Signature · 9.7% SNAP (20th pct in SC)
Lancaster County, SC
Distance to a supermarket is a real obstacle for a meaningful share of Lancaster 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).
- 28.5%
- low-access pop.
- 2
- food-desert tracts
- 9.7%
- on SNAP
- 104K
- residents (ACS 2024)
USDA FARA access plate
County Lancaster County, SC
LA-ELEVATED · ABOVE-NATIONAL · LILA-POCKET · SNAP-LIGHT · VEH-OK · DENSITY-MIXED
- LA-ELEVATED 28.5% low-access
- ABOVE-NATIONAL +6.4 pts vs US
- LILA-POCKET 2 food-desert tracts
- SNAP-LIGHT 9.7% SNAP
- VEH-OK 3.4% no vehicle
- DENSITY-MIXED 14% tracts LILA
Nearest low-access peer: Orangeburg County ( -0.1 pts)
The food-access picture
According to the USDA Food Access Research Atlas, Lancaster County ranks #1,044 of 3,079 U.S. counties by low-access share and #15 of 45 counties in SC (28.5% low-access; 2 food-desert tracts).
- #1,044
- national by low-access %
- #15
- in SC
- 6
- low-access tracts
- 5K
- food-desert residents
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).
Signature read: 9.7% SNAP (20th pct in SC) (-2.4 pts vs U.S. SNAP) .
How Lancaster County compares nationally
Relative to the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA food-access data, Lancaster County's 28.5% low-access share is elevated, higher than 66% of them and ranked #1,044 most-affected nationwide.
Lancaster County: USDA Food-Access Tier Breakdown
14 census tracts grouped by USDA classification · 2 LILA.
Lancaster County is mostly rural by USDA tract type (7 rural, 7 urban), so most tracts are held to the 10-mile test and only the 7 urban tracts face the 1-mile one.
Lancaster County low-access neighbourhood
Poles + nearest peers in South Carolina, not a full county-board reprint
- Beaufort
Beaufort 49%
49 % low-access
- Aiken
Aiken 29.1%
29.1 % low-access
- Berkeley
Berkeley 29%
29 % low-access
- Newberry
Newberry 28.7%
28.7 % low-access
- Lancaster
Lancaster 28.5%
28.5 % low-access
- Orangeburg
Orangeburg 28.4%
28.4 % low-access
- Barnwell 0
Barnwell 0%
0 % low-access
Food Access (USDA FARA 2019)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Census Tracts | 14 |
| Atlas Population (2010 basis) | 76,652 |
| Low-Access Tracts | 6 |
| Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access) | 2 |
| Low-Access Population | 21,830 |
| Low-Access Share | 28.5%above the national average |
| Low-Income & Low-Access Population | 5,352 |
ACS 2024 · lower SNAP band
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 104,475 |
| Median Household Income | $78,869 |
| Poverty Rate | 11.4%below the national average |
| SNAP Households | 3,874 |
| SNAP Participation Rate | 9.7%below the national average |
| Households Without a Vehicle | 3.4%well below the national average |
| Group-Quarters Population | 1.6% |
Thick SNAP store book in Lancaster County
Lancaster County has 95 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 7 store categories. Convenience Store lead with 43 locations (45% of the total), followed by combination grocery/other.
Where the store book sits, by town
5 towns share the 95 authorized stores; Lancaster holds 61% of them. Every one of these towns has at least one grocery-grade outlet (19 across the county).
| Town | SNAP stores | Grocery-grade |
|---|---|---|
| Lancaster | 58 | 6 |
| Fort Mill | 13 | 2 |
| Indian Land | 10 | 8 |
| Kershaw | 10 | 2 |
| Heath Springs | 4 | 1 |
Convenience Store · 43
- 903 discount beverage, lancaster
- am pm gas & grill, lancaster
- bypass stop & go, lancaster
- c & g mini mart, lancaster
- circle k 2709088, lancaster
- cobblestone creek market, fort mill
- community discount beverage, lancaster
- corner market, lancaster
- country corner, lancaster
- family food store, lancaster
- five points in & out, lancaster
- flat creek quick stop, kershaw
- forks the, lancaster
- fuel express 1, lancaster
- jacks convience stores of lancaster, lancaster
- korner kupboard citgo 1, lancaster
- lloyds mini mart, lancaster
- m and r mini mart, lancaster
- market express 17383, fort mill
- market street grocery, lancaster
- midway grocery, lancaster
- mj mart 1, fort mill
- murphy express 8528, lancaster
- nouria 1240 great falls highway 300, lancaster
- quick stop #1, kershaw
- quik trip 1049, indian land
- quiktrip 1048, indian land
- riverside express, lancaster
- refuel 1024, kershaw
- stop-n-shop, lancaster
- sams mart 81, fort mill
- scotchman 3892, lancaster
- scotchman 3893, lancaster
- smokerise, lancaster
- south 200 discount beverage 1, lancaster
- speedee mart, lancaster
- swami mart 1, heath springs
- the market, lancaster
- tripstop, fort mill
- unity grocery, lancaster
- xpress mart #100, lancaster
- xpress mart 107, lancaster
- yogi food mart, kershaw
Combination Grocery/Other · 29
- cvs pharmacy 5476, lancaster
- cvs pharmacy 5479, fort mill
- cvs pharmacy 7005, lancaster
- dollar general 3223, lancaster
- dollar general 9371, lancaster
- dollar general 11333, heath springs
- dollar general 11912, lancaster
- dollar general 13004, lancaster
- dollar general 13194, lancaster
- dollar general 20773, lancaster
- dollar general 21344, kershaw
- dollar general 21484, lancaster
- dollar general 31009, lancaster
- dollar tree 5781, fort mill
- dollar tree 6356, kershaw
- dollar tree 7570, fort mill
- dollar tree 7851, lancaster
- dollar tree 937, lancaster
- family dollar 10379, lancaster
- family dollar 13203, lancaster
- family dollar 13477, heath springs
- family dollar 13500, lancaster
- family dollar 31, lancaster
- family dollar 919, kershaw
- family dollar store 10043, lancaster
- radhe indian supermarket, fort mill
- walgreen 10448, lancaster
- walgreens 11564, fort mill
- walgreens 17078, kershaw
Supermarket · 11
- aldi 66034, indian land
- aldi 66102, lancaster
- aldi 66126, fort mill
- food lion 1084, lancaster
- food lion 1209, lancaster
- food lion 2570, fort mill
- kershaw iga 645, kershaw
- kj's market-lancaster 610, lancaster
- lowes foods #283 283, indian land
- publix 1412, indian land
- smalls food center heath springs, heath springs
Super Store · 7
- costco wholesale 1714, indian land
- harris teeter 372, indian land
- lidl 1015, indian land
- target store t2934, indian land
- the meat center, lancaster
- walmart 1030, lancaster
- walmart supercenter 4237, indian land
Small Grocery Store · 3
- aladdin market, fort mill
- tienda mi pais, lancaster
- tienda mi pais 1462, lancaster
Fruits/Veg Specialty · 1
- derby's ice cream, lancaster
Large Grocery Store · 1
- smalls food center kershaw 1, kershaw
Source: USDA SNAP Retailer Locator (currently authorized stores, a live third population, not the 2019 Atlas or ACS 2024 snapshot above).
Other Counties in South Carolina
One of 45 counties in South Carolina, 6 are shown here.
Compare Lancaster County vs Abbeville County → · All South Carolina counties →
Nationwide peers for Lancaster County's low-access or SNAP share
SNAP-led peer set first for Lancaster County (9.7%), with low-access neighbours deduped against it, both outside South Carolina.
Similar low-access share
Nearest low-access rates outside SC (28.5% here).
- Brazos County, TX · 28.5% low-access
- Callahan County, TX · 28.5% low-access
- Whitman County, WA · 28.5% low-access
- Suffolk County, NY · 28.5% low-access
Similar SNAP participation
Nearest household SNAP rates outside SC (9.7% here).
- Fayette County, TN · 9.7% SNAP
- Orange County, VT · 9.7% SNAP
- Madison County, OH · 9.7% SNAP
- Polk County, NC · 9.7% 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.
South Carolina among South Atlantic states
South Carolina ranks 2nd of 9 South Atlantic states by population-weighted low-access (28.7%). Lancaster County, at 28.5%, runs 0.2 pts below the South Carolina rate.
- Georgia 30.9%
- South Carolina 28.7%
- Delaware 27.3%
- Florida 25.1%
- North Carolina 22.9%
- Maryland 22.7%
- West Virginia 21.3%
- Virginia 20.4%
- District of Columbia 4.6%
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 Lancaster County, SC are computed from the joined Atlas and ACS records for FIPS 45057. 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.