Yes, you can buy junk food with food stamps under federal law. SNAP benefits cover candy, soda, chips, ice cream, cookies, and other snack foods, because the statute defines eligible food by category rather than nutritional value. That baseline is changing in parts of the country, though: as of 2026, the USDA has approved waivers in 19 states that will block SNAP purchases of items like soda and candy once each state’s waiver takes effect.
The Junk Food You Can Still Buy With SNAP
Federal law casts a wide net. Under 7 U.S.C. ยง 2012(k), “food” for SNAP purposes means any food or food product intended for home consumption, plus seeds and plants that grow food for the household.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 7 U.S. Code 2012 – Definitions The federal regulation mirrors this, covering any food product intended for human consumption that doesn’t fall into a narrow list of excluded categories.2eCFR. 7 CFR 271.2
In practice, that means SNAP eligibility covers essentially every packaged snack in a grocery store. Candy bars, gummies, chocolate. Chips, pretzels, cheese puffs. Ice cream, frozen novelties, cookies, cakes, and pastries. Soda, energy drinks, sports drinks, sweetened iced tea, and other non-alcoholic beverages. If it’s food or drink meant to be taken home, it qualifies at the federal level, regardless of sugar or sodium content.3Food and Nutrition Service. What Can SNAP Buy?
Why Federal Law Allows Junk Food
The statute contains no nutritional test. A bag of frozen broccoli and a bag of gummy bears are both “food products for home consumption,” and both qualify. Congress wrote the law this way deliberately. The Food Stamp Act of 1964 was built to use “the Nation’s abundance of food” to “raise levels of nutrition among low-income households,” but eligibility was tied to product category, not nutrient content.4U.S. Government Publishing Office. 78 Stat. 703 – The Food Stamp Act of 1964
Drawing a legal line between “junk food” and “real food” is harder than it sounds. Is a granola bar with 20 grams of sugar a healthy snack or junk? Is 100 percent fruit juice with the same calories as soda nutritious? Any classification would need to categorize hundreds of thousands of individual products, checkout systems across the country would need reprogramming, and small grocers who couldn’t afford the upgrade might drop out of the program entirely. For most of SNAP’s history, USDA rejected state requests to restrict specific items on those grounds. That position has now changed.
States Restricting SNAP Junk Food Purchases in 2026
After years of denying state waiver requests, the USDA has begun approving food restriction waivers that block SNAP purchases of items like soda, candy, and energy drinks. As of 2026, 19 states have approved waivers with implementation dates spread through the year, and three more states have approvals scheduled for 2027 and 2028.5Food and Nutrition Service. SNAP Food Restriction Waivers
The scope varies. Some states restrict only soft drinks. Others add candy and energy drinks. The broadest waivers restrict all items a state already taxes as non-staple foods:
- Soft drinks only: Colorado, Hawaii, Utah, and West Virginia
- Soft drinks and candy: Idaho, Indiana, and Oklahoma
- Soft drinks, energy drinks, and candy: Louisiana, North Dakota, and South Carolina
- Broader restrictions including prepared desserts or processed foods: Florida, Missouri, and Tennessee
If you receive SNAP in one of these states, check your state’s implementation date. Items you could buy last month may be ineligible once the waiver takes effect, and the register will simply decline the purchase. States without approved waivers still follow the federal baseline, where soda, candy, and snack foods remain fully eligible.
What SNAP Cannot Buy Anywhere
Even where junk food is allowed, several categories are off-limits nationwide:3Food and Nutrition Service. What Can SNAP Buy?
- Alcohol: beer, wine, and liquor
- Tobacco: cigarettes and all tobacco products
- Hot foods: anything hot at the point of sale, including a rotisserie chicken under a heat lamp or a slice of pizza heated at the deli counter
- Supplements: vitamins, medicines, and anything with a “Supplement Facts” label instead of a “Nutrition Facts” label
- Cannabis and CBD products, including food and drinks that contain them
- Live animals, with narrow exceptions for shellfish, fish removed from water, and animals slaughtered before pickup
- Nonfood household items: pet food, cleaning supplies, paper products, hygiene items, and cosmetics
The label distinction trips people up most. A sugary energy drink with a “Nutrition Facts” panel is SNAP-eligible. A vitamin-fortified drink on the same shelf with a “Supplement Facts” panel is not.
Bonus Dollars for Fruits and Vegetables
Running alongside the restrictions is a set of incentive programs that reward SNAP households for buying produce. The largest federal source is the Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program, with an estimated federal investment of roughly $48.6 million for fiscal year 2026.6SAM.gov. Assistance Listings Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program
The most visible program funded through those grants is Double Up Food Bucks, now available in more than 25 states. The typical model matches SNAP dollars spent on fruits and vegetables dollar-for-dollar, often up to $20 a day, effectively doubling a household’s produce purchasing power. Some states offer a percentage discount on produce instead of a match. These incentives don’t come out of your regular SNAP balance. They’re bonus dollars on top of your normal benefits, usable only for fruits and vegetables at participating locations.
Penalties for Misusing SNAP Benefits
Using SNAP for ineligible items at the register generally just fails; the transaction is declined. Fraud is different. Selling benefits for cash, or otherwise trafficking them, carries criminal exposure. Federal law makes trafficking $5,000 or more in benefits a felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. Amounts between $100 and $5,000 carry up to five years and a $10,000 fine for a first offense. Amounts under $100 are a misdemeanor with up to one year in jail and a $1,000 fine.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 7 U.S. Code 2024 – Violations and Enforcement
Administrative disqualification runs on a separate track from criminal prosecution. A first offense typically brings a 12-month ban from the program, a second offense a 24-month ban, and a third results in permanent disqualification. Individuals convicted of trafficking benefits for cash face permanent disqualification on the first offense.