County food-access profile · Tennessee
Montgomery County, TN
Montgomery County sits among the counties with the widest food-access gaps the USDA tracks, most residents here live well outside a comfortable walk or drive to a supermarket. This profile covers who qualifies as a food desert and the income, SNAP, and vehicle-access context behind it.
- 47.0%
- low-access pop.
- 8
- food-desert tracts
- 8.1%
- on SNAP
- 234K
- residents (ACS 2024)
The food-access picture
47.0% of Montgomery County residents live in a low-access area, and 8 of its 39 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts.
- 29
- low-access tracts
- 27K
- food-desert residents
- 3.8%
- households, no vehicle
- 11.3%
- 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).
Montgomery County carries one of the more serious food-access burdens the USDA Atlas tracks: its low-access share of 47.0% is well above the national share. 29 of the county's 39 census tracts fall into that category, areas where residents live far from a supermarket, covering about 80,949 people. 8 of those also meet the low-income condition that defines a food desert, home to roughly 27,456 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 Montgomery County compares nationally
Montgomery County sits among the nation's most food-access-constrained counties: its 47.0% low-access share outpaces 92% of the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA data, ranking #245 most-affected nationwide.
Montgomery County: USDA Food-Access Tier Breakdown
All 39 census tracts in Montgomery County, grouped by USDA classification (see "How the USDA defines low-access and food-desert tracts" above for what each tier means).
Montgomery County vs. other Tennessee counties
Share of the population living in low-access areas, compared with other counties in Tennessee
- Montgomery
Montgomery County, TN
47 % low-access
- Anderson 10.9
Anderson County, TN
10.9 % low-access
- Bedford
Bedford County, TN
23 % low-access
- Benton 12.6
Benton County, TN
12.6 % low-access
- Bledsoe 4.7
Bledsoe County, TN
4.7 % low-access
- Blount
Blount County, TN
30.1 % low-access
Food Access (USDA FARA 2019)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Census Tracts | 39 |
| Atlas Population (2010 basis) | 172,331 |
| Low-Access Tracts | 29 |
| Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access) | 8 |
| Low-Access Population | 80,949 |
| Low-Access Share | 47.0%well above the national average |
| Low-Income & Low-Access Population | 27,456 |
Demographics & Assistance (Census ACS 2024)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 234,153 |
| Median Household Income | $75,613 |
| Poverty Rate | 11.3%below the national average |
| SNAP Households | 7,142 |
| SNAP Participation Rate | 8.1%below the national average |
| Households Without a Vehicle | 3.8%well below the national average |
| Group-Quarters Population | 1.9% |
About 8.1% of Montgomery County households receive SNAP, versus a U.S. county median in the 11–13% range (Census ACS).
What this means
- 47.0% of residents are low-access, well above the national share for U.S. counties.
- 8.1% of households receive SNAP, the federal program that offsets food costs for 7,142 households here.
- 3.8% of households have no vehicle, the hidden multiplier that turns distance into a real barrier.
- 8 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 Montgomery County
well above the national share
8 of Montgomery County's 39 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts, low-income areas where many residents also live far from a supermarket, about 20.5% of all its tracts.
A further 21 tracts are low-access but not low-income, bringing the total low-access tract count to 29.
An estimated 80,949 residents, roughly 47.0% of the county's 2010 population, live in one of these low-access areas.
Of those, 27,456 are also low-income, the group most exposed to genuine food hardship, since limited transportation compounds a limited budget.
The remaining 10 tracts (25.6%) meet the USDA's adequate-access threshold.
SNAP retailers in Montgomery County
Montgomery County has 159 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 11 store categories. Convenience Store lead with 68 locations (43% of the total), followed by combination grocery/other.
Convenience Store · 68
- 48 market, cunningham
- 7-eleven 42008h, clarksville
- a & t market, clarksville
- bizee mart 102 n/a, clarksville
- bob's discount tobacco, clarksville
- c & g food mart, clarksville
- circle k 4703915, clarksville
- circle k 4703916, clarksville
- chums store, clarksville
- circle k 4703689, clarksville
- circle k 4703702, clarksville
- circle k 4703703, clarksville
- circle k 4703707, clarksville
- coyote express mart/ exxon, clarksville
- cunningham market, clarksville
- dodge store 6604, clarksville
- express food mart, clarksville
- family's grocery store, clarksville
- fast stop 16, clarksville
- foodmart 1, clarksville
- grab and go smokes, clarksville
- greenwood market, clarksville
- hi road 28, clarksville
- hillside citgo, clarksville
- hiroad 01, clarksville
- hiroad 11, clarksville
- hiroad 15, clarksville
- hiroad 16, clarksville
- hiroad 17, clarksville
- hiroad 18, clarksville
- hiroad 2, clarksville
- hiroad 21, clarksville
- hiroad 22, clarksville
- hiroad 23, clarksville
- hiroad 24, clarksville
- hiroad 27, clarksville
- hiroad 6, clarksville
- hiroad 8, clarksville
- hiroad 9, clarksville
- karka inc, clarksville
- kwik n easy 2, clarksville
- la laguna llc, clarksville
- liya's tobacco & brew, clarksville
- mapco express, inc. 7502, clarksville
- mapco express, inc. 7509, clarksville
- mapco express, inc. 7514, clarksville
- marley tobacco & smoke, clarksville
- mini market, clarksville
- minit mart 4468, clarksville
- minit mart 4469, clarksville
- murphy usa 5367, clarksville
- murphy usa 5596, clarksville
- murphy usa 6776, clarksville
- oakwood food market, woodlawn
- palmyra market, palmyra
- quickstop#1, clarksville
- quiktrip 7149, clarksville
- racetrac 2550, clarksville
- raceway, clarksville
- rhino mart, clarksville
- royal mart, clarksville
- solomon, clarksville
- speedway 7127, clarksville
- speedway 7172, clarksville
- stop and shop market, clarksville
- taylor mart, clarksville
- the silver dollar, clarksville
- trap market, clarksville
Combination Grocery/Other · 52
- dollar general 0156, clarksville
- dollar general 0325, clarksville
- dollar general 1255, clarksville
- dollar general 19498, clarksville
- dollar general 249, clarksville
- dollar general 6159, clarksville
- dollartree 10437, clarksville
- dollar general 12177, clarksville
- dollar general 13030, clarksville
- dollar general 14011, clarksville
- dollar general 14728, clarksville
- dollar general 1483, clarksville
- dollar general 15132, clarksville
- dollar general 15558, palmyra
- dollar general 15591, clarksville
- dollar general 15643, clarksville
- dollar general 1949, clarksville
- dollar general 19849, clarksville
- dollar general 22373, clarksville
- dollar general 22625, clarksville
- dollar general 24261, clarksville
- dollar general 25473, woodlawn
- dollar general 25474, clarksville
- dollar general 25487, clarksville
- dollar general 30097, clarksville
- dollar general 30429, clarksville
- dollar general store 16500, clarksville
- dollar general store 8930, clarksville
- dollar tree 1038, clarsville
- dollar tree 295, clarksville
- dollar tree 6804, clarksville
- dollar tree 776, clarksville
- dollar tree 7881, clarksville
- sudden service 0028, clarksville
- sudden service 0044, clarksville
- sudden service 0052, clarksville
- sudden service 0067, clarksville
- sudden service 0069, clarksville
- sudden service 0075, clarksville
- sudden service 24, clarksville
- sudden service 25, clarksville
- sudden service 32, clarksville
- sudden service 35, clarksville
- sudden service 59, clarksville
- twice daily 11, clarksville
- twice daily 33, clarksville
- twice daily 49, clarksville
- walgreen 09340, clarksville
- walgreens 03775, clarksville
- walgreens 4313, clarksville
- walgreens 11852, clarksville
- walgreens 12875, clarksville
Super Store · 14
- dollar general market 9805, clarksville
- hilltop cee bee, clarksville
- kroger 582, clarksville
- kroger co #00544-c 544, clarksville
- kroger store #00540 540, clarksville
- kroger 580, clarksville
- sam's club 6512, clarksville
- target store 959, clarksville
- walmart 1075, clarksville
- walmart 673, clarksville
- walmart neighborhood market 4469, clarksville
- walmart neighborhood market 4589, clarksville
- walmart neighborhood market 4591, clarksville
- walmart s/c 3495, clarksville
Supermarket · 11
- aldi 70020, clarksville
- aldi 70113, clarksville
- food lion 0874, clarksville
- food lion 1473, clarksville
- gordon food service store mp146, clarksville
- oak grove piggly wiggly, clarksville
- price less foods 494, clarksville
- publix 1392, clarksville
- publix 1425, clarksville
- publix 1648, clarksville
- publix tennessee, llc 1802, clarksville
Small Grocery Store · 5
- authentic ponmo african and caribbean llc, clarksville
- el dorado market, clarksville
- el latino supermarket, clarksville
- new koa oriental food market, clarksville
- san miguel market, clarksville
Medium Grocery Store · 4
- dagan african market 1, clarksville
- hanyang oriental market, clarksville
- park it market, clarksville
- supermarket el supremo, clarksville
Bakery Specialty · 1
- papa murphy's pizza tn005, clarksville
Farmers' Market · 1
- clarksville downtown market, clarksville
Fruits/Veg Specialty · 1
- sadie's country store, clarksville
Large Grocery Store · 1
- fresh and fresh, clarksville
Seafood Specialty · 1
- little's fish company llc, clarksville
Source: USDA SNAP Retailer Locator, currently authorized retailers.
Other Counties in Tennessee
Compare Montgomery County vs Anderson County → · All Tennessee counties →
Food access nationally, Tennessee in context
Montgomery County sits inside Tennessee (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 Montgomery County has low food access? ▼
What is the SNAP participation rate in Montgomery County? ▼
What is the poverty rate in Montgomery County? ▼
Is Montgomery County a food desert? ▼
What share of Montgomery 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.