placestats

Received food stamps

The estimated percentage of adults who received food stamps in the past year. It is adjusted so places with older or younger populations can be compared fairly. It is an estimate from a statistical model, not a direct count from a local survey.

Reported for2,299areas, in 40 states — none in CO, FL, KY, OR, PA, PR, SD, TN, TX, VT, WA, WY
Link to density0.03not mostly about how urban a place is
Nearby places alike0.58Moran’s I: strongly, neighbouring places tend to be similar
Typerate%

How it has moved

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Every state, every year

Nothing to draw here: this measure has no state figures. Its publisher reports it for counties. This site does not add county numbers up into state figures, since a home-made figure could clash with one an agency publishes itself. The chart above covers the whole country, year by year.

Where it comes from

CDC PLACES · PLACES FOODSTAMP, age-adjusted

An estimate from a statistical model, not a direct measurement. The model starts from interviews in a national health survey (BRFSS). It fills in local detail using Census population counts and figures from the American Community Survey (ACS). So the estimate partly reflects ACS measures that also appear on this site. When counties are combined, bigger ones get more weight. That gives a close figure, not an exact one. Each county rate is age-adjusted: adjusted to the age mix of the 2000 US population, so places with older or younger people can be compared fairly. That makes the rates nearly combinable. The exact figure would need counts by age group, which the CDC does not release. Where precision matters, read the county values directly.

Combining areas: an average weighted by population aged 18 and over.

What it goes with

The strongest links that have a page of their own. Unadjusted is the link before adjusting for anything, from −1 (opposite) to +1 (in step). Adjusted compares places with the same population density, income and education levels, so those differences can’t explain the link. This list leaves out the 95 pairs built from the same numbers or the same model as this measure, since they are bound to match.

MeasureUnadjustedAdjusted
Received food stamps and Material security scoreWhere Received food stamps is higher, Material security score tends to be lower: a strong link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Material security score by US county-0.89-0.82
Received food stamps and Average test scoreWhere Received food stamps is higher, Average test score tends to be lower: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Average test score by US county-0.78-0.64
Received food stamps and Returns claiming the earned income creditWhere Received food stamps is higher, Returns claiming the earned income credit tends to be higher: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Returns claiming the earned income credit by US county+0.81+0.63
Received food stamps and Social connection scoreWhere Received food stamps is higher, Social connection score tends to be lower: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Social connection score by US county-0.68-0.59
Received food stamps and Children in single-parent householdsWhere Received food stamps is higher, Children in single-parent households tends to be higher: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Children in single-parent households by US county+0.72+0.59
Received food stamps and Republican share of the two-party vote, 2020Where Received food stamps is higher, Republican share of the two-party vote, 2020 tends to be lower: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared. Republican share of the two-party vote, 2020 by US county-0.24-0.59
Received food stamps and Republican share of the two-party vote, 2016Where Received food stamps is higher, Republican share of the two-party vote, 2016 tends to be lower: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Republican share of the two-party vote, 2016 by US county-0.29-0.58
Received food stamps and Republican share of the two-party vote, 2024Where Received food stamps is higher, Republican share of the two-party vote, 2024 tends to be lower: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared. Republican share of the two-party vote, 2024 by US county-0.21-0.57
Received food stamps and Economic connectednessWhere Received food stamps is higher, Economic connectedness tends to be lower: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Economic connectedness by US county-0.73-0.50
Received food stamps and Homicide rateWhere Received food stamps is higher, Homicide rate tends to be higher: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared. Homicide rate by US county+0.67+0.50

Population makeup

How this measure varies with the racial and ethnic makeup of counties. Every group is shown, whatever its rank. These are links across counties: they describe places, not people. They say nothing about any person’s risk or behaviour based on their race. Counties with a larger share of one group also differ in much else, such as income, segregation, region and history. The adjusted figure only accounts for density, income and education.

Share of residentsUnadjustedAdjusted
Received food stamps and Share White, not HispanicNot an independent finding: one is modelled from the other. It is an estimate from a statistical model that uses the other as an input, so part of the match is built in. Share White, not Hispanic by US county-0.57-0.67
Received food stamps and Share Black, not HispanicNot an independent finding: one is modelled from the other. It is an estimate from a statistical model that uses the other as an input, so part of the match is built in. Share Black, not Hispanic by US county+0.64+0.56
Received food stamps and Share Hispanic or Latino, any raceNot an independent finding: one is modelled from the other. It is an estimate from a statistical model that uses the other as an input, so part of the match is built in. Share Hispanic or Latino, any race by US county+0.11+0.26
Received food stamps and Share Asian, not HispanicNot an independent finding: one is modelled from the other. It is an estimate from a statistical model that uses the other as an input, so part of the match is built in. Share Asian, not Hispanic by US county-0.14+0.25
Received food stamps and Share American Indian or Alaska Native, not HispanicNot an independent finding: one is modelled from the other. It is an estimate from a statistical model that uses the other as an input, so part of the match is built in. Share American Indian or Alaska Native, not Hispanic by US county+0.29+0.39

Highest and lowest

Of 2,299 counties reporting it. These are the two ends of a national ranking. For most measures, that ranking mostly sorts places by income and how urban they are. That is why the place pages compare each place with similar places instead.

Highest

  1. East Carroll Parish, LA — 46.6%
  2. Madison Parish, LA — 43.1%
  3. Greene County, AL — 42.2%
  4. Bullock County, AL — 40.4%
  5. McKinley County, NM — 39.8%

Lowest

  1. Hamilton County, IN — 3.6%
  2. Johnson County, KS — 3.8%
  3. Summit County, UT — 3.8%
  4. Falls Church city, VA — 3.8%
  5. Morgan County, UT — 4%

The middle area reports 12.8%. The middle half of counties falls between 9.7% and 17.1% (the 25th to 75th percentile).

All measures · Explore its pairs · How the US county data works