Does Subway Take EBT? (What You Need to Know)

Are you curious if Subway accepts or takes EBT through their services? The subway is an ideal place to enjoy healthy food at a friendly price. If you are a dedicated customer and must address this question, read our article.

You are here because you are a subway-dedicated customer searching for more information about the collection and services. A balanced diet and nutrients are all that any person longs for.

Because of the financial constraints, you might fail to afford to eat at the subway more often. Hence, the government is offering you an EBT card to help low-income people as a target get access to nutrients and healthy food at a friendly price.

But it isn't easy to know if a store or a retail store accepts EBT cards. Because of the confusion, we will be specific about helping those subway-dedicated customers. Hence, we will explore the fine details of whether the Subway accepts EBT. Here is everything you need to know with extra information.

Table Of Contents

Does Subway Take EBT?

Looking at the operation of Subway, they are currently using EBT cards as alternative payment methods for low-income families. However, the instance under which the Subway stores allow customers to use the EBT card varies from state to state.

Some states utilize the Restaurant Means Programs-RMP that facilitate using EBT cards when purchasing from particular Subway stores. Therefore, few SSubway stores emphasize the use of the RMP. The list of the participating Subway stores is hence limited or short.

You can order and pay with your EBT card for the qualifying states and stores. However, these stores do not allow customers to pay for the meal using the SNAP benefits or EBT card on the third party or through their subway application.

Based on the current information, limited states participate in the RMP programs. The research has highlighted a few of these states. Among them are listed below:

New York,
Michigan
Arizona
Illinois
California
Rhode Island
Maryland

Subway locations and stores are well distributed in over 50 states, covering those mentioned above. Therefore, if you are based in the above states, you can utilize the EBT card and cater your meal at the Subway store. Subway benefits from such services because many spend their bucks in the store, even if the federal government funds it.

However, to take an EBT payment, the store must feature credit card terminals compatible with EBT cards. This means they must collaborate with the government to activate this technology.

If you still have questions about the Subway and EBT cards, keep reading for more information. We will address everything concerning this subject effectively.

Can You Use An EBT Card to Purchase Fast Food?

There are some conditions when you are eligible to purchase fast food using the EBT card. Unfortunately, it is not a fact across the board, and the cases when eligible vary from one state to the other.

To mention a few of these determinant factors is a situation if you qualify for the RMP. This program is only available for limited people in a few states. They specifically target the low-income families of the disabled, elderly as well as homeless people.

Still, you must note that not every fast food store has a well-established program allowing it to participate. The same law applies to the states. We recommend that you get in contact with the local agency and find out if the local states engage in the program. Seek help from the person in charge of the SNAP benefits or the food stamps in your locality.

As general knowledge, the SNAP benefits, sometimes previously known as food stamps, is only a program that is reserved for purchasing food or grocery which is not ready-made but instead to stock for future use.

From the above explanation, it excludes the fast food category. But for the category of people mentioned above, they can get access to meals and fast food as a requirement by the general guidelines.

Which Is the Ideal Place to Use an EBT Card?

SNAP benefits target customers to give them the earliest and cheapest approach to purchasing groceries from the store setup. Thus, from the information we have found, most restaurants do not take EBT cards as a payment method.

Therefore, with that in mind, the payment terms of the restaurants that offer fast food on the EBT card are exclusively different. The variations are based on the eligibility of the states and whether the restaurant participates in the RMP programs.

As stated earlier in this article, limited states participate in the RMP programs. This means most stores are limiting the use of EBT cards to make payments upon purchase of the products.

We have also gone beyond to explore some of the states that are participating in the RMP programs. Among the well-known and recently active states is Arizona, one of the states featuring statewide RMP coverage. In California, RMP is only available in the selected countries, and the same applies to Rhode Island.

Note that many states are considering moving in and participating in the RMP programs. The list is very soon expanding coverage. Since most restaurants do not participate in the RMP, there are few cases when you can use the EBT card to make a purchase today.

Does the Subway Participate In the Restaurant Meal Program?

This article shows that Subway is one of the few restaurants that engages in fast food services and has been approved to engage in the RMP. Consider the above-clarified states, which will give you access to SNAP services through subway stores.

Therefore, anytime you find yourself in these states or locations, you can visit the nearest subway, which participates in the RMP, to grab a meal. These eligible subway stores will always feature a knife and a fork logo on the window or at the door. This will signal that the subway store takes EBT cards as an alternative payment method.

Lastly, one of the reliable approaches to understanding if the local subway store takes EBT cards is the fact that you will notice the term EBT accepted posts somewhere on the building or anything of the sort on the facility, and this is the signal you need to consider before moving in to shop.

Can You Use an EBT Card to Purchase Cooked Food?

As we have learned, the EBT card through the SNAP benefits is meant to help customers purchase uncooked food or groceries. Therefore, there is a long list of approved groceries that you can purchase with your EBT card. Some of these are:

Dairy products
Seeds and plants are meant to grow food.
Meat and fish
Bread & Cereals
Limited bottled beverages
Vegetables and fruits produce

On the contrary, as stipulated by the federal government guidelines, there are also items you cannot buy using EBT cards. This covers products under the category listed below:

Prepared or hot food
Tobacco products
Alcoholic beverages
medicines, vitamins, and supplements
Non-food items
Ready-made food to eat in stores, etc.

You can refer to the states' guidelines to explore the eligible food under the SNAP benefits or EBT card. We have shared some of the non-approved and approved groceries as well as eligible Subway stories from different states. If you still need extra information, watch out for updates or refer to our other articles about EBT cards or payment methods.

Conclusion

We have explored the Subway store and are eligible to accept the EBT cards as payment methods. From the findings, not all the states and subway stores participate in the RMP programs. Therefore, many customers have limited access to the SSubway service through the SNAP benefits. Luckily, a few Subway locations allow customers to use EBT as a payment method but only on eligible groceries. So far, we have settled your concern on whether the subway takes EBT cards.