Signature · 4 LILA tracts (28.6% of tracts)
Mason County, WA
Mason County's signature pressure is desert tracts: 4 LILA tracts (28.6% of the book) alongside 13.2% low-access.
- 13.2%
- low-access pop.
- 4
- food-desert tracts
- 15.2%
- on SNAP
- 68K
- residents (ACS 2024)
USDA FARA access plate
County Mason County, WA
LA-MODERATE · BELOW-NATIONAL · LILA-POCKET · SNAP-HEAVY · VEH-OK · DENSITY-DENSE
- LA-MODERATE 13.2% low-access
- BELOW-NATIONAL -8.9 pts vs US
- LILA-POCKET 4 food-desert tracts
- SNAP-HEAVY 15.2% SNAP
- VEH-OK 3.9% no vehicle
- DENSITY-DENSE 29% tracts LILA
Nearest low-access peer: Okanogan County (+ 0.4 pts)
Lower-band low-access
Mason County lands in the lower national band (13.2%, #2,258 of 3,079); local tracts can still diverge from the county mean.
- #2,258
- national by low-access %
- #33
- in WA
- 5
- low-access tracts
- 4K
- food-desert residents
Lower-band county means still leave tract outliers on the table below.
Signature read: 4 LILA tracts (28.6% of tracts) .
How Mason County compares nationally
Mason County lands in the middle of the national distribution: a 13.2% low-access share that beats 28% of the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA data (rank #2,259).
Mason County's lower-band USDA tier split
14 census tracts grouped by USDA classification · 4 LILA.
By USDA urbanicity classification, Mason County has 4 urban and 10 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.
Mason County vs nearby low low-access peers
Poles + nearest peers in Washington, not a full county-board reprint
- Douglas
Douglas 55.5%
55.5 % low-access
- Asotin 13.8
Asotin 13.8%
13.8 % low-access
- Okanogan 13.6
Okanogan 13.6%
13.6 % low-access
- Mason 13.2
Mason 13.2%
13.2 % low-access
- Garfield 12.4
Garfield 12.4%
12.4 % low-access
- Klickitat 11.8
Klickitat 11.8%
11.8 % low-access
- San Juan 0
San Juan 0%
0 % low-access
FARA 2019 · lower low-access
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Census Tracts | 14 |
| Atlas Population (2010 basis) | 60,699 |
| Low-Access Tracts | 5 |
| Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access) | 4 |
| Low-Access Population | 8,008 |
| Low-Access Share | 13.2%well below the national average |
| Low-Income & Low-Access Population | 3,667 |
ACS 2024 · elevated SNAP band
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 67,982 |
| Median Household Income | $83,270 |
| Poverty Rate | 12.3%below the national average |
| SNAP Households | 3,954 |
| SNAP Participation Rate | 15.2%above the national average |
| Households Without a Vehicle | 3.9%well below the national average |
| Group-Quarters Population | 2.4% |
Thick SNAP store book in Mason County
Mason County has 48 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 9 store categories. Convenience Store lead with 26 locations (54% of the total), followed by small grocery store.
Convenience Store · 26
- airport grocery, shelton
- agate store, shelton
- am/pm gas station, shelton
- bayshore shell corporation, shelton
- ben's deli mart, allyn
- bucks prairie mercantile, elma
- dayton store, shelton
- deer creek store, shelton
- eldon store 3, lilliwaup
- food mart, shelton
- hillcrest shell, shelton
- james food mart, shelton
- la guatemalteca, belfair
- la loma meat market, shelton
- lake cushman store, hoodsport
- matlock general store, matlock
- micky's deli, shelton
- olympic food mart, shelton
- olympic texaco, shelton
- randy's short stop 1, belfair
- spencer lake grocery, shelton
- sunset beach grocery & deli, belfair
- taylor town store and subway, shelton
- third generation limerick market, shelton
- twin totems deli & grocery, shelton
- union food mart, union
Small Grocery Store · 5
- jay's farmstand 3, shelton
- mi pueblo market 1, shelton
- shelton fruits corp, shelton
- shelton latino market, shelton
- tienda mi tierra guatemala llc 1, belfair
Super Store · 5
- belfair grocery outlet 609, belfair
- fred meyer 603, shelton
- hood canal market fresh, hoodsport
- qfc 101, belfair
- walmart 2121, shelton
Combination Grocery/Other · 3
- dollar tree 3217, shelton
- elena's tienda 1, shelton
- rivera's mini-mart, shelton
Medium Grocery Store · 3
- allyn market, allyn
- rivera's markets 01, shelton
- shelton shop and hop, llc, shelton
Bakery Specialty · 2
- papa murphy's take 'n' bake pizza wa173, shelton
- papa murphys belfair wa175, belfair
Supermarket · 2
- safeway 1571, belfair
- safeway 585, shelton
Farmers' Market · 1
- shelton farmers market, shelton
Large Grocery Store · 1
- home meat service, shelton
Source: USDA SNAP Retailer Locator (currently authorized stores, a live third population, not the 2019 Atlas or ACS 2024 snapshot above).
Other Counties in Washington
One of 38 counties in Washington, 6 are shown here.
Compare Mason County vs Adams County → · All Washington counties →
Counties near Mason County's lower low-access or SNAP band
Two USDA/ACS-derived peer sets for Mason County, both outside Washington so the neighborhoods are not the same-state county list above.
Similar low-access share
Nearest low-access rates outside WA (13.2% here).
- Jefferson Parish, LA · 13.2% low-access
- Jefferson Parish, LA · 13.2% low-access
- Marshall County, IL · 13.2% low-access
- Marshall County, IL · 13.2% low-access
Similar SNAP participation
Nearest household SNAP rates outside WA (15.2% here).
- Lynchburg city, VA · 15.2% SNAP
- Lynchburg city, VA · 15.2% SNAP
- Nottoway County, VA · 15.2% SNAP
- Nottoway County, VA · 15.2% 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.
Mason County inside a lower low-access state context
Mason County sits inside Washington (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 Mason County, WA are computed from the joined Atlas and ACS records for FIPS 53045. 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.