food Stamps program is testing. NOTE that only seven states have been approved to run the program.

The Seven states are:

  • Maryland
  • New Jersey
  • New York
  • Pennsylvania
  • Washington
  • Iowa
  • Oregon

"Can You Use Food Stamps on Amazon?"

If you are on food stamps but don’t live in the seven states mentioned above, you will not have to wait too long to be able to benefit from the program. The USDA says it hopes to expand the online program nationally and add more retailers.

The ability to use food stamps on Amazon and fresh direct in itself is a major breakthrough for millions of people who are on food stamps but don’t have access to quality, nutritious and affordable food.

The fact that major retailers like Amazon are participating in SNAP’s online ordering program is a big deal.

The ability to buy food online using food stamps could especially help those who live in food deserts (i.e. neighborhoods without access to fresh produce), those with disabilities, and the elderly.

It will also expand options for people to get access to a variety of food options that may not necessarily be available to them in their local area due to limitations that they may have – either due to employment or distance.

Kwame Kuadey

Kwame Kuadey writes about personal finance and the social safety net. His career started in banking but he caught the entrepreneurial bug and has spent the last decade building successful businesses, including an Inc. 500 Company. Kwame believes everyone has the power to improve their quality of life by seeking knowledge and taking action. In 2012, Kwame founded Empower Media to help low-income households improve their financial situation. His expertise is in topics relevant to low-income households, including government benefits and assistance, banking products, access to credit, plus tools & resources to help reduce income volatility and build wealth. Kwame has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Entrepreneur, Inc. Magazine, Washington Post, ABC, and NPR.

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