Household Food Insecurity Rate
Share of U.S. households classified as food insecure by USDA definition
What was the last verified Household Food Insecurity Rate reading?
U.S. Department of Agriculture's last reading put the household food insecurity rate at 13.7% in 2024: the share of households that at some point in the year lacked the money or other resources to be sure of enough food for everyone. That is about the same as the 13.5% of 2023. USDA has stopped publishing the annual report, so no newer figure exists. Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service.
In USDA's final annual report, 13.7% of U.S. households were food insecure in 2024, about the same as the year before.
USDA's Economic Research Service counts a household as food insecure when, at some time in the prior 12 months, it did not have enough money or other resources to be sure of enough food for everyone. The Census Bureau asks the questions each December as a supplement to the Current Population Survey. In 2024, 13.7% of households met that definition. That is about the same as the 13.5% of 2023.
The rate counts households, not people. Most food-insecure households avoided large cuts to what they ate; only the smaller group with very low food security reported eating less or skipping meals. USDA does not measure hunger itself.
USDA announced in September 2025 that it would stop publishing this report. The report covering 2024, released December 30, 2025, is the last in the series.
SNAP Food Stamp Enrollment counts people receiving food assistance each month. It measures a different thing, from program records rather than a survey.
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Household Food Insecurity Rate over time: what has changed?
Counties with the highest safety net and buffer scores
These are safety net and buffer scores from our County Distress Index, not county readings of Household Food Insecurity Rate.
Explore all 3,144 counties →| Period | Value | YoY Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 13.7% | +0.2 pp |
| 2023 | 13.5% | +0.7 pp |
| 2022 | 12.8% | +2.6 pp |
| 2021 | 10.2% | -0.3 pp |
| 2020 | 10.5% | 0 pp |
| 2019 | 10.5% | -0.6 pp |
| 2018 | 11.1% | — |
Frequently Asked Questions
What was the U.S. food insecurity rate?
13.7% of households in 2024, the final year USDA published. That is about the same as the 13.5% of 2023.
Is this the share of Americans going hungry?
No. It is a share of households, not people, and USDA does not measure hunger. It counts households that were food insecure at any point in the year, not all year.
Where does food insecurity data come from?
USDA's Economic Research Service reports it from the Food Security Supplement to the Current Population Survey, fielded by the Census Bureau each December. USDA has ended the annual report.
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