County food-access profile · South Carolina
Pickens County, SC
Pickens 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.
- 42.6%
- low-access pop.
- 8
- food-desert tracts
- 8.3%
- on SNAP
- 135K
- residents (ACS 2024)
The food-access picture
42.6% of Pickens County residents live in a low-access area, and 8 of its 28 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts.
- 16
- low-access tracts
- 19K
- food-desert residents
- 6.4%
- households, no vehicle
- 17.2%
- 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).
Pickens County carries one of the more serious food-access burdens the USDA Atlas tracks: its low-access share of 42.6% is well above the national share. 16 of the county's 28 census tracts fall into that category, areas where residents live far from a supermarket, covering about 50,757 people. 8 of those also meet the low-income condition that defines a food desert, home to roughly 18,601 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 Pickens County compares nationally
Pickens County sits among the nation's most food-access-constrained counties: its 42.6% low-access share outpaces 90% of the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA data, ranking #328 most-affected nationwide.
Pickens County: USDA Food-Access Tier Breakdown
All 28 census tracts in Pickens County, grouped by USDA classification (see "How the USDA defines low-access and food-desert tracts" above for what each tier means).
Pickens County vs. other South Carolina counties
Share of the population living in low-access areas, compared with other counties in South Carolina
- Pickens
Pickens County, SC
42.6 % low-access
- Abbeville
Abbeville County, SC
20.4 % low-access
- Aiken
Aiken County, SC
29.1 % low-access
- Allendale 2.3
Allendale County, SC
2.3 % low-access
- Anderson
Anderson County, SC
36.1 % low-access
- Bamberg
Bamberg County, SC
27.1 % low-access
Food Access (USDA FARA 2019)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Census Tracts | 28 |
| Atlas Population (2010 basis) | 119,224 |
| Low-Access Tracts | 16 |
| Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access) | 8 |
| Low-Access Population | 50,757 |
| Low-Access Share | 42.6%well above the national average |
| Low-Income & Low-Access Population | 18,601 |
Demographics & Assistance (Census ACS 2024)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 134,629 |
| Median Household Income | $61,064 |
| Poverty Rate | 17.2%above the national average |
| SNAP Households | 4,369 |
| SNAP Participation Rate | 8.3%below the national average |
| Households Without a Vehicle | 6.4%below the national average |
| Group-Quarters Population | 6.3% |
About 8.3% of Pickens County households receive SNAP, versus a U.S. county median in the 11–13% range (Census ACS).
What this means
- 42.6% of residents are low-access, well above the national share for U.S. counties.
- 8.3% of households receive SNAP, the federal program that offsets food costs for 4,369 households here.
- 6.4% 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 Pickens County
well above the national share
8 of Pickens County's 28 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts, low-income areas where many residents also live far from a supermarket, about 28.6% of all its tracts.
A further 8 tracts are low-access but not low-income, bringing the total low-access tract count to 16.
An estimated 50,757 residents, roughly 42.6% of the county's 2010 population, live in one of these low-access areas.
Of those, 18,601 are also low-income, the group most exposed to genuine food hardship, since limited transportation compounds a limited budget.
The remaining 12 tracts (42.9%) meet the USDA's adequate-access threshold.
SNAP retailers in Pickens County
Pickens County has 112 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 6 store categories. Convenience Store lead with 58 locations (52% of the total), followed by combination grocery/other.
Convenience Store · 58
- 7-eleven 36852a 36852a, clemson
- bi fast store, easley
- bj's food store, pickens
- blue ridge produce, pickens
- central express, central
- circle k 272423, clemson
- clemson university, clemson
- corner food mart, easley
- country corner, pickens
- country food mart, easley
- country mart 1, easley
- dacusville farmers market, inc., easley
- dodge store 8707, easley
- durhams convenience mart, six mile
- easley mart 1, easley
- eds gts express mart, greenville
- ez stop food store, liberty
- farmers market, easley
- garden spot, norris
- garden spot, easley
- griffin grocery no, pickens
- gulf food store, easley
- hot spot 1201, easley
- hot spot 4002, easley
- hot spot 4004, pickens
- kc mart 4 n/a, central
- la costena super market llc, easley
- liberty food store, liberty
- m mart 2 1, liberty
- maws grocery, central
- midway stop, easley
- new market, central
- om food mart, easley
- plez u, easley
- quiktrip 1121, easley
- stop-a-minit 29, clemson
- sonny's market, central
- speedy mart, easley
- speedy mart, easley
- speedymart, easley
- spinx 101, easley
- spinx 141, pickens
- spinx 199, liberty
- spinx 223, easley
- spinx 226, easley
- stop n go clemson, clemson
- stop and shop easley, easley
- stop-a-minit 12, liberty
- stop-a-minit 19, pickens
- store and more, pickens
- super stop, easley
- tiger gas vault, clemson
- winslett's produce, easley
- xpress mart, easley
- xpress mart 104, pickens
- xpress mart 106 106, liberty
- xpress mart 108, pickens
- zee mart, easley
Combination Grocery/Other · 36
- anderson's butcher shop, easley
- cvs pharmacy 3533, easley
- cvs pharmacy 4026, clemson
- cvs pharmacy 4286, easley
- cvs pharmacy 5598, liberty
- cvs pharmacy 7534, pickens
- dollar general 19470, pickens
- dollar general 5872, six mile
- dollar general 6875, easley
- dollar general 8592, liberty
- dollar general 8652, pickens
- dollar general 9311, easley
- dollar general 9667, easley
- dollar tree 2442, easley
- dollar general 13415, easley
- dollar general 14885, central
- dollar general 15242, easley
- dollar general 15508, pickens
- dollar general 15683, easley
- dollar general 15931, liberty
- dollar general 21413, easley
- dollar general 22715, pickens
- dollar general 24036, pickens
- dollar general 24484, liberty
- dollar general 7140, central
- dollar tree 2832, central
- dollar tree 5394, pickens
- dollar tree 7647, clemson
- dollar tree 8419, liberty
- family dollar store 4487, liberty
- family dollar store 6260, easley
- family dollar 13721, six mile
- mile creek farms market, six mile
- walgreens 11400, easley
- walgreens 11698, pickens
- walgreens 11769, clemson
Supermarket · 10
- aldi 76092, easley
- ingles markets 17, pickens
- ingles markets 251, easley
- ingles markets 253, liberty
- ingles markets 51, easley
- ingles markets 53, clemson
- publix 0205, easley
- publix 1379, clemson
- save-a-lot food store 24752, laurens
- save-a-lot food store 24817, pickens
Super Store · 5
- sam's club 4901, easley
- walmart 3222, central
- walmart neighborhood market 4445, clemson
- walmart supercenter 631, easley
- walmart supercenter 3191, pickens
Medium Grocery Store · 2
- los parientes meat market and grocery, easley
- supermercado el torito, easley
Small Grocery Store · 1
- supermercado linasur, easley
Source: USDA SNAP Retailer Locator, currently authorized retailers.
Other Counties in South Carolina
Compare Pickens County vs Abbeville County → · All South Carolina counties →
Food access nationally, South Carolina in context
Pickens County sits inside South Carolina (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 Pickens County has low food access? ▼
What is the SNAP participation rate in Pickens County? ▼
What is the poverty rate in Pickens County? ▼
Is Pickens County a food desert? ▼
What share of Pickens 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.