How to check your EBT card balance: every official way, by state

You can check your EBT balance four ways, and none of them should cost you anything: read the bottom of your last store receipt, call the customer service number on the back of your card, log in to your state’s EBT cardholder website, or use the one app your state names as official. Federal rules require every state to let you see your SNAP balance “without making a purchase or standing in a checkout line” and bar transaction fees on SNAP (7 CFR 274.7(c) and (d)). The table further down gives each state’s card name, phone number and cardholder site.

Two warnings before you start. Never type your card number and PIN into a website or app your state did not name. And no state agency or EBT processor will call or text to ask for your PIN or card number (USDA, Addressing Stolen SNAP Benefits, page updated September 8, 2026).

The four ways at a glance

Balance checks at a store terminal or an ATM are also possible in many places; see At a store or an ATM below.

On your last receipt

Every EBT purchase must come with a printed receipt. Federal rules say it must show the date, the store’s name and location, the transaction type, the amount, and the remaining balance in your SNAP account (7 CFR 274.8(b)(7)). It shows only part of your card number, never your full number, and not your name.

Worked example with FY2027 figures. A one-person household in the 48 states or D.C. that gets the maximum benefit receives $306 for a month from October 1, 2026 (USDA FY2027 COLA memo). If that is the only money on the SNAP side of the card and the first trip of the month costs $47.18 in eligible food, the receipt shows a SNAP balance of $306.00 - $47.18 = $258.82. A second trip for $63.40 leaves $258.82 - $63.40 = $195.42, and that is the figure on the second receipt.

The receipt balance is a snapshot. It does not include a deposit that landed after that purchase, and it does not reflect a later correction by the store. Keep your receipts until you have checked them against your account history. Massachusetts DTA gives the same advice: “Save your receipts to check your balances” (Mass.gov, Using Your EBT Card).

By phone

The number on the back of your card goes to your state’s EBT customer service line. It reads your balance to you from an automated menu. Have the card in front of you, because the menu asks for the card number. Hours differ by state and are listed on each state page; Massachusetts says its line, 1-800-997-2555, answers “24 hours a day, 7 days a week” (Mass.gov, Using Your EBT Card).

The same line handles problems with the account. In Massachusetts, if you think a system error took money from your account, you have 90 days from the date of the suspected transaction error to call that number and file a claim for an account adjustment (Mass.gov).

Use only the number printed on your card or listed on your state agency’s own site. Illinois DHS puts it plainly: use only the number on the back of the Link card, 1-800-678-5465, the Illinois Link card website or the ebtEDGE app (IDHS, Manage My Illinois Link Account).

EBT customer service numbers and cardholder websites by state

Each state name opens that state’s page, with the full card section: how to set the PIN, how replacements arrive, card locks, chip cards where they exist, and the official source for each fact. Find any state from the state directory.

Online: your state’s cardholder website

Most states use one of two EBT processors, and the processor runs the cardholder website:

• FIS runs ebtEDGE. Its home page at ebtedge.com offers a Cardholder Portal to “View Balances”, “Review Transactions” and “Replace Card”. FIS also runs a newer sign-in site, ebtEDGE.us. Which one your state uses depends on the state (see the next section).
• Conduent runs ConnectEBT at connectebt.com, often with a state-specific path. Georgia DFCS says ConnectEBT lets you “monitor their EBT available balance, deposits, transaction activity, and select or change a PIN” (Georgia DFCS).

A few states show the balance in their own benefits portal as well. Massachusetts lists DTA Connect at DTAConnect.com and its mobile app (Mass.gov). The state pages linked above name the right site for each state.

To sign up you usually create a user ID with your card number. The website is the best place to read your transaction history. Federal rules require only that each state’s EBT system be able to give you up to two calendar months of history on request (7 CFR 274.7(d)(2)); California’s ebtEDGE app shows the last 365 days (CDSS).

Some sites can send you a message when money lands. Alaska’s Quest card guide describes Deposit Notification Alerts: a text, email or phone message each time funds are added to your SNAP or TANF account, with the deposit amount, the date and your available balance (Alaska Division of Public Assistance, Using Your Quest Card, dated July 1, 2025).

Official apps, and why the right one depends on your state

The app your state names is the only one you should use for your EBT card. FIS has two cardholder apps, and which one works for you depends on your state:

• Two FIS apps exist. The older one is ebtEDGE. The newer one is listed in the App Store as ebtEDGE NEW! (Arkansas DHS calls it “ebtEDGE New”) and is the app the ebtEDGE.us sign-in page links to.
• Colorado moved to the new app. CDHS says: “Starting August 25, 2026, all new and existing users must use the new ebtEDGE app and website. The new app is available now and uses your same User ID and password.” It lists freezing the card and blocking online or out-of-state transactions among the features (CDHS, Colorado EBT, read October 16, 2026).
• California has not. CDSS tells cardholders: “Only use the official, state-supported ebtEDGE mobile app, which is free to use.” It says ebtEDGE NEW! “is not a fraudulent app” but “is not yet supported in California”, and California users who try it will not be able to see their food or cash benefits (CDSS, ebtEDGE, read October 16, 2026). CDSS also says California “will never charge EBT cardholders to use the ebtEDGE Mobile application.”
• Arkansas changed processors. In a July 23, 2026 release, Arkansas DHS said the ebtEDGE New app would replace the ConnectEBT app for Arkansas users as EBT moved from Conduent to FIS, with accounts usable in the new app from Monday, July 27, 2026. Existing cards keep working, and DHS said new chip cards will be issued later as part of the change. DHS told cardholders to download the app only from the Apple App Store or Google Play, or through ar.gov/snap, and to “avoid unofficial websites or apps to manage EBT benefits or check balances, as scammers may use tools like this to victimize families” (Arkansas DHS).
• Each state names its own app. Alabama DHR calls the ConnectEBT app “the only authorized EBT app for Alabama’s SNAP/TANF clients” and says it shows the SNAP balance “in real-time”, lists all EBT transactions, changes the PIN and orders replacement cards (Alabama DHR, April 10, 2025). Illinois says “The ONLY approved mobile app for Illinois is ebtEDGE” (IDHS).

If an app asks for your card number and PIN and your state’s own site does not name it, do not enter them. California warns that “Entering your EBT information into an unverified app can expose you to phishing, fraud, and identity theft” (CDSS). The app or link listed on your state page is the one the state agency names.

At a store or an ATM

At a store. Every EBT system must be able to process “balance inquiries” at store terminals, across state lines (7 CFR 274.8(b)(9)). The rules also say a regular checkout terminal may not show your balance on its screen; only balance-only inquiry terminals can (7 CFR 274.8(b)(6)). So at a regular checkout lane, look for the balance on paper, not on the screen.

At an ATM. SNAP benefits cannot be redeemed for cash (Mass.gov), so ATMs pay out only cash benefits (such as TANF), and an ATM balance check is mainly useful for the cash side of your card. Fees for ATM use are set by each state and by the ATM owner, not by federal SNAP rules:

• Massachusetts: “There are no fees for ATM balance inquiries.” Cash withdrawals cost 75 cents each from the fourth one in a month, plus any surcharge the bank adds (Mass.gov).
• Colorado: a 32-cent fee each time you withdraw cash at an ATM, and “any additional ATM surcharge may apply” (CDHS).

A balance check by phone, website or app costs nothing in any of these states, so use those first if you only want the number.

When your balance looks wrong

The deposit has not arrived yet. Each state deposits on a set day, often by case number, SSN digit or last name. Check your date in the deposit schedule by state before you call. If the date has passed, see SNAP benefits late or missing.

The account went off-line. If no purchase or return touches your SNAP account for three months (91 days), your state may move all of the benefits off-line. They stay yours but you cannot use them until you contact the agency. The state must send a notice, and must put the benefits back within 48 hours of your request, a reapplication, a recertification or a general request for help (7 CFR 274.2(h)).

Old benefits were expunged. Unused SNAP is removed after nine months (274 days). Each state uses one of two methods for all its households (7 CFR 274.2(i)):

• By issue date: each month’s allotment, or what is left of it, is removed 274 days after it was issued, even if you use the card. Worked example: an allotment deposited on October 1, 2026 and never fully spent is removed on July 2, 2027 (October 1, 2026 + 274 days).
• By inactivity: benefits are removed only if the account has had no activity for 274 days. Any purchase restarts the count.

Purchases use your oldest benefits first, so a household that spends at least one month’s benefit each month rarely loses anything. You must get a notice at least 30 days before expungement starts (7 CFR 274.2(i)(2)).

A store correction put a hold on your account. If a store made an error that gave you too much, the state can place a hold on that amount within 10 business days of the error and must send you a notice. If you ask for a fair hearing within 10 days of the notice, the hold must be released within 48 hours while the hearing is pending (7 CFR 274.2(g)(2)).

Charges you did not make. USDA says to change your PIN right away and report it to your local SNAP office (USDA). If your state’s app or website has a card lock, turn it on, and call the number on the card. Federal funds stopped replacing stolen (skimmed) SNAP benefits after December 20, 2024. See EBT skimming and stolen benefits and your state page for what your state does.

Balance scams and how to spot them

Thieves use balance checks as bait because people check often. USDA’s SNAP Scam Alerts page (updated November 25, 2025) reports no active scams but keeps its prior alerts, which show the patterns:

• “Your card is locked” texts. In March 2023 USDA warned of “phony text messages that say a recipient’s SNAP EBT card has been locked” with a phone number to call. The number belongs to the thief.
• Texts and calls asking for your card number or PIN. “Do not provide your EBT card number or PIN by phone or text” (October 2022 alert).
• Prize and “instant cash” offers that ask you to sign up or let someone photograph your card (2021 and June 2023 alerts).
• Look-alike websites that mention food stamps and ask for personal information (February 2021 and November 2020 alerts).
• Card skimmers on store machines. USDA advises covering the keypad, checking the card reader for anything attached, and checking your account regularly for charges you did not make.

USDA’s tips on its stolen benefits page: avoid simple PINs such as 1111, 1234 or 9876, keep your PIN and card number to your household, change your PIN at least once a month right before your deposit date, and remember that “State agencies and EBT processors will never call or text to ask for your PIN or card number.”

How to tell an official site from a fake one. The official cardholder site is the one your state agency links to from its own .gov site, or the address printed on your card. For FIS states that is ebtedge.com, ebtedge.us or a state address that leads to them (such as California’s ebt.ca.gov); for Conduent states it is usually connectebt.com. If you reached a balance site through a search ad or a link in a message, close it and start again from your state agency’s site.

If you get a scam text, do not tap the link. The Federal Trade Commission says you can forward it to 7726 (SPAM), report it in your messaging app, and report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov (FTC). If you already gave out your card number or PIN, change the PIN and call your state’s EBT number from the table above the same day.

Sources

• 7 CFR 274.7, Benefit redemption by eligible households, eCFR, up to date as of October 14, 2026 (checked 2026-10-16)
• 7 CFR 274.8, Functional and technical EBT system requirements, eCFR (checked 2026-10-16)
• 7 CFR 274.2, Providing benefits to participants, eCFR (checked 2026-10-16)
• SNAP Fiscal Year 2027 Cost-of-Living Adjustments, USDA memo, August 21, 2026
• Addressing Stolen SNAP Benefits, USDA (page updated September 8, 2026; read via the agency’s CDN copy)
• SNAP Scam Alerts, USDA (page updated November 25, 2025; read via the agency’s CDN copy)
• ebtEDGE and ebtEDGE.us sign-in, FIS (read through a text reader; the sites block scripted requests; checked 2026-10-16)
• ConnectEBT, Conduent (checked 2026-10-16)
• App Store listings for ebtEDGE and ebtEDGE NEW! (developer FIS) and ConnectEBT (developer Conduent) (checked 2026-10-16)
• ebtEDGE: Protect and Manage Your CA EBT Benefits, California Department of Social Services (checked 2026-10-16)
• Colorado EBT, Colorado Department of Human Services (read through a text reader; checked 2026-10-16)
• New EBT app to offer additional fraud protections for Arkansas SNAP beneficiaries, Arkansas DHS, July 23, 2026
• Alabama DHR Announces New Website and App for SNAP Clients, Alabama DHR, April 10, 2025
• ConnectEBT Website and Mobile App, Georgia DFCS (checked 2026-10-16)
• Manage My Illinois Link Account, Illinois DHS (checked 2026-10-16)
• Using Your Quest Card, Alaska Division of Public Assistance, dated July 1, 2025 (checked 2026-10-16)
• Using Your EBT Card, Massachusetts Department of Transitional Assistance (read through a text reader; checked 2026-10-16)
• How to Recognize and Report Spam Text Messages, Federal Trade Commission (checked 2026-10-16)