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Food help — every option in one place

Free food assistance for any situation. Search by ZIP code, browse by program type, or call 211 for immediate help. Operated by Feed America (501(c)(3), EIN 92-1761881) — Candid Platinum verified.

Need food right now?

Call 211 — free, 24/7, multilingual

Search by ZIP code →

By type of help

I need...Best resource
Free food today/free-food-today · soup kitchens, community fridges, mobile pantries
A food pantry/food-pantry-near-me · 146,000+ verified pantries
Help with grocery costsSNAP application · monthly food benefits via EBT card
Help with formula or kids' nutrition/wic-near-me · WIC for kids under 5 + pregnant parents
Free school meals for kids/school-meals · NSLP + summer meals
Help after a disaster/disasters · D-SNAP for hurricane/wildfire/flood victims
Senior nutrition/senior-food-help · CSFP, Meals on Wheels, SNAP for seniors, AAA programs
College food help/guides/college-food-insecurity · campus pantries + student SNAP
Immigrant food help/guides/immigrant-food-help · what's safe, what's available
Food without an address/guides/homeless-food-help · community fridges, shelter meals
Health center / FQHC/health-centers · 18,000+ FQHC sliding-scale clinics

By need, audience, or condition

Specific guides for specific situations. Each page covers the federal programs (SNAP, WIC, Medicaid, Medicare, SSI/SSDI), nonprofits, drug/treatment affordability, and food strategies that apply to that audience.

By life situation

Veterans Active Military Families Recently Unemployed Disaster Survivors College Students Immigrants Homeless / Unhoused Rural Areas Single Parents Foster Youth Pregnant Women Pregnant Teens Postpartum / New Mothers Family Caregivers Hospice & Palliative Native Americans Children Formerly Incarcerated Domestic Violence Survivors Gig Workers LGBTQ+ Youth Farmworkers Truckers Asylum Seekers Refugees Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Medicaid Recipients Medicare Recipients Pets of SNAP Recipients

By disability or accessibility need

People With Disabilities Blind / Low Vision Deaf / Hard of Hearing Autism Spectrum Traumatic Brain Injury After Stroke Serious Mental Illness Substance Recovery Eating Disorders

By health condition

Diabetes Heart Disease Hypertension / High BP Stroke Recovery Kidney Disease (CKD) Dialysis Patients (ESRD) Organ Transplant Recipients Cancer Survivors (post-treatment) Fatty Liver / MASLD COPD Asthma Cystic Fibrosis Hepatitis C Long COVID Alzheimer's & Dementia Parkinson's Multiple Sclerosis ALS / Lou Gehrig's Arthritis Chronic Pain Lupus Fibromyalgia Osteoporosis Gout Thyroid Disease PCOS Endometriosis Sickle Cell Disease Iron-Deficiency Anemia Food Allergies Celiac Disease Crohn's & Colitis (IBD) IBS GERD & Heartburn Migraine HIV / AIDS Vegan / Vegetarian After Bariatric Surgery

By mental health diagnosis

Anxiety Disorders Depression Bipolar Disorder Schizophrenia PTSD & Trauma ADHD

By cancer type

Cancer Patients (General) Breast Cancer Prostate Cancer Lung Cancer Colorectal Cancer Pancreatic Cancer Multiple Myeloma

By state — comprehensive state-level food-help guides

Every state has its own page with all programs, live counts, and direct links to apply for SNAP / WIC and find local resources:

Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware DC Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming

Or browse pantries directly: All 50 states →

Eligibility checkers

How Feed America fits in

Feed America (EIN 92-1761881) operates this directory — the largest free food-assistance search platform in the United States. We index 327,000+ verified locations from federal sources (USDA, HRSA, NCES, state agencies). We don't run pantries; we connect people to the ones that exist. Free, no login, no paid placements, no data sold.

Frequently asked questions

How do I get free food today?

Call 211 (free, 24/7, multilingual) or use feedam.org to search by ZIP code. The fastest same-day options are soup kitchens, community fridges, and mobile pantries — see /free-food-today for a curated list.

What is the difference between a food pantry and a food bank?

A food bank is a regional warehouse that supplies food to many pantries. A food pantry is the local site where you actually pick up groceries. As an end user, you almost always want a food pantry — that's where the food is distributed directly.

Do I need to bring ID or proof of income?

Most food pantries do not require proof of income. Many will ask for ID and proof of address (a piece of mail), but increasingly pantries are removing these barriers. SNAP and WIC do require ID and income documentation.

Can I get food help if I am undocumented?

Yes. Food pantries do not check immigration status. SNAP requires lawful permanent residency for adults, but children born in the US qualify regardless of parent status. WIC has no immigration requirement. See /guides/immigrant-food-help for details.

How do I apply for SNAP?

SNAP applications are state-administered. Visit /apply-snap to find your state portal. Most states accept online applications. Decision typically within 30 days; emergency SNAP available within 7 days for crisis situations.

Are these resources free?

Yes. Every resource on feedam.org is free to use. Food pantries do not charge. SNAP and WIC are free federal benefits. The Feed America platform is operated by a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and never charges users.

Want to support the platform? Donate to Feed America →