County food-access profile · Virginia
Roanoke city, VA
Roanoke city's food-access picture is close to the national norm, with pockets that qualify as low-access. This profile breaks down who qualifies as a food desert and the income, SNAP, and vehicle-access context behind it.
- 18.7%
- low-access pop.
- 10
- food-desert tracts
- 16.9%
- on SNAP
- 98K
- residents (ACS 2024)
The food-access picture
18.7% of Roanoke city residents live in a low-access area, and 10 of its 23 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts.
- 12
- low-access tracts
- 7K
- food-desert residents
- 11.0%
- households, no vehicle
- 18.3%
- 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).
Roanoke city's low-access share sits near the national share, at 18.7% per the USDA Atlas. 12 of the county's 23 census tracts are flagged low-access, covering roughly 18,141 residents who live far from a supermarket. 10 of those also meet the low-income condition that defines a food desert, home to roughly 7,060 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 Roanoke city compares nationally
Roanoke city lands in the middle of the national distribution: a 18.7% low-access share that beats 43% of the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA data (rank #1,794).
Roanoke city: USDA Food-Access Tier Breakdown
All 23 census tracts in Roanoke city, grouped by USDA classification (see "How the USDA defines low-access and food-desert tracts" above for what each tier means).
Roanoke city vs. other Virginia counties
Share of the population living in low-access areas, compared with other counties in Virginia
- Roanoke city
Roanoke city, VA
18.7 % low-access
- Accomack 2.2
Accomack County, VA
2.2 % low-access
- Albemarle
Albemarle County, VA
11.9 % low-access
- Alexandria city 0
Alexandria city, VA
0 % low-access
- Alleghany
Alleghany County, VA
16.4 % low-access
- Amelia
Amelia County, VA
16.5 % low-access
Food Access (USDA FARA 2019)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Census Tracts | 23 |
| Atlas Population (2010 basis) | 97,032 |
| Low-Access Tracts | 12 |
| Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access) | 10 |
| Low-Access Population | 18,141 |
| Low-Access Share | 18.7%below the national average |
| Low-Income & Low-Access Population | 7,060 |
Demographics & Assistance (Census ACS 2024)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 98,355 |
| Median Household Income | $55,378 |
| Poverty Rate | 18.3%above the national average |
| SNAP Households | 7,359 |
| SNAP Participation Rate | 16.9%above the national average |
| Households Without a Vehicle | 11.0%above the national average |
| Group-Quarters Population | 1.8% |
About 16.9% of Roanoke city households receive SNAP, versus a U.S. county median in the 11–13% range (Census ACS).
What this means
- 18.7% of residents are low-access, near the national share for U.S. counties.
- 16.9% of households receive SNAP, the federal program that offsets food costs for 7,359 households here.
- 11.0% of households have no vehicle, the hidden multiplier that turns distance into a real barrier.
- 10 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 Roanoke city
near the national share
10 of Roanoke city's 23 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts, low-income areas where many residents also live far from a supermarket, about 43.5% of all its tracts.
A further 2 tracts are low-access but not low-income, bringing the total low-access tract count to 12.
An estimated 18,141 residents, roughly 18.7% of the county's 2010 population, live in one of these low-access areas.
Of those, 7,060 are also low-income, the group most exposed to genuine food hardship, since limited transportation compounds a limited budget.
The remaining 11 tracts (47.8%) meet the USDA's adequate-access threshold.
SNAP retailers in Roanoke city
Roanoke city has 191 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 8 store categories. Convenience Store lead with 98 locations (51% of the total), followed by combination grocery/other.
Convenience Store · 98
- 202 market, roanoke
- 7-eleven 11976, roanoke
- 7-eleven 35042j, roanoke
- 7-eleven inc f 11981b, roanoke
- 7-eleven inc f 21878b, roanoke
- 7-eleven, inc. 11961j, roanoke
- 7-eleven, inc. 35041j, roanoke
- 7-eleven 11974b, roanoke
- 8 a's, roanoke
- a & a cash market, roanoke
- a and m market, roanoke
- a and m market, roanoke
- annwil groceries, roanoke
- be quick market #2 n/a, vinton
- be quick market none, vinton
- boulevard mart, roanoke
- bp gas station, roanoke
- brambleton neighborhood store, roanoke
- brambleton station 4, roanoke
- brother's mart, roanoke
- cavern petro inc., salem
- chester's shell station, roanoke
- circle k 2652073, roanoke
- circle k 2723718, roanoke
- community grocery 1, roanoke
- cove market 1, roanoke
- crescent heights grocery, roanoke
- crossroads foodmart, roanoke
- d&g mart, roanoke
- duck in market llc, roanoke
- express stop, roanoke
- foodway market, roanoke
- fast stop mart 1, roanoke
- flowers bakery outlet 379, roanoke
- friendly mart, roanoke
- gas n shop, roanoke
- glenvar minute market, salem
- go mart 94, roanoke
- hanging rock express grocery, roanoke
- happy shopper, roanoke
- hershberger bp, roanoke
- hollins foodmart, roanoke
- jack's market, inc., roanoke
- jacks shop in, roanoke
- jennifer grocery, roanoke
- joy mart, roanoke
- k&s african market, roanoke
- kroger fuel center 208, roanoke
- lafayette mini mart, roanoke
- meera food 1, roanoke
- melrose stop mart, roanoke
- metro express 1, roanoke
- metro express 3, vinton
- mr a's mart, roanoke
- murphy usa 5528, roanoke
- murphy usa 7633, roanoke
- nikee foodmart, roanoke
- nishi food mart 3, roanoke
- nishi food mart 6, roanoke
- nishi food mart 7, roanoke
- nishi food mart 8, vinton
- nu deli mart, roanoke
- nu-deli mart, roanoke
- one stop market, roanoke
- one stop market 3, roanoke
- orange avenue foodmart, roanoke
- orange market, roanoke
- quick way c, roanoke
- quickway, roanoke
- reyna produce, roanoke
- roanoke food mart, roanoke
- royal deli mart, roanoke
- s & s grocery & deli, roanoke
- stop in food stores 8050, roanoke
- stop in food stores 8093, roanoke
- stop in food stores 8200, roanoke
- sam mart 88, roanoke
- sheetz 295, roanoke
- sheetz 742, roanoke
- sheetz 850, hollins
- sheetz 860, roanoke
- sheetz 887, roanoke
- skymart, roanoke
- snappy food mart, roanoke
- speedway 4633, roanoke
- speedway 4634, roanoke
- star city market n/a, roanoke
- star valley food mart, roanoke
- star valley minute mart, roanoke
- stop n stop shell, vinton
- sunnyside market, roanoke
- tia mart, roanoke
- tienda el sol latino inc, roanoke
- tiger mart n/a, roanoke
- triple s, roanoke
- va oms 2 llc, roanoke
- wasena market, roanoke
- wilmont market, roanoke
Combination Grocery/Other · 40
- big lots 3121, roanoke
- cvs pharmacy 6284, roanoke
- cvs pharmacy 6285, roanoke
- cvs pharmacy 6296, roanoke
- cvs pharmacy 3949, roanoke
- cvs pharmacy 4161, vinton
- cvs pharmacy 4378, roanoke
- cvs pharmacy 6292, roanoke
- cvs pharmacy 7503, roanoke
- cvs pharmacy 7577, roanoke
- dollar tree 246, roanoke
- dollartree 9088, roanoke
- dollartree plus 9036, roanoke
- dollar general 12994, roanoke
- dollar general 14606, roanoke
- dollar general 2507, roanoke
- dollar general 3766, roanoke
- dollar general 3920, roanoke
- dollar general 3971, roanoke
- dollar general 7, roanoke
- dollar general 8907, roanoke
- dollar tree 1957, vinton
- dollar tree 249, roanoke
- dollar tree 4968, roanoke
- dollar tree 5891, roanoke
- dollar tree 6678, roanoke
- dollar tree 7626, roanoke
- dollar tree 8560, roanoke
- family dollar 11042, roanoke
- family dollar 11518, roanoke
- family dollar 22, roanoke
- family dollar 28, roanoke
- family dollar 6954, roanoke
- family dollar store 8038, roanoke
- roanoke natural foods co-op, roanoke
- saigon market, roanoke
- the grocer, roanoke
- walgreens 05216, roanoke
- walgreens 05217, roanoke
- walgreens 07605, roanoke
Super Store · 16
- bj's wholesale club 219, roanoke
- kroger 400, roanoke
- kroger 401, roanoke
- kroger 202, roanoke
- kroger 209, roanoke
- kroger 322, vinton
- kroger 325, roanoke
- kroger 375, roanoke
- kroger 391, roanoke
- sam's club 8220, roanoke
- target store 1162, roanoke
- walmart 1301, roanoke
- walmart neighborhood market 3614, roanoke
- walmart neighborhood market 3622, roanoke
- walmart supercenter 2312, roanoke
- walmart supercenter 3243, roanoke
Medium Grocery Store · 15
- a1 afghan mart 1, roanoke
- annwil groceries 2, roanoke
- amay super market corp, roanoke
- asian grocery & halal food, roanoke
- food giant, inc., roanoke
- g market indian & asian groceries, roanoke
- international asian halal market, roanoke
- j&j general african market, roanoke
- la bodega hispana, roanoke
- la esquina latina & dollar items, roanoke
- la estrella latina, roanoke
- roanoke grocery market rgm beirut 1, roanoke
- super amanecer 2 0, roanoke
- super asian fresh market, roanoke
- tienda la preferida llc, roanoke
Supermarket · 11
- aldi 66042 66042, roanoke
- earth fare 770, roanoke
- food lion 137, vinton
- food lion 1574, roanoke
- food lion 1652, roanoke
- food lion 210, roanoke
- food lion 278, roanoke
- food lion 383, roanoke
- food lion 607, roanoke
- market on melrose, roanoke
- the fresh market 067, roanoke
Small Grocery Store · 5
- bethlehem restaurant and grocery inc, roanoke
- carniceria lily, roanoke
- leap community store, roanoke
- roanoke halal food market, roanoke
- roanoke natural foods co-op market square, roanoke
Farmers' Market · 4
- local environmental agriculture project, inc., roanoke
- local environmental agriculture project, inc., roanoke
- the historic roanoke city market, roanoke
- vinton farmers' market, vinton
Delivery Route · 2
- leap mobile market, roanoke
- united steaks of america, roanoke
Source: USDA SNAP Retailer Locator, currently authorized retailers.
Other Counties in Virginia
Compare Roanoke city vs Accomack County → · All Virginia counties →
Food access nationally, Virginia in context
Roanoke city sits inside Virginia (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 Roanoke city has low food access? ▼
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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.