County food-access profile · South Carolina
Beaufort County, SC
Beaufort County sits among the counties with the widest food-access gaps the USDA tracks, most residents here live well outside a comfortable walk or drive to a supermarket. This profile covers who qualifies as a food desert and the income, SNAP, and vehicle-access context behind it.
- 49.0%
- low-access pop.
- 8
- food-desert tracts
- 5.2%
- on SNAP
- 195K
- residents (ACS 2024)
The food-access picture
49.0% of Beaufort County residents live in a low-access area, and 8 of its 40 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts.
- 25
- low-access tracts
- 21K
- food-desert residents
- 4.3%
- households, no vehicle
- 9.6%
- below poverty line
Low access = living more than 1 mile (urban) or 10 miles (rural) from the nearest supermarket. Food deserts add a low-income condition (USDA LILA, 1-and-10-mile measure).
Beaufort County carries one of the more serious food-access burdens the USDA Atlas tracks: its low-access share of 49.0% is well above the national share. 25 of the county's 40 census tracts fall into that category, areas where residents live far from a supermarket, covering about 79,485 people. 8 of those also meet the low-income condition that defines a food desert, home to roughly 21,256 low-income residents.
How the USDA defines low-access and food-desert tracts
The USDA measures food access by distance to the nearest supermarket. A census tract is "low-access" when a meaningful share of residents live more than one mile from a supermarket in urban areas, or more than ten miles in rural areas. A tract becomes a "food desert" only when it is both low-access and low-income, because distance is far harder to overcome for households without a car or a cushion in the budget. Counts on this page are aggregated from the tract level, where the federal data is actually published, so a single county figure can hide neighbourhoods that are much better or much worse served than the average. Distance also does not capture everything that shapes whether a family eats well: the presence of a full-service grocer rather than a convenience store, public transit, food pantries, and the price and quality of what is on the shelf all matter beyond the radius the Atlas can draw.
How Beaufort County compares nationally
Beaufort County sits among the nation's most food-access-constrained counties: its 49.0% low-access share outpaces 93% of the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA data, ranking #216 most-affected nationwide.
Beaufort County: USDA Food-Access Tier Breakdown
All 40 census tracts in Beaufort County, grouped by USDA classification (see "How the USDA defines low-access and food-desert tracts" above for what each tier means).
Beaufort County vs. other South Carolina counties
Share of the population living in low-access areas, compared with other counties in South Carolina
- Beaufort
Beaufort County, SC
49 % low-access
- Abbeville
Abbeville County, SC
20.4 % low-access
- Aiken
Aiken County, SC
29.1 % low-access
- Allendale 2.3
Allendale County, SC
2.3 % low-access
- Anderson
Anderson County, SC
36.1 % low-access
- Bamberg
Bamberg County, SC
27.1 % low-access
Food Access (USDA FARA 2019)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Census Tracts | 40 |
| Atlas Population (2010 basis) | 162,233 |
| Low-Access Tracts | 25 |
| Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access) | 8 |
| Low-Access Population | 79,485 |
| Low-Access Share | 49.0%well above the national average |
| Low-Income & Low-Access Population | 21,256 |
Demographics & Assistance (Census ACS 2024)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 195,289 |
| Median Household Income | $86,573 |
| Poverty Rate | 9.6%below the national average |
| SNAP Households | 4,306 |
| SNAP Participation Rate | 5.2%well below the national average |
| Households Without a Vehicle | 4.3%well below the national average |
| Group-Quarters Population | 3.7% |
About 5.2% of Beaufort County households receive SNAP, versus a U.S. county median in the 11–13% range (Census ACS).
What this means
- 49.0% of residents are low-access, well above the national share for U.S. counties.
- 5.2% of households receive SNAP, the federal program that offsets food costs for 4,306 households here.
- 4.3% of households have no vehicle, the hidden multiplier that turns distance into a real barrier.
- 8 tracts meet the USDA food-desert threshold (low-income and low-access).
USDA low-access figures reflect the 2019 Atlas (2010 tract populations); socioeconomic context is the latest Census ACS 5-year (2024).
What the food-access data shows for Beaufort County
well above the national share
8 of Beaufort County's 40 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts, low-income areas where many residents also live far from a supermarket, about 20.0% of all its tracts.
A further 17 tracts are low-access but not low-income, bringing the total low-access tract count to 25.
An estimated 79,485 residents, roughly 49.0% of the county's 2010 population, live in one of these low-access areas.
Of those, 21,256 are also low-income, the group most exposed to genuine food hardship, since limited transportation compounds a limited budget.
The remaining 15 tracts (37.5%) meet the USDA's adequate-access threshold.
SNAP retailers in Beaufort County
Beaufort County has 124 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 11 store categories. Convenience Store lead with 47 locations (38% of the total), followed by combination grocery/other.
Convenience Store · 47
- circle k 2721650, hilton head island
- circle k 272277, hilton head island
- circle k 2723630, hardeeville
- circle k 272490, port royal
- circle k 272787, hilton head island
- circle k 272855, hilton head island
- circle k 272862, beaufort
- circle k 272907, beaufort
- circle k 5385, hilton head island
- circle k 5386, beaufort
- circle k 5391, bluffton
- circle k 8100, hilton head island
- food mart 1, beaufort
- food mart 2, beaufort
- los hermanos, beaufort
- lowcountry fresh market & cafe, bluffton
- murphy express 8839, beaufort
- nouria 101 commerce place east 842, okatie
- nouria 101 midtown drive 845, beaufort
- nouria 1010 fording island road 831, bluffton
- nouria 125 mathews drive 857, hilton head island
- nouria 2265 boundary street 175, beaufort
- nouria 3 palmetto bay road 848, hilton head island
- nouria 3076 trask parkway 844, beaufort
- nouria 4372 bluffton parkway 851, bluffton
- nouria 501 island west park 850, bluffton
- parker's 124, beaufort
- parker's 32, bluffton
- parker's 53, hilton head island
- parker's 56, bluffton
- parker's 58, beaufort
- parker's 59, beaufort
- parker's 66, beaufort
- parker's 67, saint helena island
- parker's 91, bluffton
- parkers 33, bluffton
- parkers 36, bluffton
- parkers 38, bluffton
- parkers 43, bluffton
- parkers 48, port royal
- parkers 61, okatie
- parkers 90, hilton head island
- refuel 1059, beaufort
- refuel 62, bluffton
- shri ganeshay llc, beaufort
- speedway 2878, hilton head island
- speedway 2879, hilton head island
Combination Grocery/Other · 28
- big lots 3307, beaufort
- cvs pharmacy 3826, port royal
- cvs pharmacy 4489, bluffton
- cvs pharmacy 5566, hilton head island
- cvs pharmacy 7333, hilton head island
- dollar general 17897, bluffton
- dollar general 8547, hilton head island
- dollartree 10479, bluffton
- dollar general 11917, beaufort
- dollar general 12672, bluffton
- dollar general 12812, beaufort
- dollar general 16443, port royal
- dollar general 30432, beaufort
- dollar general 3364, beaufort
- dollar tree 1479, beaufort
- dollar tree 364, hilton head
- dollar tree 3857, bluffton
- dollar tree 5894, beaufort
- dollar tree 7922, hilton head island
- family dollar 8682, beaufort
- family dollar store 8440, saint helena island
- walgreens 04980, hilton head isl
- walgreens 06597, beaufort
- walgreens 09134, okatie
- walgreens 11252, beaufort
- walgreens 18050, beaufort
- walgreens 4813, hilton head island
- walgreens 7652, bluffton
Supermarket · 17
- aldi 76180, beaufort
- aldi 76181, bluffton
- el super internacional, bluffton
- food lion 1330, bluffton
- food lion 1698, beaufort
- food lion 2864, beaufort
- food lion 945, beaufort
- food lion 2691, bluffton
- food lion 2839, beaufort
- publix 0700, hilton head
- publix 0845, bluffton
- publix 1205, bluffton
- publix 1463, beaufort
- publix 473, hilton head island
- publix super markets, inc. 1714, bluffton
- publix super markets, inc. 1716, beaufort
- the fresh market 048, hilton head island
Super Store · 14
- harris teeter 152, hilton head
- harris teeter 423, hilton head island
- harris teeter 429, beaufort
- kroger 0499, bluffton
- kroger 671, hilton head island
- kroger 703, bluffton
- piggly wiggly #101, hilton head island
- piggly wiggly 286, port royal
- sam's club 6582, bluffton
- target store t-1298, bluffton
- walmart 6395, bluffton
- walmart 7181, beaufort
- walmart store 728, hilton head island
- walmart supercenter 1383, beaufort
Seafood Specialty · 5
- bluffton oyster company, bluffton
- highway 21 seafood llc, beaufort
- lemon island seafood, okatie
- sea eagle market, beaufort
- shrimp lady, saint helena island
Large Grocery Store · 3
- la poblanita #3, bluffton
- la poblanita 1, hilton head island
- la poblanita 2, bluffton
Meat/Poultry Specialty · 3
- bradley's seafood market, saint helena island
- bj's chop shop, beaufort
- ole timey meats beaufort, beaufort
Small Grocery Store · 3
- los hermanos llc, bluffton
- tienda la familia, hilton head island
- tienda y carnicerial la vaquita, bluffton
Medium Grocery Store · 2
- el don juan super mercado, hilton head island
- super mercado la mexicana, bluffton
Fruits/Veg Specialty · 1
- mikell's fruit roadside stand, beaufort
Military Commissary · 1
- parris island mcrd commissary 339, parris island
Source: USDA SNAP Retailer Locator, currently authorized retailers.
Other Counties in South Carolina
Compare Beaufort County vs Abbeville County → · All South Carolina counties →
Food access nationally, South Carolina in context
Beaufort County sits inside South Carolina (ringed). Each state is colored by its population-weighted low-access share; click any state to compare.
USDA Economic Research Service, Food Access Research Atlas (2019), population-weighted · Census ACS 2024 context
Understand the Data
Frequently Asked Questions
What share of Beaufort County has low food access? ▼
What is the SNAP participation rate in Beaufort County? ▼
What is the poverty rate in Beaufort County? ▼
Is Beaufort County a food desert? ▼
What share of Beaufort County households lack a vehicle? ▼
Data Sources & Methodology
USDA Economic Research Service, Food Access Research Atlas (2019): low-access and food-desert tract classifications, low-access population, and low-income low-access counts. ers.usda.gov/food-access-research-atlas
U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2024 5-Year Estimates: population, median income, poverty, SNAP participation, vehicle access, and group quarters. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
Low access is defined as living more than 1 mile (urban) or 10 miles (rural) from the nearest supermarket; a food desert adds a low-income condition. Read the full methodology →
Data current as of (most recent source-data vintage; figures reflect the 2019 USDA Atlas and 2024 Census ACS).
Note: This page presents public USDA and Census data for informational purposes and is not professional advice. Figures reflect the cited dataset vintages and may differ from the most recent local conditions. How this data is sourced & verified.