Signature · 4.6% SNAP (0th pct in AL)
Shelby County, AL
Shelby County sits in the upper national band on low-access (34.4%, +12.3 pts vs U.S.), with SNAP/vehicle context from ACS 2024.
- 34.4%
- low-access pop.
- 1
- food-desert tracts
- 4.6%
- on SNAP
- 230K
- residents (ACS 2024)
USDA FARA access plate
County Shelby County, AL
LA-ELEVATED · ABOVE-NATIONAL · LILA-SINGLE · SNAP-LIGHT · VEH-OK · DENSITY-THIN
- LA-ELEVATED 34.4% low-access
- ABOVE-NATIONAL +12.3 pts vs US
- LILA-SINGLE 1 food-desert tract
- SNAP-LIGHT 4.6% SNAP
- VEH-OK 2.5% no vehicle
- DENSITY-THIN 2% tracts LILA
Nearest low-access peer: Jefferson County (+ 0.0 pts)
Upper-band low-access
Shelby County sits in the upper national band (34.4%, #641 of 3,079) with 1 LILA tracts.
- #641
- national by low-access %
- #11
- in AL
- 25
- low-access tracts
- 11K
- food-desert residents
Upper-band counties often pair elevated low-access with clustered LILA tracts. Low access = >1 mile urban / >10 miles rural.
Signature read: 4.6% SNAP (0th pct in AL) (-7.5 pts vs U.S. SNAP) .
How Shelby County compares nationally
Relative to the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA food-access data, Shelby County's 34.4% low-access share is elevated, higher than 79% of them and ranked #646 most-affected nationwide.
Shelby County's elevated USDA tier split
48 census tracts grouped by USDA classification · 1 LILA.
By USDA urbanicity classification, Shelby County has 29 urban and 19 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.
Shelby County vs nearby high low-access peers
Poles + nearest peers in Alabama, not a full county-board reprint
- Bullock
Bullock 68.5%
68.5 % low-access
- Madison
Madison 34.8%
34.8 % low-access
- Shelby
Shelby 34.4%
34.4 % low-access
- Jefferson
Jefferson 34.4%
34.4 % low-access
- Autauga
Autauga 33.9%
33.9 % low-access
- Lee
Lee 33.6%
33.6 % low-access
- DeKalb 0
DeKalb 0%
0 % low-access
FARA 2019 · elevated low-access
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Census Tracts | 48 |
| Atlas Population (2010 basis) | 195,085 |
| Low-Access Tracts | 25 |
| Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access) | 1 |
| Low-Access Population | 67,201 |
| Low-Access Share | 34.4%well above the national average |
| Low-Income & Low-Access Population | 11,354 |
ACS 2024 · lower SNAP band
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 230,211 |
| Median Household Income | $97,961 |
| Poverty Rate | 7.2%well below the national average |
| SNAP Households | 4,014 |
| SNAP Participation Rate | 4.6%well below the national average |
| Households Without a Vehicle | 2.5%well below the national average |
| Group-Quarters Population | 1.7% |
Thick SNAP store book in Shelby County
Shelby County has 145 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 9 store categories. Convenience Store lead with 60 locations (41% of the total), followed by combination grocery/other.
Convenience Store · 60
- allen food mart, shelby
- ajex food mart, harpersville
- american fuel, montevallo
- b & b discount store, shelby
- bp shop, alabaster
- circle k 2704888, pelham
- circle k 2704893, calera
- caldwell shell, birmingham
- calera food mart, calera
- calera petro n/a, calera
- calera valero 159, calera
- chelsea quick mart, chelsea
- chevron food mart, alabaster, alabaster
- circle k 2723682, pelham
- circle k 2723806, chelsea
- circle k 2723807, alabaster
- circle k 2723809, birmingham
- circle k 2723816, helena
- circle k store 2707205, pelham
- circle k store 2709335, pelham
- crossroad food mart, montevallo
- crossroads chevron, pelham
- dogtown chevron 8, calera
- flowers bakery outlet 0122, calera
- gordos market inc 2, pelham
- helena jetpep, helena
- k&a llc, calera
- kent kwik 920, alabaster
- kent kwik 931, birmingham
- kent kwik 932, columbiana
- lexy express llc 0, alabaster
- mapco express, inc. 5175, calera
- mapco express, inc. 7549, hoover
- montevallo citgo, montevallo
- montevallo exxon, montevallo
- montevallo shell, montevallo
- murphy usa 6694, calera
- murphy usa 7051, pelham
- murphy usa 7545, chelsea
- murphy usa 7687, alabaster
- parv1inc no, alabaster
- pelham bp, pelham
- pelham exxon, pelham
- quiktrip 7171, calera
- rkp foodmart llc - alabaster shell, alabaster
- racetrac 2595, alabaster
- racetrac 2599, chelsea
- raceway 6818 01, pelham
- raceway 6819, pelham
- raceway 6825, hoover
- samarth, chelsea
- southern quick mart, alabaster
- spring creek grocery, shelby
- spur stop, alabaster
- sterrett quick mart, sterrett
- the general store, montevallo
- toulo food mart, calera
- uni country mart, montevallo
- valleydale shell, hoover
- vincent shell, vincent
Combination Grocery/Other · 45
- cvs 10181, birmingham
- cvs pharmacy 4667, pelham
- cvs pharmacy 467, calera
- cvs pharmacy 4814, pelham
- cvs pharmacy 4864, birmingham
- cvs pharmacy 4866, columbiana
- cvs pharmacy 7112, montevallo
- cvs pharmacy 4867, alabaster
- dollar general 0814, pelham
- dollar general 1607, alabaster
- dollar general 19662, montevallo
- dollar general 4962, montevallo
- dollar general 6415, wilsonville
- dollar general 7175, helena
- dollar general 9539, alabaster
- dollar general 9560, harpersville
- dollartree 8628, helena
- dollartree 8797, birmingham
- dollar general 10021, pelham
- dollar general 12246, pelham
- dollar general 12519, shelby
- dollar general 15575, vincent
- dollar general 20741, vandiver
- dollar general 21541, montevallo
- dollar general 23835, chelsea
- dollar general 24319, calera
- dollar general 31565, calera
- dollar general 4417, calera
- dollar general 8661, columbiana
- dollar general store 16485, harpersville
- dollar tree 1881, calera
- dollar tree 3439, chelsea
- dollar tree 344, birmingham
- dollar tree 3706, pelham
- dollar tree 4579, alabaster
- dollar tree 7929, columbiana
- walgreens 11099, helena
- walgreens 11531, chelsea
- walgreens 11651, birmingham
- walgreens 4589, pelham
- walgreens 7014, calera
- walgreens 7306, birmingham
- walgreens 7791, birmingham
- walgreens 9427, pelham
- walgreens 9951, alabaster
Supermarket · 20
- aldi 70032, pelham
- aldi 70209, chelsea
- aldi 38, alabaster
- aldi 70072, birmingham
- mi pueblo supermarket llc 1, pelham
- publix 0838, hoover
- publix 0841, birmingham
- publix 0882, birmingham
- publix 1073, alabaster
- publix 1074, helena
- publix 1202, pelham
- publix 1281, calera
- publix 1370, chelsea
- publix 1687, hoover
- publix super markets, inc. 1692, vestavia hills
- sav mor associated foods, calera
- sprouts farmers market 480, birmingham
- sprouts farmers market 482, birmingham
- the fresh market 049, birmingham
- winn-dixie 445, birmingham
Super Store · 13
- lucky's foodland plus, montevallo
- pic n sav #244, montevallo
- piggly wiggly 235, columbiana
- piggly wiggly 268, birmingham
- target store t-1772, birmingham
- target store t-2276, alabaster
- walmart 2111, birmingham
- walmart neighborhood market 4189, helena
- walmart neighborhood market 4756, alabaster
- walmart supercenter 423, alabaster
- walmart supercenter 3271, calera
- walmart supercenter 4330, chelsea
- walmart supercenter 5262, pelham
Large Grocery Store · 2
- brito's supermarket, alabaster
- hudd's food center, wilsonville
Medium Grocery Store · 2
- mi ranchito supermarket llc, pelham
- navarros fresh market llc, montevallo
Delivery Route · 1
- mercy deliverance ministries mobile grocery, hoover
Meat/Poultry Specialty · 1
- kenston farms, pelham
Small Grocery Store · 1
- la colonia mexicana, montevallo
Source: USDA SNAP Retailer Locator (currently authorized stores, a live third population, not the 2019 Atlas or ACS 2024 snapshot above).
Other Counties in Alabama
One of 66 counties in Alabama, 6 are shown here.
Compare Shelby County vs Autauga County → · All Alabama counties →
Counties near Shelby County's elevated low-access or SNAP band
SNAP-led peer set first for Shelby County (4.6%), with low-access neighbours deduped against it, both outside Alabama.
Similar low-access share
Nearest low-access rates outside AL (34.4% here).
- Crawford County, AR · 34.4% low-access
- Crawford County, AR · 34.4% low-access
- Del Norte County, CA · 34.4% low-access
- Del Norte County, CA · 34.4% low-access
Similar SNAP participation
Nearest household SNAP rates outside AL (4.6% here).
- Mono County, CA · 4.6% SNAP
- Mono County, CA · 4.6% SNAP
- Idaho County, ID · 4.6% SNAP
- Idaho County, ID · 4.6% 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.
Shelby County inside a higher low-access state context
Shelby County sits inside Alabama (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 Shelby County, AL are computed from the joined Atlas and ACS records for FIPS 01117. 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.