County food-access profile · Ohio
Cuyahoga County, OH
Cuyahoga County's food-access picture is close to the national norm, with pockets that qualify as low-access. This profile breaks down who qualifies as a food desert and the income, SNAP, and vehicle-access context behind it.
- 16.8%
- low-access pop.
- 25
- food-desert tracts
- 16.3%
- on SNAP
- 1.2M
- residents (ACS 2024)
The food-access picture
16.8% of Cuyahoga County residents live in a low-access area, and 25 of its 444 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts.
- 100
- low-access tracts
- 42K
- food-desert residents
- 12.2%
- households, no vehicle
- 16.1%
- 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).
Cuyahoga County's low-access share sits near the national share, at 16.8% per the USDA Atlas. 100 of the county's 444 census tracts are flagged low-access, covering roughly 215,515 residents who live far from a supermarket. 25 of those also meet the low-income condition that defines a food desert, home to roughly 42,413 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 Cuyahoga County compares nationally
Cuyahoga County lands in the middle of the national distribution: a 16.8% low-access share that beats 37% of the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA data (rank #1,967).
Cuyahoga County: USDA Food-Access Tier Breakdown
All 444 census tracts in Cuyahoga County, grouped by USDA classification (see "How the USDA defines low-access and food-desert tracts" above for what each tier means).
Cuyahoga County vs. other Ohio counties
Share of the population living in low-access areas, compared with other counties in Ohio
- Cuyahoga
Cuyahoga County, OH
16.8 % low-access
- Adams
Adams County, OH
22 % low-access
- Allen
Allen County, OH
17.4 % low-access
- Ashland 5
Ashland County, OH
5 % low-access
- Ashtabula
Ashtabula County, OH
21.9 % low-access
- Athens
Athens County, OH
17 % low-access
Food Access (USDA FARA 2019)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Census Tracts | 444 |
| Atlas Population (2010 basis) | 1,280,122 |
| Low-Access Tracts | 100 |
| Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access) | 25 |
| Low-Access Population | 215,515 |
| Low-Access Share | 16.8%below the national average |
| Low-Income & Low-Access Population | 42,413 |
Demographics & Assistance (Census ACS 2024)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 1,245,873 |
| Median Household Income | $64,468 |
| Poverty Rate | 16.1%above the national average |
| SNAP Households | 90,557 |
| SNAP Participation Rate | 16.3%above the national average |
| Households Without a Vehicle | 12.2%above the national average |
| Group-Quarters Population | 2.2% |
About 16.3% of Cuyahoga County households receive SNAP, versus a U.S. county median in the 11–13% range (Census ACS).
What this means
- 16.8% of residents are low-access, near the national share for U.S. counties.
- 16.3% of households receive SNAP, the federal program that offsets food costs for 90,557 households here.
- 12.2% of households have no vehicle, the hidden multiplier that turns distance into a real barrier.
- 25 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 Cuyahoga County
near the national share
25 of Cuyahoga County's 444 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts, low-income areas where many residents also live far from a supermarket, about 5.6% of all its tracts.
A further 75 tracts are low-access but not low-income, bringing the total low-access tract count to 100.
An estimated 215,515 residents, roughly 16.8% of the county's 2010 population, live in one of these low-access areas.
Of those, 42,413 are also low-income, the group most exposed to genuine food hardship, since limited transportation compounds a limited budget.
The remaining 344 tracts (77.5%) meet the USDA's adequate-access threshold.
SNAP retailers in Cuyahoga County
Cuyahoga County has 1,094 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 2 store categories. Combination Grocery/Other lead with 247 locations (23% of the total), followed by bakery specialty.
Combination Grocery/Other · 247
- asia food co, cleveland
- angelo produce, cleveland
- cvs 2469, bay village
- cvs 2587, north olmsted
- cvs 3028, brook park
- cvs 3032, richmond hts
- cvs 3035, berea
- cvs 3301, woodmere
- cvs 3322, parma
- cvs 3329, lakewood
- cvs 3332, n royalton
- cvs 3333, cleveland
- cvs 3334, cleveland
- cvs 3338, euclid
- cvs 3339, north olmsted
- cvs 3340, lakewood
- cvs 3343, cleveland
- cvs 3346, shaker hts
- cvs 3359, solon
- cvs 3634, cleveland hts
- cvs 3645, brecksville
- cvs 3697, rocky river
- cvs 3817, parma
- cvs 4054, n royalton
- cvs 4101, chagrin falls
- cvs 4300, strongsville
- cvs 4304, westlake
- cvs 4305, cleveland
- cvs 4345, university heights
- cvs 4347, garfield hts
- cvs 4350, cleveland
- cvs 4499, lyndhurst
- cvs 4803, cleveland
- cvs 4811, olmsted falls
- cvs 7371, warrensville heights
- cvs 7687, cleveland
- cvs pharmacy 10893, parma
- cvs pharmacy 4320, cleveland
- cvs/pharmacy 4316 1316, cleveland
- chuppa's market place, parma
- constantino's market, cleveland
- d. w. whitaker meats, cleveland
- dollar general 10126, independence
- dollar general 10619, middleburg heights
- dollar general 11392, cleveland
- dollar general 13506, cleveland
- dollar general 13729, cleveland
- dollar general 13935, lakewood
- dollar general 14274, cleveland
- dollar general 14637, cleveland
- dollar general 18069, cleveland
- dollar general 19370, cleveland
- dollar general 19560, bedford
- dollar general 2226, brooklyn
- dollar general 3510, parma
- dollar general 3969, south euclid
- dollar general 4835, brook park
- dollar general 4867, berea
- dollar general 7316, cleveland
- dollar general 7344, euclid
- dollar general 8052, parma
- dollar tree 0214, parma
- dollar tree 2268, middleburg heights
- dollar tree 4559, cleveland
- dollar tree 6290, fairview park
- dollartree 10153, cleveland
- dollartree 10361, brooklyn
- dollartree 10803, cleveland
- dollartree 8707, solon
- dollartree 8929, cleveland
- discount drug mart 10, westlake
- discount drug mart 15, cleveland
- discount drug mart 17, cleveland
- discount drug mart 18, independence
- discount drug mart 21, cleveland
- discount drug mart 28, olmsted falls
- discount drug mart 31, euclid
- discount drug mart 35, parma heights
- discount drug mart 38, maple heights
- discount drug mart 41, lakewood
- discount drug mart 49, n royalton
- discount drug mart 5, lakewood
- discount drug mart 8, north olmsted
- discount drug mart 82, cleveland
- discount drug mart 84, strongsville
- discount drug mart 90, broadview heights
- discount drug mart 93, strongsville
- discount drug mart 95, cleveland
- dollar general 11000, parma
- dollar general 12478, north olmsted
- dollar general 13208, cleveland
- dollar general 14111, cleveland
- dollar general 14415, cleveland
- dollar general 16834, cleveland
- dollar general 16883, cleveland
- dollar general 17110, north olmsted
- dollar general 19256, cleveland
- dollar general 19257, cleveland
- dollar general 19945, euclid
- dollar general 19953, cleveland
- dollar general 20045, cleveland
- dollar general 20699, cleveland
- dollar general 21059, parma
- dollar general 21153, olmsted falls
- dollar general 21237, broadview heights
- dollar general 21390, garfield heights
- dollar general 21810, cleveland
- dollar general 21950, cleveland
- dollar general 22044, east cleveland
- dollar general 23637, strongsville
- dollar general 25761, mayfield heights
- dollar general 25918, lakewood
- dollar general 25920, cleveland
- dollar general 30418, fairview park
- dollar general 30634, cleveland
- dollar general 30848, euclid
- dollar general 31585, parma heights
- dollar general 9179, maple heights
- dollar general 9441, nrth randall
- dollar general store 13341, maple heights
- dollar tree 102, cleveland
- dollar tree 2267, north olmsted
- dollar tree 2403, berea
- dollar tree 250, cleveland
- dollar tree 256, maple heights
- dollar tree 259, richmond heights
- dollar tree 3267, lakewood
- dollar tree 3270, rocky river
- dollar tree 3405, parma
- dollar tree 3607, cleveland
- dollar tree 4233, university heights
- dollar tree 4325, euclid
- dollar tree 4430, cleveland
- dollar tree 5068, shaker heights
- dollar tree 5273, cleveland
- dollar tree 5413, brookpark
- dollar tree 5562, north randall
- dollar tree 5846, cleveland
- dollar tree 6066, cleveland
- dollar tree 609, strongsville
- dollar tree 7532, cleveland
- dollar tree 7882, rocky river
- dollar tree 8016, north olmsted
- dollar tree 8595, north royalton
- express food mart, cleveland
- farm house fds live fish inc, maple heights
- family dollar 10168, university heights
- family dollar 10523, garfield heights
- family dollar 11063, warrensville heights
- family dollar 11103, newburgh heights
- family dollar 11111, bedford
- family dollar 11125, cleveland
- family dollar 11537, cleveland
- family dollar 11628, bedford
- family dollar 11848, cleveland
- family dollar 12044, maple heights
- family dollar 12142, cleveland
- family dollar 12671, warrensville heights
- family dollar 12866, maple heights
- family dollar 13017, euclid
- family dollar 1781, cleveland
- family dollar 1998, euclid
- family dollar 2005, cleveland
- family dollar 2334, cleveland
- family dollar 2370, cleveland
- family dollar 2371, cleveland
- family dollar 2404, cleveland
- family dollar 2599, cleveland
- family dollar 3198, maple heights
- family dollar 3472, cleveland heights
- family dollar 4132, cleveland
- family dollar 4577, cleveland
- family dollar 4807, cleveland
- family dollar 5559, cleveland
- family dollar 5742, cleveland
- family dollar 5796, cleveland
- family dollar 5813, lakewood
- family dollar 6118, cleveland
- family dollar 6165, bedford
- family dollar 6254, cleveland
- family dollar 6565, euclid
- family dollar 6821, cleveland
- family dollar 7039, cleveland
- family dollar 7557, cleveland
- family dollar 7628, maple heights
- family dollar 7686, parma
- family dollar 7943, south euclid
- family dollar 7952, cleveland
- family dollar 8343, cleveland
- family dollar 8465, cleveland
- family dollar 8938, cleveland
- family dollar 9377, olmsted twp
- family dollar store 10245, cleveland
- hookes african food mart, cleveland
- india grocers, cleveland
- irene dever dairy wsm, cleveland
- j & j asian mart inc., north olmsted
- jacob's oasis stand 6/7, cleveland
- k & k portage market inc, cleveland
- kim's oriental food store, cleveland
- lviv international food store, parma
- la plaza supermarket, lakewood
- lakshmi plaza indian & asian grocery, cleveland
- lance's beef, cleveland
- luca's produce 55,57, cleveland
- meister food products, cleveland
- mike's beverage and deli, cleveland
- peanut gallery wsm, cleveland
- pinzone's market fresh meats, cleveland
- retail grocery, cleveland
- rose's express 658, cleveland
- roses 532, cleveland
- sebastians deli, cleveland
- strongsville more 4 less, strongsville
- the great smart african food market #1, cleveland
- the new eastside market, cleveland
- tink holl, cleveland
- vegetable produce llc, cleveland
- walgreen's 12444, cleveland
- walgreens 03310, cleveland
- walgreens 03312, euclid
- walgreens 03314, parma
- walgreens 04685, south euclid
- walgreens 4684, garfield heights
- walgreens 5206, lakewood
- walgreens 01234, berea
- walgreens 02132, independence
- walgreens 03235, shaker heights
- walgreens 04130, cleveland hts
- walgreens 04159, parma heights
- walgreens 04202, seven hills
- walgreens 05031, middleburg heights
- walgreens 05473, westlake
- walgreens 05550, rocky river
- walgreens 06659, cleveland
- walgreens 06889, solon
- walgreens 07474, richmond heights
- walgreens 09073, shaker heights
- walgreens 09407, lakewood
- walgreens 10029, bay village
- walgreens 10032, brecksville
- walgreens 10220, bedford
- walgreens 10328, parma
- walgreens 10710, euclid
- walgreens 11558, cleveland
- walgreens 12014, strongsville
- walgreens 12445, north olmsted
Bakery Specialty · 3
- schwebel bakery outlet 27, cleveland
- schwebel bakery outlet 31, strongsville
- theresa's bakery, cleveland
Showing 250 of 1,094 authorized retailers, largest categories first.
Source: USDA SNAP Retailer Locator, currently authorized retailers.
Other Counties in Ohio
Compare Cuyahoga County vs Adams County → · All Ohio counties →
Food access nationally, Ohio in context
Cuyahoga County sits inside Ohio (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 Cuyahoga County has low food access? ▼
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Is Cuyahoga County a food desert? ▼
What share of Cuyahoga 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.