County food-access profile · New York
Ulster County, NY
Distance to a supermarket is a real obstacle for a meaningful share of Ulster County residents. This profile covers who qualifies as a food desert here and the income, SNAP, and vehicle-access context behind it, from the USDA Food Access Research Atlas (2019) and the Census ACS (2024).
- 23.4%
- low-access pop.
- 5
- food-desert tracts
- 9.8%
- on SNAP
- 183K
- residents (ACS 2024)
The food-access picture
23.4% of Ulster County residents live in a low-access area, and 5 of its 47 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts.
- 17
- low-access tracts
- 11K
- food-desert residents
- 7.3%
- households, no vehicle
- 14.6%
- 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).
USDA data puts Ulster County's low-access share at 23.4%, above the national share. 17 of the county's 47 census tracts are classified low-access, meaning residents there live far from a supermarket, an area covering about 42,616 people. 5 of those also meet the low-income condition that defines a food desert, home to roughly 11,199 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 Ulster County compares nationally
Relative to the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA food-access data, Ulster County's 23.4% low-access share is elevated, higher than 55% of them and ranked #1,413 most-affected nationwide.
Ulster County: USDA Food-Access Tier Breakdown
All 47 census tracts in Ulster County, grouped by USDA classification (see "How the USDA defines low-access and food-desert tracts" above for what each tier means).
Ulster County vs. other New York counties
Share of the population living in low-access areas, compared with other counties in New York
- Ulster
Ulster County, NY
23.4 % low-access
- Albany
Albany County, NY
31.4 % low-access
- Allegany 3.9
Allegany County, NY
3.9 % low-access
- Bronx 0.6
Bronx County, NY
0.6 % low-access
- Broome
Broome County, NY
16.4 % low-access
- Cattaraugus 7.9
Cattaraugus County, NY
7.9 % low-access
Food Access (USDA FARA 2019)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Census Tracts | 47 |
| Atlas Population (2010 basis) | 182,493 |
| Low-Access Tracts | 17 |
| Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access) | 5 |
| Low-Access Population | 42,616 |
| Low-Access Share | 23.4%near the national average |
| Low-Income & Low-Access Population | 11,199 |
Demographics & Assistance (Census ACS 2024)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 182,601 |
| Median Household Income | $86,271 |
| Poverty Rate | 14.6%near the national average |
| SNAP Households | 7,262 |
| SNAP Participation Rate | 9.8%below the national average |
| Households Without a Vehicle | 7.3%below the national average |
| Group-Quarters Population | 8.0% |
About 9.8% of Ulster County households receive SNAP, versus a U.S. county median in the 11–13% range (Census ACS).
What this means
- 23.4% of residents are low-access, above the national share for U.S. counties.
- 9.8% of households receive SNAP, the federal program that offsets food costs for 7,262 households here.
- 7.3% of households have no vehicle, the hidden multiplier that turns distance into a real barrier.
- 5 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 Ulster County
above the national share
5 of Ulster County's 47 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts, low-income areas where many residents also live far from a supermarket, about 10.6% of all its tracts.
A further 12 tracts are low-access but not low-income, bringing the total low-access tract count to 17.
An estimated 42,616 residents, roughly 23.4% of the county's 2010 population, live in one of these low-access areas.
Of those, 11,199 are also low-income, the group most exposed to genuine food hardship, since limited transportation compounds a limited budget.
The remaining 30 tracts (63.8%) meet the USDA's adequate-access threshold.
SNAP retailers in Ulster County
Ulster County has 136 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 8 store categories. Convenience Store lead with 63 locations (46% of the total), followed by combination grocery/other.
Convenience Store · 63
- 131 main mart inc, new paltz
- 443 broadway mart corp, ulster park
- a & s food mart inc, ellenville
- ardonia general store, clintondale
- accord food mart inc., accord
- anajpati asian grocery store, kingston
- ayaaz petroleum inc, saugerties
- big belly deli, saugerties
- citgo, rosendale
- cedar street deli & grocery, kingston
- cheekam mart inc - mobil station, kingston
- chester food mart inc 1, kingston
- cumberland farms, inc 1574, woodstock
- ellenville food mart inc 1, ellenville
- ens petroleum inc, kingston
- hk food mart inc, kingston
- ha mart inc/quik food, lake katrine
- krs petrol inc 2, shokan
- lucas mart inc, kingston
- mahima corporation t/a mobil gas station, ellenville
- marlboro market inc, marlboro
- mobil gas station, highland
- my family market grocery & deli llc, ellenville
- n & n mobil mart, saugerties
- ny grocery deli, kingston
- navjot mart inc, kingston
- new valley enterprise inc, walker valley
- phoenicia country store 21, phoenicia
- rk food mart corp, kingston
- rondout market inc, kingston
- rosendale food mart inc, stone ridge
- stewart's shop #228, kingston
- stewart's shop 141, kingston
- stewart's shop 213, kingston
- stewart's shop 235, saugerties
- stewarts shop 156, port ewen
- stewarts shop 245, kerhonkson
- stewarts shop 328, kingston
- sunoco, kingston
- speedway 7722, saugerties
- speedway 7723, kingston
- speedway 7788, highland
- speedway 7874, kingston
- speedway 7875, kingston
- speedway 7879, highland
- speedy mart, saugerties
- stewart's shops 309, new paltz
- stewart's shops 471, highland
- stewarts shop 165, hurley
- stewarts shop 177, rosendale
- stewarts shop 248, ellenville
- stewarts shop 251, wallkill
- stewarts shop 273, saugerties
- stewarts shop 286, lake katrine
- stewarts shop 299, milton
- stewarts shop 301, kingston
- stewarts shop 358, kingston
- stewarts shop 393, modena
- sunfrost farms, woodstock
- valero mart inc, kingston
- village grocery and refillery, kingston
- watertown food mart inc, ellenville
- yazi petro line inc, kerhonkson
Combination Grocery/Other · 34
- cvs 428, kingston
- cvs pharmacy 323, saugerties
- cvs pharmacy 7629, marlboro
- cvs pharmacy 3102, woodstock
- cvs pharmacy 8945, kingston
- dollar general 14176, lake katrine
- dollar tree 2105, kingston
- dollar general 12050, port ewen
- dollar general 12597, rosendale
- dollar general 13782, modena
- dollar general 14385, kerhonkson
- dollar general 14739, kingston
- dollar general 17103, plattekill
- dollar general 17514, shokan
- dollar general 17899, highland
- dollar general 20389, esopus
- dollar general 22620, milton
- dollar general 5736, marlboro
- dollar general 6514, saugerties
- dollar general 7698, kingston
- dollar general 9531, ellenville
- family dollar 13347, ellenville
- family dollar 3341, saugerties
- quick check corp 126, wallkill
- quick chek corp 125, lake katrine
- quick chek corporation 134, saugerties
- quick chek corporation 138, kingston
- quickchek corporation 7, kingston
- walgreens 02077, kingston
- walgreens 04037, highland
- walgreens 06650, kingston
- walgreens 17317, new paltz
- walgreens 17489, saugerties
- walgreens 19061, stone ridge
Super Store · 14
- adams fairacre farms 2, lake katrine
- alfin 3853 food corp/emmanuel's marketplace, stone ridge
- boiceville supermarket, boiceville
- hannaford supermarket & pharmacy 8340, kingston
- hannaford supermarket & pharmacy 8341, highland
- hannaford supermarket & pharmacy 8346, modena
- hannaford supermarket & pharmacy 8348, kingston
- hannaford supermarket 8444, west hurley
- new paltz health & nutrition, new paltz
- sam's club 6201, kingston
- sunflower market, woodstock
- target 1318, kingston
- walmart supercenter 2504, kingston
- walmart supercenter 4570, napanoch
Farmers' Market · 8
- ellenville market on market, ellenville
- ellenville market on market, ellenville
- kingston farmers market foundation inc., kingston
- new paltz open air market, new paltz
- phoenicia farmers market, phoenicia
- rosendale farmers market, inc. nafmnp, rosendale
- saugerties farmers market, saugerties
- woodstock farm festival, woodstock
Supermarket · 8
- aldi 73006, kingston
- allisa 1155 food corp/mytown marketplace, rosendale
- mother earth's storehouse, kingston
- price chopper saugerties 193, saugerties
- shoprite 241, kingston
- shoprite 280, new paltz
- tops markets 530, ellenville
- tops markets 532, new paltz
Medium Grocery Store · 5
- 595 kingston meat market corp, kingston
- accord market, accord
- my market, new paltz
- tremper hill farms, mount tremper
- woodstock meat market inc, woodstock
Large Grocery Store · 2
- high falls food co-op inc, high falls
- peter's market 2460, napanoch
Small Grocery Store · 2
- el mercadito grocery store, kingston
- phoenix deli & grocery 2, kingston
Source: USDA SNAP Retailer Locator, currently authorized retailers.
Other Counties in New York
Compare Ulster County vs Albany County → · All New York counties →
Food access nationally, New York in context
Ulster County sits inside New York (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 Ulster County has low food access? ▼
What is the SNAP participation rate in Ulster County? ▼
What is the poverty rate in Ulster County? ▼
Is Ulster County a food desert? ▼
What share of Ulster 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.