Students walk up the steps at Atlantic Beach Elementary School in 2025. | Atlantic Beach Elementary via Facebook
Published on August 4, 2026 at 8:37 pm
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Students will need a little more lunch money when school starts in Duval County next week.
The Duval County School Board voted Tuesday to approve a 10-cent increase for student lunches — bringing the total to $4.10 for elementary students and $4.35 for middle and high school students. Breakfast will continue to be free for all students.
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At a workshop last month, district officials told board members they must raise prices to comply with federal guidance. A request for the district to clarify which policy applies was not returned by this story’s publication.
Duval Schools contracts with a third-party vendor, Chartwells, for food service. The rate DCPS pays per meal is set according to a formula that takes into account Consumer Price Index data. This year, the district’s cost is $4.58. The district receives a 56 cent federal reimbursement for every meal it serves, plus additional funding for students who receive free or reduced-price lunches. So, with parents paying $4.10, the district will net 8 cents per meal.
Duval’s school lunch prices are higher than all of its neighboring districts’. In St. Johns County, lunch costs $3.25 for elementary students and $3.50 for secondary students. Clay County raised its prices to $3 and $3.25 for this school year. All schools in Baker and Putnam counties offer universal free breakfast and lunch.
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Some lunch is free
Many Duval Schools students won’t have to worry about the cost increase.
About 70% of the schools the district operates are designated as Community Eligibility Provision schools — meaning a majority of students at the schools qualify for the federal free lunch program, and so all students will receive it without having to apply.
Additionally, many students at the remaining 37 schools will also qualify for free or reduced-fee lunch. Parents can apply for the program here. Families already receiving assistance from programs like SNAP may receive an email notice that their students were automatically enrolled.
The district recommends parents manage students’ lunch accounts through the online platform MySchoolBucks, which charges transaction fees, but schools also accept cash and checks to load money into students’ accounts.
