Online Benefit Redemption and SNAP Participation: Evidence From the SNAP Online Purchasing Pilot

ABSTRACT The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is the largest federal nutrition assistance program in the United States, yet many eligible households do not participate due to administrative burdens, stigma, and geographic access constraints. We examine whether the SNAP Online Purchasing Pilot (OPP), which allows beneficiaries to redeem benefits online, affects program participation. Using a difference‐in‐differences design with state‐level data from 2017 to 2021, we find that SNAP OPP increases program participation per capita by 13.7% (1.6 percentage points) and participation among individuals below the poverty line by 11.3% (11 percentage points). Event‐study estimates indicate effects emerge within three months and persist thereafter. Participation gains are larger in states with higher digital infrastructure (computer ownership and internet access) and greater vehicle access, indicating that online and physical access function as complements. States with higher shares of elderly residents and households with children also exhibit stronger responses. These findings suggest that enabling online benefit redemption can expand safety net access, though benefits vary systematically with local infrastructure and demographic composition.