County food-access profile · Wisconsin
Dane County, WI
Distance to a supermarket is a real obstacle for a meaningful share of Dane County residents. This profile covers who qualifies as a food desert here and the income, SNAP, and vehicle-access context behind it, from the USDA Food Access Research Atlas (2019) and the Census ACS (2024).
- 24.9%
- low-access pop.
- 9
- food-desert tracts
- 8.1%
- on SNAP
- 573K
- residents (ACS 2024)
The food-access picture
24.9% of Dane County residents live in a low-access area, and 9 of its 105 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts.
- 50
- low-access tracts
- 21K
- food-desert residents
- 8.2%
- households, no vehicle
- 10.6%
- 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).
USDA data puts Dane County's low-access share at 24.9%, above the national share. 50 of the county's 105 census tracts are classified low-access, meaning residents there live far from a supermarket, an area covering about 121,477 people. 9 of those also meet the low-income condition that defines a food desert, home to roughly 20,935 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 Dane County compares nationally
Relative to the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA food-access data, Dane County's 24.9% low-access share is elevated, higher than 58% of them and ranked #1,304 most-affected nationwide.
Dane County: USDA Food-Access Tier Breakdown
All 105 census tracts in Dane County, grouped by USDA classification (see "How the USDA defines low-access and food-desert tracts" above for what each tier means).
Dane County vs. other Wisconsin counties
Share of the population living in low-access areas, compared with other counties in Wisconsin
- Dane
Dane County, WI
24.9 % low-access
- Adams 9.9
Adams County, WI
9.9 % low-access
- Ashland
Ashland County, WI
28.5 % low-access
- Barron
Barron County, WI
17.8 % low-access
- Bayfield
Bayfield County, WI
30.2 % low-access
- Brown
Brown County, WI
25 % low-access
Food Access (USDA FARA 2019)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Census Tracts | 105 |
| Atlas Population (2010 basis) | 488,073 |
| Low-Access Tracts | 50 |
| Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access) | 9 |
| Low-Access Population | 121,477 |
| Low-Access Share | 24.9%above the national average |
| Low-Income & Low-Access Population | 20,935 |
Demographics & Assistance (Census ACS 2024)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 572,674 |
| Median Household Income | $89,975 |
| Poverty Rate | 10.6%below the national average |
| SNAP Households | 20,385 |
| SNAP Participation Rate | 8.1%below the national average |
| Households Without a Vehicle | 8.2%near the national average |
| Group-Quarters Population | 2.8% |
About 8.1% of Dane County households receive SNAP, versus a U.S. county median in the 11–13% range (Census ACS).
What this means
- 24.9% of residents are low-access, above the national share for U.S. counties.
- 8.1% of households receive SNAP, the federal program that offsets food costs for 20,385 households here.
- 8.2% of households have no vehicle, the hidden multiplier that turns distance into a real barrier.
- 9 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 Dane County
above the national share
9 of Dane County's 105 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts, low-income areas where many residents also live far from a supermarket, about 8.6% of all its tracts.
A further 41 tracts are low-access but not low-income, bringing the total low-access tract count to 50.
An estimated 121,477 residents, roughly 24.9% of the county's 2010 population, live in one of these low-access areas.
Of those, 20,935 are also low-income, the group most exposed to genuine food hardship, since limited transportation compounds a limited budget.
The remaining 55 tracts (52.4%) meet the USDA's adequate-access threshold.
SNAP retailers in Dane County
Dane County has 333 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 7 store categories. Convenience Store lead with 150 locations (45% of the total), followed by combination grocery/other.
Convenience Store · 150
- 7-eleven, inc. 35851j, madison
- aberg avenue mobil 77, madison
- amstar, madison
- atwood mart, madison
- bp gas station, madison
- bassett food mart, madison
- blue mounds grorcery & liqour 1, blue mounds
- bp pleasant springs travel plaza 101, cottage grove
- casey's 3833, madison
- casey's general store 3582, belleville
- casey's general store 3586, verona
- casey's 3837, blue mounds
- crossroads bp, sun prairie
- dane kwik stop, dane
- fish hatchery mobil 47, fitchburg
- four lakes market flamingo run, madison
- gammon road mobil 79, madison
- go grocer, madison
- go2stop inc, madison
- go2stop inc, madison
- gordon avenue market flamingo run, madison
- grewal petroleum llc, madison
- grewal petroleum llc, madison
- j&g mini market, madison
- kwik trip 302, oregon
- kwik trip 323, verona
- kwik trip 372, oregon
- kwik trip 393, sun prairie
- kwik trip 456, verona
- kwik trip 496, sun prairie
- kwik trip 650, cottage grove
- kwik trip 673, windsor
- kwik trip 731, oregon
- kwik trip 738, stoughton
- kwik trip 739, stoughton
- kwik trip 766, mc farland
- kwik trip 794, mount horeb
- kwik trip 832, waunakee
- kwik trip 833, cross plains
- kwik trip 837, verona
- kwik spirits 514, madison
- kwik trip 1023, windsor
- kwik trip 1059, waunakee
- kwik trip 1075, verona
- kwik trip 1093, deforest
- kwik trip 1130, mount horeb
- kwik trip 1140, belleville
- kwik trip 1166, fitchburg
- kwik trip 1210, mcfarland
- kwik trip 124, deforest
- kwik trip 1507, cambridge
- kwik trip 1507, cambridge
- kwik trip 1511, madison
- kwik trip 1512, cottage grove
- kwik trip 1514, madison
- kwik trip 1522, madison
- kwik trip 1523, sun prairie
- kwik trip 155, madison
- kwik trip 187, madison
- kwik trip 242, madison
- kwik trip 283, sun prairie
- kwik trip 372, oregon
- kwik trip 529, waunakee
- kwik trip 531, madison
- kwik trip 550, middleton
- kwik trip 557, deforest
- kwik trip 596, black earth
- kwik trip 721, marshall
- kwik trip 893, stoughton
- kwik trip 949, madison
- kwik trip 950, madison
- kwik trip 951, madison
- kwik trip 952, madison
- kwik trip 953, madison
- kwik trip 954, madison
- kwik trip 955, madison
- kwik trip 956, madison
- kwik trip 957, fitchburg
- kwik trip 958, madison
- kwik trip 959, fitchburg
- kwik trip 960, madison
- kwik trip 961, madison
- kwik trip 962, middleton
- kwik trip 963, madison
- kwik trip 964, middleton
- kwik trip 965, monona
- kwik trip 966, monona
- liberty station, sun prairie
- lucky 7 2, madison
- lucky's convenience, madison
- lucky's market 1, madison
- m s mart llc dba park st bp 001, madison
- madison pantry 1, madison
- madison petroleum llc, madison
- marathon, madison
- mercado hidalgo, middleton
- middleton mobil 53, middleton
- north port shell 2, madison
- old sauk mobil 74, madison
- page street mart, stoughton
- pantry 41 bp, madison
- park street mini mart, madison
- patricias grocery, sun prairie
- pinkus, madison
- pinkus mcbride, madison
- pit stop express middleton, middleton
- quick stop bp 1, stoughton
- refuel pantry- cambridge, cambridge
- refuel pantry- deerfield, deerfield
- refuel pantry- east wash, madison
- refuel pantry- main sun prairie, sun prairie
- refuel pantry-2702 wash, madison
- refuel pantry-3019 wash, madison
- refuel pantry-3101 sherman, madison
- refuel pantry-4102 commercial, madison
- refuel pantry-4601 cottage, madison
- refuel pantry-4601 verona, madison
- refuel pantry-4905 commercial, madison
- refuel pantry-605 cottage, madison
- refuel pantry-deforest, deforest
- refuel pantry-gammon rd, madison
- refuel pantry-millpond, madison
- refuel pantry-mineral point, madison
- refuel pantry-mohawk, madison
- refuel pantry-rimrock rd, fitchburg
- refuel pantry-syene rd, fitchburg
- refuel pantry-whitney way, madison
- regent market co-op, madison
- rio mobil, rio
- road ranger 136, cottage grove
- speedway 4132, fitchburg
- speedway 4170, fitchburg
- speedway 4202, windsor
- speedway 4533, monona
- springfield mobil 55, middleton
- stop n shop, madison
- stop n shop, madison
- stop n shop, madison
- stop-n-go 1516, de forest
- stop-n-go 1517, cottage grove
- stoughton bp, stoughton
- sun prairie mobil 63, sun prairie
- sunrise gas llc, madison
- ta madison 050, deforest
- town and country mart, fitchburg
- truckers inn, deforest
- verona mart, verona
- verona road bp mart, madison
- watts road mobil 75, madison
- westport mobil 76, madison
Combination Grocery/Other · 63
- african american store, madison
- cvs 4930, madison
- cvs pharmacy 5535, cottage grove
- cvs pharmacy 5584, middleton
- cvs pharmacy 7147, madison
- dollar general 10543, mcfarland
- dollar general 10659, stoughton
- dollar general 14365, mazomanie
- dollar general 6330, sun prairie
- dollar tree 2374, madison
- dollartree 8606, stoughton
- dollartree 8668, madison
- dollar general 10132, cambridge
- dollar general 10408, cottage grove
- dollar general 10954, marshall
- dollar general 21864, middleton
- dollar general 22871, madison
- dollar tree 4218, sun prairie
- dollar tree 4398, middleton
- dollar tree 5105, madison
- dollar tree 5220, madison
- dollar tree 6836, waunakee
- dollar tree 741, monona
- dollar tree 7644, fitchburg
- dollar tree 905, madison
- family dollar 6644, belleville
- family dollar store 6599, deforest
- garden asian market, middleton
- golden green indian grocery, appleton
- hmong legacy market, madison
- jenifer street market, madison
- miller & sons supermarket, verona
- madison oriental market, madison
- miller and sons mt horeb 340, mount horeb
- mousehouse cheesehaus, inc, windsor
- walgreens 02879, madison
- walgreens 02967, madison
- walgreens 03291, sun prairie
- walgreens 04240, madison
- walgreens 05669, waunakee
- walgreens 06130, madison
- walgreens 00111, madison
- walgreens 01159, verona
- walgreens 02848, madison
- walgreens 03343, madison
- walgreens 03393, madison
- walgreens 04155, madison
- walgreens 04805, madison
- walgreens 04830, monona
- walgreens 05087, fitchburg
- walgreens 05233, madison
- walgreens 07536, middleton
- walgreens 09740, de forest
- walgreens 09741, oregon
- walgreens 10554, mc farland
- walgreens 10555, middleton
- walgreens 10573, madison
- walgreens 10925, sun prairie
- walgreens 11648, mount horeb
- walgreens 11858, madison
- walgreens 12603, cross plains
- walgreens 6132, madison
- walgreens 7519, stoughton
Farmers' Market · 14
- badger rock farm stand rooted wi. inc., madison
- dane county farmers' market, madison
- dane county farmers' market - holiday, madison
- dane county farmers' market - late winter, madison
- dane county farmers' market - wednesday, madison
- deforest area farmers' market, deforest
- eastside farmers' market, madison
- market market, madison
- monona farmers market inc., monona
- monroe street farmers market, madison
- northside farmers market, madison
- sun prairie farmers market, sun prairie
- verona farmers market, verona
- westside community market, madison
Large Grocery Store · 10
- a-mart asian grocery, madison
- bombay bazaar 1, madison
- fresh mart, madison
- j&p fresh market, madison
- la concha & el zocalo de la concha, fitchburg
- la rosita mexican store, monona
- santa maria grocery, inc., madison
- uwp meat market llc, middleton
- viet hoa, madison
- williamson street grocery coop, madison
Bakery Specialty · 9
- papa murphy wi008, madison
- papa murphy wi048, stoughton
- papa murphy's take n bake pizza wi108, oregon
- papa murphy's take n bake pizza wi076, waunakee
- papa murphy's wi110, deforest
- papa murphys wi006, middleton
- papa murphys wi018, sun prairie
- papa murphys wi065, monona
- papa murphys wi073, verona
Meat/Poultry Specialty · 3
- fred's village market, waunakee
- stoddard's country grove market 1, cottage grove
- the conscious carnivore, madison
Food Buying Co-op · 1
- fairshare csa coalition, madison
Showing 250 of 333 authorized retailers, largest categories first.
Source: USDA SNAP Retailer Locator, currently authorized retailers.
Other Counties in Wisconsin
Compare Dane County vs Adams County → · All Wisconsin counties →
Food access nationally, Wisconsin in context
Dane County sits inside Wisconsin (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 Dane County has low food access? ▼
What is the SNAP participation rate in Dane County? ▼
What is the poverty rate in Dane County? ▼
Is Dane County a food desert? ▼
What share of Dane 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.