County food-access profile · Oregon
Linn County, OR
Distance to a supermarket is a real obstacle for a meaningful share of Linn 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).
- 34.7%
- low-access pop.
- 5
- food-desert tracts
- 19.7%
- on SNAP
- 131K
- residents (ACS 2024)
The food-access picture
34.7% of Linn County residents live in a low-access area, and 5 of its 21 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts.
- 12
- low-access tracts
- 13K
- food-desert residents
- 4.2%
- households, no vehicle
- 13.0%
- 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 Linn County's low-access share at 34.7%, above the national share. 12 of the county's 21 census tracts are classified low-access, meaning residents there live far from a supermarket, an area covering about 40,524 people. 5 of those also meet the low-income condition that defines a food desert, home to roughly 13,442 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 Linn County compares nationally
Relative to the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA food-access data, Linn County's 34.7% low-access share is elevated, higher than 80% of them and ranked #612 most-affected nationwide.
Linn County: USDA Food-Access Tier Breakdown
All 21 census tracts in Linn County, grouped by USDA classification (see "How the USDA defines low-access and food-desert tracts" above for what each tier means).
Linn County vs. other Oregon counties
Share of the population living in low-access areas, compared with other counties in Oregon
- Linn
Linn County, OR
34.7 % low-access
- Baker
Baker County, OR
37.9 % low-access
- Benton
Benton County, OR
27.9 % low-access
- Clackamas
Clackamas County, OR
17.3 % low-access
- Clatsop 12.4
Clatsop County, OR
12.4 % low-access
- Columbia 6.1
Columbia County, OR
6.1 % low-access
Food Access (USDA FARA 2019)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Census Tracts | 21 |
| Atlas Population (2010 basis) | 116,672 |
| Low-Access Tracts | 12 |
| Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access) | 5 |
| Low-Access Population | 40,524 |
| Low-Access Share | 34.7%well above the national average |
| Low-Income & Low-Access Population | 13,442 |
Demographics & Assistance (Census ACS 2024)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 130,706 |
| Median Household Income | $76,329 |
| Poverty Rate | 13.0%near the national average |
| SNAP Households | 10,009 |
| SNAP Participation Rate | 19.7%well above the national average |
| Households Without a Vehicle | 4.2%well below the national average |
| Group-Quarters Population | 1.3% |
About 19.7% of Linn County households receive SNAP, versus a U.S. county median in the 11–13% range (Census ACS).
What this means
- 34.7% of residents are low-access, above the national share for U.S. counties.
- 19.7% of households receive SNAP, the federal program that offsets food costs for 10,009 households here.
- 4.2% of households have no vehicle, the hidden multiplier that turns distance into a real barrier.
- 5 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 Linn County
above the national share
5 of Linn County's 21 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts, low-income areas where many residents also live far from a supermarket, about 23.8% of all its tracts.
A further 7 tracts are low-access but not low-income, bringing the total low-access tract count to 12.
An estimated 40,524 residents, roughly 34.7% of the county's 2010 population, live in one of these low-access areas.
Of those, 13,442 are also low-income, the group most exposed to genuine food hardship, since limited transportation compounds a limited budget.
The remaining 9 tracts (42.9%) meet the USDA's adequate-access threshold.
SNAP retailers in Linn County
Linn County has 107 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 10 store categories. Convenience Store lead with 64 locations (60% of the total), followed by combination grocery/other.
Convenience Store · 64
- 7 eleven 38799a, albany
- 7-eleven #38800b 38800b, sweet home
- 7-eleven 23216d, albany
- 7-eleven 38802a, albany
- 7-eleven #21911e 21911e, albany
- 7-eleven 23022c, albany
- 7-eleven 24230b 24230b, lebanon
- albany food market, albany
- american market 99, harrisburg
- arco am/pm mini mkt 5437, albany
- carson oil co inc 19, albany
- center market 37, albany
- circle k stores 2709640, albany
- circle k stores 2709642, tangent
- cottonwoods market, albany
- crawfordsville market 2, crawfordsville
- crowfoot grocery, lebanon
- dari mart store 20, harrisburg
- dari mart store 21, albany
- dari mart store 22, albany
- dari mart store 24, brownsville
- everyone's market 4, lebanon
- extramile convenience stores 0109, albany
- ez stop market & deli, harrisburg
- fast break market, albany
- foster lake market 1, sweet home
- gps market, albany
- geary street market, albany
- guru ramdas inc, halsey
- hill-top market, sweet home
- holley market, sweet home
- hwy 20 truck stop, albany
- hwy 34 market, albany
- knothole market and texaco, lebanon
- kwik mart, sweet home
- lacomb grocery, lebanon
- lebanon market, lebanon
- linn- benton community college bookstore, albany
- love's travel stop 728, albany
- lyons market, lyons
- main st market 7, lebanon
- main st. market 1, sweet home
- main st. market 2, sweet home
- midway market #1, sweet home
- priyanura inc, lebanon
- shedd market & deli, shedd
- santiam market, lebanon
- speedee mart 1, sweet home
- stop n save 8, albany
- stop-n-save #16, brownsville
- stop-n-save 9, albany
- stop-n-save 6, mill city
- store 1232, albany
- tom tom deli market chevron, albany
- towne pump, albany
- tri valley food mart, albany
- tri valley food mart #103, albany
- us market 170, albany
- us mini mart 2, lebanon
- us market 180, albany
- us mini mart 21, albany
- us mini mart 3, lebanon
- us market 250, albany
- west scio santiam market & deli 2, scio
Combination Grocery/Other · 12
- bi-mart 606, albany
- bi-mart 665, lebanon
- bi-mart 685, sweet home
- dollar general 18086, sweet home
- dollar general 18547, brownsville
- dollar general store 17223, harrisburg
- dollar tree 1508, albany
- dollar tree 2791, lebanon
- dollar tree 7588, sweet home
- mill city grocery n/a, mill city
- tienda la paloma llc, albany
- walgreens 06530, albany
Super Store · 7
- costco wholesale 0682, albany
- fred meyer 5, albany
- grocery outlet of lebanon 252, lebanon
- sweet home thriftway, sweet home
- target store t-0609, albany
- walmart 1775, lebanon
- walmart 5396, albany
Medium Grocery Store · 5
- carniceria los compadres, albany
- grocery deals, harrisburg
- the grocery depot 1, lebanon
- the grocery depot 2, albany
- wheeler dealer 4, albany
Supermarket · 5
- grocery outlet of albany or 148, albany
- safeway 1558, lebanon
- safeway 1659, albany
- safeway 1710, sweet home
- winco foods 143, albany
Farmers' Market · 4
- albany farmers market, albany
- lebanon downtown farmers market, lebanon
- lebanon downtown winter farmers market, lebanon
- sweet home farmers market, sweet home
Meat/Poultry Specialty · 4
- better beef company, albany
- murray beef, lebanon
- oregon valley family farm, albany
- sweet home meat market and smokehouse, sweet home
Bakery Specialty · 3
- franz bakery outlet 9010, albany
- papa murphy's 106 or106, lebanon
- papa murphy's or019, albany
Small Grocery Store · 2
- 4 seasons farmers market corp, lebanon
- lyons corner market, lyons
Large Grocery Store · 1
- stop n save 11, scio
Source: USDA SNAP Retailer Locator, currently authorized retailers.
Other Counties in Oregon
Compare Linn County vs Baker County → · All Oregon counties →
Food access nationally, Oregon in context
Linn County sits inside Oregon (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 Linn County has low food access? ▼
What is the SNAP participation rate in Linn County? ▼
What is the poverty rate in Linn County? ▼
Is Linn County a food desert? ▼
What share of Linn 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.