Can You Buy Energy Drinks With Food Stamps? [List of Brands]

Tyler McFarland on April 9, 2021

Updated on November 8, 2023 Reviewed and fact-checked Found a mistake? Let us know!

Table of contents Show

The SNAP program for food assistance gives out more than $50 billion in benefits each year. With so many benefits going around, you might be wondering: What exactly can you get with that EBT card of yours? Can you buy energy drinks?

Energy drinks that are sold as food and labeled with “Nutrition Facts” are EBT approved. Energy drinks that are sold as supplements and labeled with “Supplement Facts” are not EBT approved. Red Bull, Monster, Rockstar, and Bang energy drinks are all EBT approved.

See below for a list of 33 EBT-approved energy drinks (click to jump to it). Or keep reading for an explanation of how to check for yourself whether each energy drink can be purchased with food stamps.

Which Energy Drinks Can You Buy With Food Stamps?

**Red Bull** can be purchased with EBT in a 24-pack on Amazon here.

Remember the purpose of SNAP benefits (EBT card / food stamps) are to help people buy food. So, that’s generally where the line is drawn: Does the product in question count as “food” or not?

Energy drinks are an interesting case because they can be sold as either food or supplements. So, energy drink companies can make the decision to sell it either way.

Interestingly, this wasn’t always the case. It was back around 2013 that Red Bull, Monster, and other major energy drink brands made the switch from being labeled as “supplements” to being labeled as “food.” (source)

Since then, there has been much debate—and some proposed legislation—to remove energy drinks from the list of EBT-approved items. However, currently you can still buy most energy drinks with EBT.

And again, the way to tell if an energy drink is being sold as “food” is that it says “Nutrition Facts” on the back. If it’s being sold as a supplement, it will say “Supplement Facts” instead.

To research for this post, I checked 41 energy drink brands, and 33 had “Nutrition Facts” on the back. Only 8 had “Supplement Facts” listed. So most energy drinks can be purchased with food stamps.

List of EBT-Approved Energy Drinks

The following energy drinks can be purchased with EBT. They all have a “Nutrition Facts” label, so they technically count as food.

The links go to Amazon (which does accept EBT):

Note: This is not necessarily a complete list. I just checked the most popular brands I could find. You can check other brands by looking at the back of the can. If it says “Nutrition Facts,” you can buy it with EBT.

Energy Drinks That Are Not EBT-Approved

The following energy drinks cannot be purchased with EBT. They have a “Supplement Facts” label, rather than a “Nutrition Facts” label:

5-hour Energy Shots
CELSIUS Sparkling
CUT Energy + Weight Loss (By Hydroxycut)
FITAID Recovery Blend
Jocko GO Energy Drink
Jump Start Energy Shot
Pureboost Clean Energy Drink Mix
Zipfizz Healthy Energy Drink Mix

What Cannot Be Bought With EBT?

EBT can be used to buy food products (groceries), as well as plants and seeds (used to grow food). That’s all. (They are called “food” stamps, after all.)

EBT can’t be used to buy vitamins, medicine, alcohol, tobacco, hot foods and foods to be eaten in the store, hygiene products, pet food, or cosmetics. (source)

Can You Buy 5-Hour Energy With EBT?

5 Hour Energy is not EBT approved. If you check the back of the package, it says “Supplement Facts” rather than “Nutrition Facts.” This means it is being sold as a supplement, not as food. Food stamps only cover food.

I wanted to mention this briefly because 5 Hour Energy seems to be the most popular energy drink (or “shot”) that is not EBT-approved.

Where Can You Buy Energy Drinks With EBT?

**Monster Energy** can be bought with EBT in a 24 pack on Amazon here.

You can buy EBT-approved energy drinks at supermarkets and grocery stores like Wal-Mart, Safeway, Albertson’s, Publix, Sprouts, Whole Foods, Target, and more. Supplement stores like Vitamin Shoppe and GNC do not usually accept EBT.

You can also buy energy drinks with EBT online at sites like Amazon. (See my list above for links to EBT-approved energy drinks on Amazon.)

Two More Recommendations for Your Plant-Based Journey

1. This is the best free video training I’ve found on plant-based nutrition. You’ll learn how to reduce your risk of cancer, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, Alzheimer’s, and obesity—all with plant-based food. Watch the free “Food for Health Masterclass” here.

2. This is the best vegan multivitamin I’ve found in my 14 years of being vegan. It has vitamin B12, vitamin D, omega-3—and nothing else. Translation: It only has the nutrients vegans are actually low in. Read my full review of Future Kind’s multivitamin here (with 10% discount).

Tyler McFarland

I’m Tyler McFarland, the editor and main author here. When I first went vegan 13 years ago, convenience products like veggie burgers and soy milk were a lot harder to find. Now they’re everywhere!