Signature · 8 LILA tracts (30.8% of tracts)
Highlands County, FL
Highlands County's signature pressure is desert tracts: 8 LILA tracts (30.8% of the book) alongside 38.4% low-access.
- 38.4%
- low-access pop.
- 8
- food-desert tracts
- 15.7%
- on SNAP
- 106K
- residents (ACS 2024)
USDA FARA access plate
County Highlands County, FL
LA-ELEVATED · ABOVE-NATIONAL · LILA-CLUSTER · SNAP-HEAVY · VEH-OK · DENSITY-DENSE
- LA-ELEVATED 38.4% low-access
- ABOVE-NATIONAL +16.3 pts vs US
- LILA-CLUSTER 8 food-desert tracts
- SNAP-HEAVY 15.7% SNAP
- VEH-OK 5.6% no vehicle
- DENSITY-DENSE 31% tracts LILA
Nearest low-access peer: Martin County ( -0.5 pts)
Upper-band low-access
Highlands County sits in the upper national band (38.4%, #464 of 3,079) with 8 LILA tracts.
- #464
- national by low-access %
- #18
- in FL
- 11
- low-access tracts
- 17K
- food-desert residents
Upper-band counties often pair elevated low-access with clustered LILA tracts. Low access = >1 mile urban / >10 miles rural.
Signature read: 8 LILA tracts (30.8% of tracts) .
How Highlands County compares nationally
Relative to the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA food-access data, Highlands County's 38.4% low-access share is elevated, higher than 85% of them and ranked #465 most-affected nationwide.
Highlands County's elevated USDA tier split
26 census tracts grouped by USDA classification · 8 LILA.
By USDA urbanicity classification, Highlands County has 13 urban and 13 rural census tracts. The 1-mile (urban) vs 10-mile (rural) distance threshold above applies per tract, so a county's access rate reflects this mix.
Highlands County vs nearby high low-access peers
Poles + nearest peers in Florida, not a full county-board reprint
- Glades
Glades 56.2%
56.2 % low-access
- Pasco
Pasco 40.4%
40.4 % low-access
- Santa Rosa
Santa Rosa 39.8%
39.8 % low-access
- Highlands
Highlands 38.4%
38.4 % low-access
- Martin
Martin 37.9%
37.9 % low-access
- Lee
Lee 37%
37 % low-access
- Gilchrist 0.1
Gilchrist 0.1%
0.1 % low-access
FARA 2019 · elevated low-access
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Census Tracts | 26 |
| Atlas Population (2010 basis) | 98,786 |
| Low-Access Tracts | 11 |
| Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access) | 8 |
| Low-Access Population | 37,902 |
| Low-Access Share | 38.4%well above the national average |
| Low-Income & Low-Access Population | 17,493 |
Demographics & Assistance (Census ACS 2024)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 105,702 |
| Median Household Income | $54,897 |
| Poverty Rate | 15.3%near the national average |
| SNAP Households | 7,346 |
| SNAP Participation Rate | 15.7%above the national average |
| Households Without a Vehicle | 5.6%below the national average |
| Group-Quarters Population | 1.6% |
Thick SNAP store book in Highlands County
Highlands County has 90 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 8 store categories. Convenience Store lead with 36 locations (40% of the total), followed by combination grocery/other.
Convenience Store · 36
- 7 day's avon park, avon park
- arbuckle marathon, sebring
- avon park citgo, avon park
- avon park market & smoke shop, avon park
- avon park raceway 6959, avon park
- bsthree, lake placid
- bp highway 27 truck stop, lake placid
- circle k 2700035, sebring
- circle k 2707318, sebring
- circle k 2707451, lake placid
- circle k 2707515, sebring
- chevron food mart, avon park
- chevron food mart 155, sebring
- choice foodmartllc, avon park
- el paso tienda mexicana, avon park
- express mart, sebring
- flowers bakery outlet 28, avon park
- food & tobacco mart, avon park
- gate petroleum 1204, sebring
- hart marathon, avon park
- locals convenience stores, lake placid
- lorida general store, lorida
- miller c store, lake placid
- murphy express 8594, avon park
- murphy express 8673, sebring
- nbe food store, sebring
- old hendricks corner, avon park
- racetrac 2643, sebring
- saunak's corner, sebring
- seattle marathon 650, sebring
- sebring raceway 0994, sebring
- sun n lake shell, sebring
- sunset marathon 651, sebring
- wawa, sebring
- wawa 5371, lake placid
- wawa store 5373, sebring
Combination Grocery/Other · 35
- aston's caribbean foods, sebring
- cvs pharmacy 3130, lake placid
- cvs pharmacy 3155, sebring
- dollar general 1313, sebring
- dollar general 1323, avon park
- dollar general 1406, lake placid
- dollar general 2365, sebring
- dollartree 8746, sebring
- dollar general 12239, sebring
- dollar general 13260, avon park
- dollar general 15966, avon park
- dollar general 16041, lake placid
- dollar general 16189, sebring
- dollar general 20865, lake placid
- dollar general 20869, lake placid
- dollar general 21214, sebring
- dollar general 22051, avon park
- dollar general 24924, sebring
- dollar general 25680, lake placid
- dollar general 30176, sebring
- dollar general 6676, sebring
- dollar general store 17880, sebring
- dollar tree 1980, sebring
- dollar tree 5709, avon park
- dollar tree 6445, lake placid
- family dollar 11638, lake placid
- family dollar store 10983, sebring
- family dollar store 1362, lake placid
- family dollar store 2831, sebring
- highlands seafood, sebring
- thank you jesus-food market, avon park
- walgreens 05946, avon park
- walgreens 05947, sebring
- walgreens 9006, sebring
- walgreens 9098, lake placid
Supermarket · 9
- aldi 74035 74035, sebring
- aldi 74209, avon park
- publix super market 1347, sebring
- publix 1517, sebring
- publix 1547, lake placid
- save a lot 30032, sebring
- save a lot 30039, lake placid
- taqueria merlo, avon park
- winn dixie 687, sebring
Super Store · 5
- dollar general 21148, sebring
- walmart 666, sebring
- walmart supercenter 3887, avon park
- winn dixie 2548, lake placid
- winn-dixie 2465, sebring
Small Grocery Store · 2
- la yerbita, avon park
- nifty food stores 1, sebring
Farmers' Market · 1
- highlands farmers market nafmnp, avon park
Large Grocery Store · 1
- el zocalo food market, avon park
Medium Grocery Store · 1
- fiesta food market, lake placid
Source: USDA SNAP Retailer Locator (currently authorized stores, a live third population, not the 2019 Atlas or ACS 2024 snapshot above).
Other Counties in Florida
One of 66 counties in Florida, 6 are shown here.
Compare Highlands County vs Alachua County → · All Florida counties →
Counties near Highlands County's elevated low-access or SNAP band
Two USDA/ACS-derived peer sets for Highlands County, both outside Florida so the neighborhoods are not the same-state county list above.
Similar low-access share
Nearest low-access rates outside FL (38.4% here).
- Barrow County, GA · 38.4% low-access
- Barrow County, GA · 38.4% low-access
- Lincoln County, NM · 38.4% low-access
- Lincoln County, NM · 38.4% low-access
Similar SNAP participation
Nearest household SNAP rates outside FL (15.7% here).
- Cook County, IL · 15.7% SNAP
- Cook County, IL · 15.7% SNAP
- Richland County, IL · 15.7% SNAP
- Richland County, IL · 15.7% SNAP
Source: USDA Food Access Research Atlas (2019) + Census ACS 2024 SNAP. Peers floor at 10,000 residents so stub counties cannot own the match.
Highlands County inside a higher low-access state context
Highlands County sits inside Florida (ringed). Each state is colored by population-weighted low-access; click any state to compare.
USDA Economic Research Service, Food Access Research Atlas (2019), population-weighted · Census ACS 2024 context
Read with this county
Sources: USDA Economic Research Service, Food Access Research Atlas (2019) · U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2024 5-Year Estimates · methodology · compiled .
PlainFoodAccess renders this county profile directly from the USDA Food Access Research Atlas (2019) and U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (2024 5-year estimates), no number is typed in by an editor. Figures for Highlands County, FL are computed from the joined Atlas and ACS records for FIPS 12055. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026-06-23. Primary sources: USDA Food Access Research Atlas and Census ACS 5-year estimates.
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.