Signature · 5.8% SNAP (2nd pct in NC)
Orange County, NC
Orange County lands in the lower national band on low-access (8.7%); supermarket distance is less binding than in the upper band, though local tracts can still diverge.
- 8.7%
- low-access pop.
- 0
- food-desert tracts
- 5.8%
- on SNAP
- 150K
- residents (ACS 2024)
USDA FARA access plate
County Orange County, NC
LA-MODERATE · BELOW-NATIONAL · LILA-NONE · SNAP-LIGHT · VEH-OK · DENSITY-CLEAR
- LA-MODERATE 8.7% low-access
- BELOW-NATIONAL -13.4 pts vs US
- LILA-NONE 0 food-desert tracts
- SNAP-LIGHT 5.8% SNAP
- VEH-OK 4.9% no vehicle
- DENSITY-CLEAR 0% tracts LILA
Nearest low-access peer: Caswell County (+ 0.0 pts)
Lower-band low-access
Orange County lands in the lower national band (8.7%, #2,585 of 3,079); local tracts can still diverge from the county mean.
- #2,585
- national by low-access %
- #70
- in NC
- 6
- low-access tracts
- 3K
- food-desert residents
Lower-band county means still leave tract outliers on the table below.
Signature read: 5.8% SNAP (2nd pct in NC) (-6.3 pts vs U.S. SNAP) .
How Orange County compares nationally
Orange County lands in the middle of the national distribution: a 8.7% low-access share that beats 17% of the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA data (rank #2,586).
Orange County's lower-band USDA tier split
28 census tracts grouped by USDA classification .
By USDA urbanicity classification, Orange County has 17 urban and 11 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.
Orange County vs nearby low low-access peers
Poles + nearest peers in North Carolina, not a full county-board reprint
- Hyde
Hyde 60.5%
60.5 % low-access
- Orange 8.7
Orange 8.7%
8.7 % low-access
- Caswell 8.7
Caswell 8.7%
8.7 % low-access
- Cherokee 8.7
Cherokee 8.7%
8.7 % low-access
- Robeson 8.5
Robeson 8.5%
8.5 % low-access
- Anson 8.4
Anson 8.4%
8.4 % low-access
- Greene 0.1
Greene 0.1%
0.1 % low-access
FARA 2019 · lower low-access
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Census Tracts | 28 |
| Atlas Population (2010 basis) | 133,801 |
| Low-Access Tracts | 6 |
| Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access) | 0 |
| Low-Access Population | 11,617 |
| Low-Access Share | 8.7%well below the national average |
| Low-Income & Low-Access Population | 2,914 |
ACS 2024 · lower SNAP band
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 149,678 |
| Median Household Income | $90,089 |
| Poverty Rate | 12.5%below the national average |
| SNAP Households | 3,352 |
| SNAP Participation Rate | 5.8%well below the national average |
| Households Without a Vehicle | 4.9%well below the national average |
| Group-Quarters Population | 7.9% |
Thick SNAP store book in Orange County
Orange County has 82 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 10 store categories. Convenience Store lead with 34 locations (41% of the total), followed by supermarket.
Convenience Store · 34
- airport rd family fare 105, chapel hill
- buy & go 1, chapel hill
- carolina blue mini mart inc, chapel hill
- cedar village family fare 168, chapel hill
- circle k 2720382, hillsborough
- circle k 2720386, carrboro
- circle k 2720818, hillsborough
- circle k 2720941, carrboro
- circle k 2723089, chapel hill
- circle k 2723101, chapel hill
- circle k 2723102, chapel hill
- daniel boone family fare 211, hillsborough
- foodmart 12, hillsborough
- glen lennox family fare 265, chapel hill
- han-dee hugos 259, hillsborough
- han-dee hugo's 70, carrboro
- hillsborough family fare 305, hillsborough
- in & out market 7 llc, hillsborough
- key food mart, chapel hill
- mi amigos, mebane
- my stop, chapel hill
- new american, hillsborough
- psm food mart, chapel hill
- quality mart 9 1602, hillsborough
- refuel 1107, chapel hill
- refuel 1112, chapel hill
- refuel 1113, chapel hill
- refuel 1181, hillsborough
- sheetz 647, hillsborough
- sheetz 902, chapel hill
- short stop, carrboro
- speedway 6974, chapel hill
- tienda lagos meat market i i 1, hillsborough
- twins market tobacco llc, hillsborough
Supermarket · 13
- aldi 66142, chapel hill
- aldi 66155, hillsborough
- food lion 142, carrboro
- food lion 1480, chapel hill
- food lion 1544, carrboro
- food lion 1608, chapel hill
- food lion 197, chapel hill
- food lion 198, hillsborough
- food lion 2564, hillsborough
- lowes food store 167, chapel hill
- the fresh market 094, chapel hill
- trader joe's 745, chapel hill
- wegmans chapel hill 140, chapel hill
Combination Grocery/Other · 12
- cvs pharmacy 3898, chapel hill
- cvs pharmacy 3833, carrboro
- dollar general 3015, carrboro
- dollar general 4034, hillsborough
- dollar general 11584, hillsborough
- dollar general 16099, mebane
- dollar tree 2934, hillsborough
- walgreens 10432, chapel hill
- walgreens 11358, carrboro
- walgreens 11547, chapel hill
- walgreens 16122, chapel hill
- walgreens 16128, hillsborough
Super Store · 10
- harris teeter 117, chapel hill
- harris teeter 120, chapel hill
- harris teeter 223, chapel hill
- harris teeter 297, carrboro
- target 3241, chapel hill
- weaver st market 3, hillsborough
- weaver street market 1, carrboro
- walmart supercenter 1191, hillsborough
- weaver street market 2, chapel hill
- whole foods market 10008, chapel hill
Farmers' Market · 4
- chapel hill-carrboro farmers market inc, carrboro
- dk fresh foods, mebane
- eno river farmer's market, inc. 0605857, hillsborough
- the chapel hill farmers' market, chapel hill
Medium Grocery Store · 3
- farm and garden center, hillsborough
- kaw thoo lei grocery asian market, chapel hill
- steve's garden market and butchery, hillsborough
Small Grocery Store · 3
- america & mexico convenience store, llc 1, hillsborough
- bravo's market, chapel hill
- hill's family asian market llc, chapel hill
Large Grocery Store · 1
- efland supermarket, efland
Meat/Poultry Specialty · 1
- cliff's corner meats, carrboro
Seafood Specialty · 1
- island time excursions, mebane
Source: USDA SNAP Retailer Locator (currently authorized stores, a live third population, not the 2019 Atlas or ACS 2024 snapshot above).
Other Counties in North Carolina
One of 99 counties in North Carolina, 6 are shown here.
Compare Orange County vs Alamance County → · All North Carolina counties →
Counties near Orange County's lower low-access or SNAP band
SNAP-led peer set first for Orange County (5.8%), with low-access neighbours deduped against it, both outside North Carolina.
Similar low-access share
Nearest low-access rates outside NC (8.7% here).
- Bedford County, VA · 8.7% low-access
- Bedford County, VA · 8.7% low-access
- Randolph County, WV · 8.7% low-access
- Randolph County, WV · 8.7% low-access
Similar SNAP participation
Nearest household SNAP rates outside NC (5.8% here).
- Burleigh County, ND · 5.8% SNAP
- Burleigh County, ND · 5.8% SNAP
- Chambers County, TX · 5.8% SNAP
- Chambers County, TX · 5.8% 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.
Orange County inside a lower low-access state context
Orange County sits inside North Carolina (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 Orange County, NC are computed from the joined Atlas and ACS records for FIPS 37135. 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.