What are Healthy Start vouchers?

For pregnant people and families with children under 4 on a low income.

Applies to: England, Wales, Northern Ireland Last checked against official sources: 6 October 2026

Healthy Start is an NHS scheme that puts money on a prepaid card to help pay for milk, fruit, vegetables and infant formula.

It is for people more than 10 weeks pregnant or with a child under 4 who get certain benefits.
On Universal Credit, your family's take-home pay must be £408 a month or less.
You get £4.65 a week in pregnancy and for children aged 1 to 4, and £9.30 a week for babies under 1.
Money is added every 4 weeks, and you can also collect free vitamins.
Under 18 and pregnant? You qualify without benefits.

Different in Scotland

Scotland has Best Start Foods instead.

Different in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland

Rules may be different in:

Scotland: Check mygov.scot for Scotland

Key facts

£4.65 a week (pregnancy, age 1 to 4)
£9.30 a week (under 1)
UC take-home pay £408 or less
Not in Scotland: Best Start Foods

What Healthy Start is

Healthy Start gives you a prepaid card. The NHS adds money to the card every 4 weeks. You use it like a bank card in shops to buy healthy food and milk.

It runs in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Who can get it

You must be more than 10 weeks pregnant or have at least one child under 4. You must also get one of these:

Universal Credit, and your family's monthly take-home pay from work is £408 or less
Pension Credit that includes the child addition

Families who cannot get public funds because of their immigration status, but have a child who is a British citizen, may qualify if they earn £408 or less a month after tax.

If you are under 18 and pregnant, you qualify until your baby is born, even if you do not get any benefits. After the birth you need a qualifying benefit to carry on.

How much you get

Who	Each week	Every 4 weeks
Pregnancy (from week 10)	£4.65	£18.60
Each child under 1	£9.30	£37.20
Each child aged 1 to 4	£4.65	£18.60

Examples

You are pregnant and have a 2-year-old. You get £4.65 + £4.65 = £9.30 a week, or £37.20 every 4 weeks.
You have a 6-month-old baby. You get £9.30 a week, or £37.20 every 4 weeks. When your baby turns 1, this drops to £4.65 a week.

Payments stop when your child turns 4, or if you stop getting a qualifying benefit.

What you can buy

plain liquid cow's milk
fresh, frozen and tinned fruit and vegetables
fresh, dried and tinned pulses, such as beans and lentils
infant formula based on cow's milk

You can use the card at most places that sell these, including supermarkets, corner shops, pharmacies and markets.

You cannot use it online, outside the UK (including the Republic of Ireland), in a phone wallet app, or to get cash or cashback.

Free vitamins

Your card also lets you collect free Healthy Start vitamins for pregnancy and breastfeeding, and vitamin drops for children from birth to 4 years old.

How to apply

Online: if you get Universal Credit, apply on the Healthy Start website.
By phone: call 0300 330 7010, 8am to 6pm on weekdays (not bank holidays).
By email: if you are under 18 and pregnant, or if you cannot get public funds, you can apply by email.

If you live in Scotland

Healthy Start is not available in Scotland. You can apply for Best Start Foods instead.

Related guides

Where these figures come from

Get it done

This takes you to the official service, which is free to use.

Apply for Healthy Start

Common questions

What can I buy with a Healthy Start card?

Plain cow's milk, fresh, frozen and tinned fruit and vegetables, pulses, and cow's milk-based infant formula.

How do I apply for Healthy Start?

Apply online if you get Universal Credit, or call 0300 330 7010.

Can I use the card online?

No. You cannot use it online, outside the UK, in a phone wallet, or to get cash or cashback.

Official sources

1.Get help to buy food and milk (Healthy Start)www.healthystart.nhs.uk/
2.Healthy Start: how to applywww.healthystart.nhs.uk/how-to-apply/
3.Healthy Start: your payments and how to shopwww.healthystart.nhs.uk/what-youll-get-and-how-to-shop/

Checked against GOV.UK on 6 October 2026

Information from the NHS website is licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

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