Signature · 12.9% SNAP (88th pct in IN)
Lake County, IN
Lake County stands out on SNAP (12.9%, +0.8 pts vs U.S.) with 34.4% low-access from USDA FARA 2019.
- 34.4%
- low-access pop.
- 31
- food-desert tracts
- 12.9%
- on SNAP
- 500K
- residents (ACS 2024)
USDA FARA access plate
County Lake County, IN
LA-ELEVATED · ABOVE-NATIONAL · LILA-CLUSTER · SNAP-TYPICAL · VEH-TYPICAL · DENSITY-DENSE
- LA-ELEVATED 34.4% low-access
- ABOVE-NATIONAL +12.3 pts vs US
- LILA-CLUSTER 31 food-desert tracts
- SNAP-TYPICAL 12.9% SNAP
- VEH-TYPICAL 7.2% no vehicle
- DENSITY-DENSE 26% tracts LILA
Nearest low-access peer: Wayne County (+ 0.0 pts)
Upper-band low-access
Lake County sits in the upper national band (34.4%, #639 of 3,079) with 31 LILA tracts.
- #639
- national by low-access %
- #12
- in IN
- 63
- low-access tracts
- 52K
- 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: 12.9% SNAP (88th pct in IN) (+0.8 pts vs U.S. SNAP) .
How Lake County compares nationally
Relative to the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA food-access data, Lake County's 34.4% low-access share is elevated, higher than 79% of them and ranked #639 most-affected nationwide.
Lake County's elevated USDA tier split
117 census tracts grouped by USDA classification · 31 LILA.
Lake County is mostly urban by USDA tract type (111 urban, 6 rural), so most of its low-access count comes from the 1-mile test; the 6 rural tracts are held to 10 miles.
Lake County vs nearby high low-access peers
Poles + nearest peers in Indiana, not a full county-board reprint
- Hendricks
Hendricks 51.5%
51.5 % low-access
- Madison
Madison 35.4%
35.4 % low-access
- Lake
Lake 34.4%
34.4 % low-access
- Wayne
Wayne 34.4%
34.4 % low-access
- Dearborn
Dearborn 34.2%
34.2 % low-access
- Delaware
Delaware 34%
34 % low-access
- Harrison 0
Harrison 0%
0 % low-access
FARA 2019 · elevated low-access
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Census Tracts | 117 |
| Atlas Population (2010 basis) | 496,005 |
| Low-Access Tracts | 63 |
| Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access) | 31 |
| Low-Access Population | 170,674 |
| Low-Access Share | 34.4%well above the national average |
| Low-Income & Low-Access Population | 51,764 |
ACS 2024 · elevated SNAP band
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 500,379 |
| Median Household Income | $71,493 |
| Poverty Rate | 14.3%near the national average |
| SNAP Households | 25,127 |
| SNAP Participation Rate | 12.9%near the national average |
| Households Without a Vehicle | 7.2%below the national average |
| Group-Quarters Population | 1.0% |
Thick SNAP store book in Lake County
Lake County has 441 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 10 store categories. Convenience Store lead with 215 locations (49% of the total), followed by combination grocery/other.
Where the store book sits, by town
20 towns share the 441 authorized stores; Gary holds 18% of them. 3 of the 20 towns have no grocery-grade outlet, only convenience or dollar/combination stores: Hebron, Hghland, Schneider.
| Town | SNAP stores | Grocery-grade |
|---|---|---|
| Gary | 81 | 12 |
| Hammond | 74 | 18 |
| Merrillville | 51 | 14 |
| Hobart | 30 | 3 |
| Crown Point | 29 | 6 |
| East Chicago | 26 | 5 |
| Schererville | 22 | 5 |
| Lake Station | 21 | 2 |
| Highland | 20 | 6 |
| Dyer | 18 | 5 |
Top 10 of 20 towns by store count.
Convenience Store · 215
- 1 stop hammond inc, hammond
- 3101 food & fuel, gary
- 49 & broadway inc., gary
- 5th ave citgo, gary
- 5th plaza convenience & beauty, gary
- 7 elephant, lake station
- 7-eleven #30167b 30167b, griffith
- a & k gas & mini mart, inc, gary
- a & s gas & mini mart inc, gary
- abu ross, inc., east chicago
- ah chase petroleum inc, gary
- ah citgo gary inc, gary
- aladdin pita restaurant & food mart, merrillville
- all star, gary
- allstar, merrillville
- b & d snack shack, dyer
- bp gas, east chicago
- barbara's cupcakes creations and cakes, merrillville
- barfi petroleum llc, gary
- broadway food shop, east chicago
- broadway gas mini mart, gary
- broadway mini mart, gary
- buddy petroleum inc/ d mart, gary
- buy-n-save inc, gary
- casey's 2193, cedar lake
- casey's 2257, lowell
- casey's 2265, griffith
- casey's 2352, dyer
- casey's 6947, hammond
- casey's general store 3573, crown point
- cedar lake convenience store, cedar lake
- cedar lakes travel center inc, cedar lake
- chicken littles food & deli llc, hammond
- circle k 2435, schererville
- citgo, gary
- citgo 1, gary
- citgo 5285, merrillville
- citgo gas & food 105, east chicago
- city, gary
- cline avenue food mart, schererville
- columbus mobil, east chicago
- county line market, lake station
- crown point marathon, crown point
- db food mart, munster
- dev petroleum inc t/a citgo, east chicago
- eagle gas, gary
- eagle gas, lake station
- f e 66 crown point interstate 66, crown point
- fe64-crown point north 64, crown point
- fe67 - lowell 67, lowell
- fabs mini mart inc., hammond
- family express 14, crown point
- family express 57, merrillville
- family express 60, hobart
- family express 61, griffith
- family express 74, cedar lake
- family express 75, griffith
- family express 76, lowell
- family express 8, hobart
- family express 88, st. john
- family express 9, hobart
- fe65-crown point south 65, crown point
- fe69-highland 69, highland
- five star bp, crown point
- food center, gary
- grant mini food mart, gary
- gill 35 inc, hobart
- golo, gary
- golo 61st, merrillville
- golo gas and food gasstation, east chicago
- graham c-stores co - munster 201, munster
- grand food mart on calume 1, hammond
- grand foods, hammond
- grand prix, hammond
- grant fuel inc, gary
- grant gas inc, gary
- grant golo, gary
- gur inc n/a, hammond
- hammond tobacco & deli, hammond
- hessville gas mart inc, hammond
- himmat, gary
- hs golo mini mart inc, gary
- indiana convenience store, lake station
- indyham business two inc, hammond
- indyhigh business inc, highland
- jt petroleum inc, east chicago
- k & d marathon inc., hammond
- k & m mart, gary
- kennedy golo inc, hammond
- krupa petroleum inc, gary
- kwik mart, hammond
- lake george marathon, hobart
- lake petroleum inc, lake station
- lake station fuel & mini mart inc, lake station
- lake station mini mart inc., lake station
- love's travel stop 417, gary
- luke 271, crown point
- lukes 220, east chicago
- lukes 230, merrillville
- lukes 231, hobart
- lukes 232, hobart
- lukes 233, hobart
- lukes 235, lake station
- lukes 236, hammond
- lukes 240, hammond
- lukes 241, cedar lake
- lukes 242, schererville
- lukes 251, griffith
- lukes 253, griffith
- lukes 255, hammond
- lukes 257, hammond
- lukes 261, hobart
- lukes 264, hammond
- lukes 265, hammond
- lukes 267, hammond
- lukes 270, schererville
- lukes 273, merrillville
- lukes 275, hammond
- lukes 293, merrillville
- m&a gas mini mart inc, gary
- mike's gas stop, inc., lake station
- magic mart inc, gary
- malik gas & food inc - always open, dyer
- marathon, hobart
- marathon, merrillville
- masela gas inc, gary
- mds sales llc, gary
- meijer gas station 165, merrillville
- meijer gas station 170, highland
- metro foods, gary
- mia mart inc., hammond
- miller dairy barn, gary
- miller mini mart, gary
- mk petroleum, gary
- mobil, merrillville
- mr food 2 inc, east chicago
- munster golo, munster
- neelam inc, hammond
- neeru inc - citgo, crown point
- one stop shop on cleveland inc, merrillville
- pilot travel center 031, highland
- pilot travel center 1020, lake station
- pilot travel center 271, gary
- pilot travel center 448, hebron
- pilot travel center 650, lake station
- pilot travel center 719, gary
- prince llc save, merrillville
- quickfuel inc, hobart
- r citgo inc, hobart
- r&s petro food mart, gary
- raceco, east chicago
- raceco 101 101, hammond
- rajmeet inc, hammond
- rebel 884, highland
- rebel 885, highland
- ridge food, griffith
- ridgeway petroleum, inc. 7, highland
- road ranger 240, lake station
- roop citgo, merrillville
- roundtrip 102, hammond
- sss 2 llc - kennedy marathon, hammond
- safeway market, inc., east chicago
- safi food mart, inc, east chicago
- sahib isher llc - sixers 83, highland
- save at save, gary
- save at save 2, gary
- schererville bp, schererville
- shamson food mart, gary
- shop & save food mart none, whiting
- shri krishna enterprise, griffith
- sibley market inc, hammond
- singh stop & shop 1, schererville
- sixers # 93 2, saint john
- sjl inc, gary
- sonia inc dba gary super gas, gary
- speedmart, merrillville
- speedway 1020, crown point
- speedway 1426, hobart
- speedway 1427, dyer
- speedway 1433, hammond
- speedway 3991, gary
- speedway 43821, east chicago
- speedway 46822, lake station
- speedway 6672, hobart
- speedway 6676, merrillville
- speedway 6678, lowell
- speedway 6679, schererville
- speedway 6680 6680, griffith
- speedway 6681 6681, dyer
- speedway 6685, schererville
- speedway 6687, munster
- speedway 6688, merrillville
- speedway 6689, crown point
- speedway 7120, schererville
- speedway 7373, crown point
- speedway 7435, merrillville
- speedway 7458 7458, dyer
- speedway 7494 7494, saint john
- speedway 7523, merrillville
- speedway 7526, lowell
- speedway 7553, merrillville
- speedway 7575, hobart
- speedway 7680 7680, munster
- speedway 8305, hammond
- speedway 8306, hobart
- speedway 8316, dyer
- speedway 8332, hammond
- speedway 8335, hammond
- sr mobil, gary
- the pride of dyer 501, dyer
- travelcenters of america 010, gary
- triple s save, merrillville
- tsar food mart, hobart
- uncle steve mini mart inc, gary
- vyto's pharmacy, hammond
Combination Grocery/Other · 119 (35 shown)
- al salam market 1, highland
- cvs 10176, merrillville
- cvs 10259, dyer
- cvs 2519, schererville
- cvs 2520, hammond
- cvs 2542, highland
- cvs 2665, crown point
- cvs 434, hobart
- cvs 6912, cedar lake
- cvs 6913, hobart
- cvs 6917, merrillville
- cvs pharmacy 04368, munster
- cvs pharmacy 10824, crown point
- cvs pharmacy 10962, gary
- cvs pharmacy 3398, crown point
- cvs pharmacy 8518, highland
- dollar general 10346, merrillville
- dollar general 11137, hobart
- dollar general 14437, schererville
- dollar general 1589, hobart
- dollar general 19108, gary
- dollar general 2192, crown point
- dollar general 2364, cedar lake
- dollar general 2941, hobart
- dollar general 4622, highland
- dollar general 7563, merrillville
- dollar general 7657, lowell
- dollar tree 0632, griffith
- dollar tree 2466, merrillville
- dollar tree 6159, merrillville
- dollartree 9181, merrillville
- dollartree 9817, lake station
- dollar general 11495, hammond
- dollar general 11782, east chicago
- dollar general 11846, lake station
Showing 250 of 441 authorized retailers, largest categories first.
Source: USDA SNAP Retailer Locator (currently authorized stores, a live third population, not the 2019 Atlas or ACS 2024 snapshot above).
Other Counties in Indiana
One of 91 counties in Indiana, 6 are shown here.
Compare Lake County vs Adams County → · All Indiana counties →
Counties near Lake County's elevated low-access or SNAP band
SNAP-led peer set first for Lake County (12.9%), with low-access neighbours deduped against it, both outside Indiana.
Similar low-access share
Nearest low-access rates outside IN (34.4% here).
- Lake County, IL · 34.4% low-access
- Barton County, KS · 34.4% low-access
- Glynn County, GA · 34.4% low-access
- Hernando County, FL · 34.4% low-access
Similar SNAP participation
Nearest household SNAP rates outside IN (12.9% here).
- Randolph County, IL · 12.9% SNAP
- Johnson County, IL · 12.9% SNAP
- Jefferson County, IA · 12.9% SNAP
- Bond County, IL · 12.9% 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.
Indiana among East North Central states
Indiana ranks 1st of 5 East North Central states by population-weighted low-access (28.7%). Lake County, at 34.4%, runs 5.7 pts above the Indiana rate.
Source: USDA Economic Research Service, Food Access Research Atlas (2019), population-weighted by state; divisions per the U.S. Census Bureau. National state map
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 Lake County, IN are computed from the joined Atlas and ACS records for FIPS 18089. 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.