How to Read USDA WIC Participation and Food Cost Tables — Women, Infants, Children and Cost per Person
USDA WIC national data (participants, monthly): July 2026 at 6,694,982 (preliminary), -3.3% vs July 2025; average food cost $71.53 per person; FY 2025 average 6,867 thousand (preliminary).
Key figures (WIC national data through July 2026)
As of 13 November 2026, 01:02 KST (retrieved by this page at that time); latest listed on the agency page at retrieval: the WIC Monthly Data - National Level table for FY 2022 through July 2026, a one-page PDF on the WIC Data Tables page of the USDA Food and Nutrition Administration. The table says Data as of October 9, 2026; FY 2026 data are preliminary. Primary source: https://www.fns.usda.gov/sites/default/files/resource-files/37wic-monthly-10.pdf[2][3]
| Indicator (WIC, United States, monthly national data) | Previous: June 2026 [2] | Current: July 2026, preliminary [2] | Change vs previous (this page's subtraction of the displayed values) | Change vs year ago (this page's calculation; July 2025 value in brackets) | Evidence type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total participants | 6,688,872 | 6,694,982 | +6,110 | -228,343, -3.3% [6,923,325] | USDA WIC monthly national table [2] |
| Women participants | 1,459,782 | 1,463,477 | +3,695 | -84,003, -5.4% [1,547,480] | USDA WIC monthly national table [2] |
| Infant participants | 1,404,540 | 1,406,796 | +2,256 | -86,527, -5.8% [1,493,323] | USDA WIC monthly national table [2] |
| Child participants | 3,824,550 | 3,824,709 | +159 | -57,813, -1.5% [3,882,522] | USDA WIC monthly national table [2] |
| Average food cost per person, dollars per month | 64.25 | 71.53 | +7.28 | +6.61 [64.92] | USDA WIC monthly national table [2] |
Comparison basis: participants are monthly counts as printed in the monthly table; costs are dollars as printed; changes subtract the displayed values and percentages are this page's calculation rounded to one decimal. The annual summary prints participation in thousands and costs in millions of dollars, rounded, so its figures can differ slightly from those computed from the monthly table. Women, infants and children add exactly to the total in every monthly row (this page's check).[1][2]
In three lines
1. WIC served 6,694,982 participants in July 2026 (preliminary), 3.3% fewer than in July 2025.
2. Infants (-5.8%) and women (-5.4%) fell more than children (-1.5%) over the year.
3. The average food cost was $71.53 per person in July 2026, against $64.92 a year earlier.[2]
What the WIC tables count
Participants and costs. The tables count women, infants and children participating in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children, with food costs and Nutrition Services and Administrative (NSA) costs. The summary notes: "Participation data are annual averages (6 months in FY 1974; 12 months all subsequent years)." The monthly table says the annual average food cost is the benefit per month.[1][2]
Average food cost. The monthly average food cost equals food costs divided by participants: $478,881,862 over 6,694,982 gives $71.53 for July 2026, as printed (this page's check). It is a cost per participant per month, not a benefit amount set by rule.[1][2]
Total costs include more than food and NSA. For FY 2025 the summary gives food costs of $5,347.1 million and NSA costs of $2,329.4 million, which add to $7,676.5 million, while total costs are $7,793.7 million; its footnote says totals also include program evaluation, the Farmers' Market Nutrition Program, special projects and infrastructure. The monthly table adds that roughly two-thirds of NSA costs go to nutrition education, breastfeeding support and client services and the rest to management.[1][2]
Monthly NSA costs are uneven. In the monthly table, October NSA costs are much higher than in adjacent months (for example $770,105,546 in October 2025 against $161,463,036 in November 2025). The table does not explain why. This page's reading is that monthly NSA figures are better compared over a full fiscal year.[2]
Reading in pairs
FY 2024 average food cost: 61.07 or 61.06. The annual summary prints $61.07 for FY 2024, while the annual summary block of the monthly table prints $61.06. Dividing the monthly table's food costs by its participants (times 12) gives 61.06; the same division with the summary's rounded thousands and millions gives 61.07 (this page's calculation). The tables do not say which method each uses, so the source of the 1-cent gap is not established. FY 2025 reads $64.89 in both.[1][2]
Which year is preliminary. The summary says: "FY 2025 data are preliminary; all data are subject to revision." The monthly table says: "FY 2026 data are preliminary; all numbers are subject to revision." The annual summary marks FY 2025 as preliminary. The monthly table marks FY 2026 as preliminary and does not state the status of its FY 2025 rows.[1][2]
A dip in October 2025. The average food cost was $49.65 in October 2025, against $69.39 in September 2025 and $64.21 in November 2025, and October 2024 ($59.82) and October 2023 ($51.99) were also below their neighbouring months. The table gives no reason for these October values.[2]
Fiscal year to date. Averaging October to July, participation was 6,723,837 in FY 2026 against 6,857,622 in the same months of FY 2025, 2.0% lower (this page's calculation from the monthly rows; FY 2026 is preliminary).[2]
The 1974-2025 series
Participation. Annual average participation peaked at 9,175 thousand in FY 2010 by this page's search of the summary, fell to 6,244 thousand in FY 2021, and has risen each year since, to 6,867 thousand in FY 2025 (preliminary), 2.4% above FY 2024 (6,704 thousand), by this page's calculation.[1]
Food cost per person. The average monthly food cost per person was $35.57 in FY 2021, $47.75 in FY 2022, $56.01 in FY 2023, $61.07 in FY 2024 and $64.89 in FY 2025 in the summary. The summary gives amounts in current dollars and does not adjust for prices.[1]
Dates and next release
Dates kept apart. Data: monthly through July 2026; annual through FY 2025. Data as of October 9, 2026 in both tables (printed as October 09, 2026 in the summary). WIC Data Tables page: Page updated: October 20, 2026.[1][2][3]
Next release. The WIC Data Tables page gives no schedule for the next update or for the August 2026 data, so the next release date is not established. Earlier versions of the tables are not offered on the page, so this page does not say whether earlier months have been revised.[3]
Verified facts
Each fact is labelled with its evidence typeEach fact in this section carries its evidence type — either cross-checked against independent sources, or confirmed from a single authoritative record.
USDA's monthly WIC table counts 6,694,982 participants in July 2026 (1,463,477 women, 1,406,796 infants, 3,824,709 children), against 6,923,325 in July 2025; FY 2026 data are preliminary.[2] 1 source · authoritative record
The WIC average food cost per person was $71.53 in July 2026 and $64.92 in July 2025.[2] 1 source · authoritative record
The WIC annual summary gives FY 2025 participation of 6,867 thousand, food costs of $5,347.1 million and total costs of $7,793.7 million, and says FY 2025 data are preliminary.[1] 1 source · authoritative record
The FY 2024 average monthly food cost per person is printed as $61.07 in the WIC annual summary and $61.06 in the monthly table.[1][2] 1 source · authoritative record
Statements and readings
Not counted as facts — each item shows what kind of statement it isFrom here on: statements not counted as facts — single-source reports, the issuing body’s own statements, and this page’s own readings, each labeled.
WIC participation in July 2026 was 3.3% below July 2025, with infants down 5.8%, women 5.4% and children 1.5%; October-July participation averaged 2.0% less than a year earlier.[2] Stated by the issuing body itself (primary source) · not independently verified · this page's calculation from the monthly WIC rows
The 1-cent gap in the FY 2024 average food cost ($61.07 against $61.06) matches dividing rounded summary figures rather than the unrounded monthly figures, but the tables do not state their methods, so the cause is not established.[1][2] Stated by the issuing body itself (primary source) · not independently verified · inference from comparing the two WIC tables
Timeline
What this page could not establish
These are questions this page tried to answer and could not. The gaps are left open rather than filled with a guess.- Why do the two tables print different FY 2024 average food costs?
- Have earlier months been revised?
- When will the August 2026 data be published?
- Model
- claude-opus-5
- Time
- 11/13/2026, 01:02
- Body characters
- 6,020
- Sources
- 4 sources adopted
- Model
- ChatGPT (checked sources on the web)
- Time
- 11/13/2026, 01:20
- Verdict
- Revision required
Show revision history (3)
| 11/13/2026, 09:00 | First authored (claude-opus-5) | Created |
| 11/13/2026 | First version. Read in full the WIC national annual summary, the WIC monthly national table, the WIC Data Tables page and the program data overview page; quotations are complete sentences matched against the source text of the document named. | Updated |
| 11/13/2026 | Revised after review: the preliminary status is stated per table (the annual summary marks FY 2025, the monthly table marks FY 2026 and does not state the status of its FY 2025 rows); the October NSA note says only that October costs are much higher than adjacent months and that the table does not explain why, with any reading marked as this page's; the 2.4% rise is marked as this page's calculation from the annual summary. | Updated |
Frequently asked
How many people are on WIC in 2026?
6,694,982 participants in July 2026, the latest published month at retrieval (data as of October 9, 2026; preliminary), 3.3% fewer than in July 2025.[2]
How much does WIC spend on food per person?
$71.53 per participant in July 2026 and $64.89 per month on average in FY 2025, by USDA's tables; this is food cost divided by participants, not a fixed benefit amount.[2]
Is WIC participation going down?
Over the year to July 2026, yes: -3.3% in total, with infants -5.8%, women -5.4% and children -1.5%, by this page's calculation; FY 2025 was 2.4% above FY 2024, by this page's calculation from the annual summary.[1][2]
Who counts as a WIC participant?
3 groups are counted: women, infants and children; in every monthly row of the national table they add exactly to the total.[2]
Why do the two USDA tables show different FY 2024 food costs?
$61.07 in the annual summary and $61.06 in the monthly table; the tables do not explain the 1-cent gap, so its cause is not established.[1][2]
Are the latest WIC numbers final?
No: the monthly table marks FY 2026 as preliminary and does not state the status of its FY 2025 rows; the annual summary marks FY 2025 as preliminary and says all data are subject to revision.[1][2]
When will the next WIC data be published?
Not established for the August 2026 data: the WIC Data Tables page was updated October 20, 2026 and gives no schedule.[3]
Official links
- Official USDA — WIC Data Tables
Sources
- [1] WIC Program Participation and Costs, FY 1974-2025 (national annual summary, PDF) primary
- [2] WIC Monthly Data - National Level, FY 2022 through July 2026 (PDF) primary
- [3] WIC Data Tables (USDA Food and Nutrition Administration) primary
- [4] Program Data Overview (USDA Food and Nutrition Administration) primary