Accepting SNAP/EBT Payments for qualified goods

Payments + Shipping & Fulfilment

Topic summary

Small farms and food retailers are seeking ways to accept SNAP/EBT payments through Shopify, both online and at point-of-sale. While SNAP is now allowed for e-commerce in 35 states, Shopify does not natively support EBT payments through its gateway.

Current Solutions Being Explored:

  • Third-party payment processors like Forage and Pay Now Direct that can integrate with Shopify
  • WorldPay with TotilPay integration (mentioned for previous EBT acceptance)
  • Custom private app development through Shopify partners to integrate SNAP/EBT gateways

Key Challenges:

  • EBT transactions require complex API interactions: fund verification, real-time product eligibility parsing, split payments between eligible/non-eligible items, PIN entry, and multi-level government reporting
  • Processing fees are significant: approximately 3.4% from card processors plus Shopify’s additional 2%, totaling 5.4%
  • No plug-and-play solution exists in Shopify’s App Store

Status:
The discussion remains ongoing with no definitive solution implemented. Multiple merchants are USDA-approved for SNAP but struggle with technical integration. Some are considering alternative platforms like WooCommerce due to fee structures. Several development agencies offer custom integration services, but merchants must first secure their own SNAP/EBT payment processor accounts.

Summarized with AI on October 29. AI used: claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929.
59

Dear All,

In regards to @Chrischurch1 update.

Yes, true Shopify will have a 2% fee on top of merchant fees/card processors fees. It would be an excellent achievement If Shopify can come down at 2% :blush:

With our solution, we have managed to overcome other challenges mentioned by @Chrischurch1 ; through our application, Shopify merchants will be able to categorise products as EBT eligible and non-eligible. hence at the point of the checkout, based on product type they created our application can control what can be go through EBT enabled gateway or through normal payment gateway.