Recent trends in spending patterns of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program participants and other low-income Americans

Using Consumer Expenditure Survey data for the period 2004–2010, this article examines spending on food by Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) participants, whether this spending changed over time, whether participants spent more on food than did program nonparticipants, and whether spending on nonfood goods and services differed between participants and nonparticipants. The article found that spending on food at home increased since 2006 by a greater amount for SNAP participants than it did for eligible nonparticipants, with participants’ spending eventually surpassing nonparticipants’ spending by 2010. As the largest share of total spending, housing expenditures increased steadily for both participants and nonparticipants, with SNAP participants spending amounts similar to those spent by eligible nonparticipants.