Senior Food Boxes Through CSFP: Income Rules and How to Sign Up
The Commodity Supplemental Food Program, usually called CSFP or the "senior food box," gives people 60 and older a free monthly package of shelf-stable USDA foods. It's separate from SNAP, it doesn't reduce your other benefits, and the income limit is higher than many seniors expect. Here's how it works and how to sign up.
AT A GLANCE
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What CSFP is, and what it isn't
USDA buys the food and sends it, plus administrative funding, to state agencies and a handful of Indian Tribal Organizations. States pass the food to public and nonprofit local agencies. The local agency checks eligibility, hands out the boxes and offers nutrition education.
A few things surprise people:
It isn't SNAP. You don't get an EBT card or money. You get actual food.
It isn't a full diet. USDA describes the package as supplemental. It's meant to fill in nutrients older adults often miss.
It's in every state, but not every county. USDA says CSFP runs in parts of all 50 states, DC and Puerto Rico, and through seven tribal organizations. Your state agency can tell you if it's offered where you live.
It doesn't count against other benefits. Federal rules say CSFP food can't be counted as income or resources for any federal, state or local program, including taxes, SNAP and Medicaid.
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Who qualifies
You need to meet two federal tests:
Age: at least 60.
Income: at or below your state's CSFP limit. States can set it anywhere up to 150% of the federal poverty guidelines, so check your state's number.
States may also add:
A residency rule limiting you to the local agency's service area. They can't require you to have lived there for any set length of time.
A nutritional-risk rule checked by a doctor or by local agency staff.
2026 income limits at 150% of poverty
These are USDA's published 2026 figures at the 150% level. Income means gross income, before taxes and deductions.
Household size | 48 states, DC, Puerto Rico (yearly) | Monthly | Alaska (yearly) | Hawaii (yearly) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | $23,940 | $1,995 | $29,925 | $27,540 |
2 | $32,460 | $2,705 | $40,575 | $37,335 |
3 | $40,980 | $3,415 | $51,225 | $47,130 |
4 | $49,500 | $4,125 | $61,875 | $56,925 |
For larger households in the contiguous states, add $8,520 a year ($710 a month) for each extra person.
The CSFP limit sits at one and a half times the poverty line, so plenty of seniors on Social Security qualify even though they'd never call themselves poor.
Already on another program? Use it as proof
States may treat you as income-eligible if you can show you're fully eligible for:
SNAP
SSI (Supplemental Security Income)
The Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations
The Medicare Part D Low Income Subsidy (Extra Help)
A Medicare Savings Program, such as QMB or SLMB
If your state uses this option, you skip the income math. Bring the approval letter. States can also accept other state programs with income limits at or below the CSFP limit.
Income that doesn't count
Federal rules exclude dozens of income types. The ones seniors run into most:
LIHEAP heating or cooling assistance
SNAP benefits
Volunteer stipends from programs such as RSVP and Foster Grandparents, to the extent federal law excludes them
Disaster relief payments under the Stafford Act
National Flood Insurance Program payments to property owners
States may also exclude the value of in-kind housing. If your income dropped recently, some states let the local agency compare your last 12 months with your current income and use whichever fits your situation better.
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What's in the box
USDA publishes a list of foods states can order for CSFP. The fiscal year 2027 list includes:
Food group | Examples on USDA's list |
|---|---|
Fruit | Unsweetened applesauce, canned peaches, pears and mixed fruit, raisins, 100% juices |
Vegetables | Low-sodium canned green beans, carrots, corn, peas and spinach; potato flakes; spaghetti sauce; vegetable and tomato soup |
Beans and lentils | Dry pinto, kidney and Great Northern beans, lentils, low-sodium canned beans |
Protein | Canned or pouch beef, chicken and salmon, beef stew, beef chili, peanut butter |
Dairy | Shelf-stable 1% milk, instant nonfat dry milk, reduced-fat American cheese |
Grains | Oats, farina, ready-to-eat cereal, grits, rice, macaroni, spaghetti, whole-grain rotini |
Your box won't have everything on the list. What you get depends on what your state orders and what's available. Local agencies give out food monthly, or every other month as a two-month supply.
If picking up is hard, a participant or caretaker can name a proxy, someone who picks up the food for you. The agency will check the proxy's identity at pickup.
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How to sign up
Find your state CSFP agency. USDA's CSFP pages say to contact your state agency or tribal organization. Your local food bank, Area Agency on Aging or 211 can usually tell you which agency hands out boxes near you.
Fill out the application. You'll give your name and address with some form of ID, your household income, your household size and your age.
Sign the certification statement. It confirms your information is accurate and that you won't get CSFP at more than one site. There's also an optional checkbox letting the agency share your information with other assistance programs.
Watch for a decision within 10 days. The agency must tell you within 10 days of applying whether you're approved, denied or placed on a waiting list. Approval letters must say when, where and how food is distributed.
Waiting lists
CSFP has a fixed number of slots for each state. When local slots are full, the agency must keep a waiting list with your application date and contact information. Many agencies fill openings first come, first served.
Ask about a temporary certification too. If enrolled participants don't pick up, the agency can give their slot to someone on the waiting list for a month at a time.
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Staying on the program
Certification lasts one to three years, depending on your state. In states with longer periods, the agency checks your address, interest and income each year.
You'll get a written reminder at least 15 days before your certification expires. You have to reapply to keep going.
Report changes within 10 days. That includes changes to household income or who lives with you.
Moving? If you move to another area that offers CSFP before your certification ends, the new agency must serve you. If it has a waiting list, you go to the top. Ask your current agency for proof of your expiration date before you move.
If you're denied or cut off
A denial must be in writing and say why. You have at least 60 days from the notice to ask for a fair hearing, and you can ask out loud or in writing. If you're being cut off and you appeal within the 15-day notice period, you keep getting food until the hearing decision or the end of your certification, whichever comes first. At the hearing you can see the agency's documents, bring witnesses and have someone represent you.
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Before you call
☐ A photo ID or other identification
☐ Proof of address, if your state has a service-area rule
☐ Your most recent Social Security or pension award letter, or recent pay stubs
☐ Your SNAP, SSI, Medicare Savings Program or Extra Help approval letter, if you have one
☐ The names of everyone in your household
☐ The name of a proxy who could pick up food if you can't
WHAT TO DO THIS WEEK
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More help
Related guides
Official sources
Last checked: October 30, 2026. Income limits are USDA's 2026 CSFP guidelines at 150% of poverty. Food items come from USDA's FY 2027 available-foods list. Eligibility, notice and hearing rules come from 7 CFR Part 247.
States set their own limits up to 150% of poverty and may add residency or nutritional-risk rules. Check with your state CSFP agency.
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