Signature · 7.6% SNAP (6th pct in NC)
Union County, NC
Union County sits in the upper national band on low-access (39.3%, +17.2 pts vs U.S.), with SNAP/vehicle context from ACS 2024.
- 39.3%
- low-access pop.
- 6
- food-desert tracts
- 7.6%
- on SNAP
- 251K
- residents (ACS 2024)
USDA FARA access plate
County Union County, NC
LA-ELEVATED · ABOVE-NATIONAL · LILA-CLUSTER · SNAP-LIGHT · VEH-OK · DENSITY-MIXED
- LA-ELEVATED 39.3% low-access
- ABOVE-NATIONAL +17.2 pts vs US
- LILA-CLUSTER 6 food-desert tracts
- SNAP-LIGHT 7.6% SNAP
- VEH-OK 2.4% no vehicle
- DENSITY-MIXED 15% tracts LILA
Nearest low-access peer: Onslow County ( -0.4 pts)
Upper-band low-access
Union County sits in the upper national band (39.3%, #427 of 3,079) with 6 LILA tracts.
- #427
- national by low-access %
- #4
- in NC
- 24
- low-access tracts
- 15K
- 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: 7.6% SNAP (6th pct in NC) (-4.5 pts vs U.S. SNAP) .
How Union County compares nationally
Relative to the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA food-access data, Union County's 39.3% low-access share is elevated, higher than 86% of them and ranked #427 most-affected nationwide.
Union County's elevated USDA tier split
41 census tracts grouped by USDA classification · 6 LILA.
By USDA urbanicity classification, Union County has 30 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.
Union County vs nearby high low-access peers
Poles + nearest peers in North Carolina, not a full county-board reprint
- Hyde
Hyde 60.5%
60.5 % low-access
- Forsyth
Forsyth 40.9%
40.9 % low-access
- Union
Union 39.3%
39.3 % low-access
- Onslow
Onslow 38.9%
38.9 % low-access
- Dare
Dare 35.6%
35.6 % low-access
- Caldwell
Caldwell 35.1%
35.1 % low-access
- Greene 0.1
Greene 0.1%
0.1 % low-access
FARA 2019 · elevated low-access
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Census Tracts | 41 |
| Atlas Population (2010 basis) | 201,292 |
| Low-Access Tracts | 24 |
| Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access) | 6 |
| Low-Access Population | 79,154 |
| Low-Access Share | 39.3%well above the national average |
| Low-Income & Low-Access Population | 15,234 |
ACS 2024 · lower SNAP band
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 250,958 |
| Median Household Income | $102,900 |
| Poverty Rate | 7.7%well below the national average |
| SNAP Households | 6,424 |
| SNAP Participation Rate | 7.6%below the national average |
| Households Without a Vehicle | 2.4%well below the national average |
| Group-Quarters Population | 1.1% |
Thick SNAP store book in Union County
Union County has 149 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 8 store categories. Convenience Store lead with 65 locations (44% of the total), followed by combination grocery/other.
Convenience Store · 65
- 7-eleven 35595a, matthews
- 7-eleven 42682h, monroe
- 7-eleven #41815a 41815a, waxhaw
- 7-eleven 35596a 35596a, indian trail
- circle k 2723044, indian trail
- circle k 2723045, monroe
- circle k 2723980, mineral springs
- circle k 2723982, monroe
- circle k 2723983, monroe
- circle k 2723984, waxhaw
- circle k 2723985, monroe
- circle k 2723986, monroe
- circle k store 2701501, indian trail
- circle k stores inc. 2707309, monroe
- city express mart, monroe
- claws, monroe
- college food mart, wingate
- community store citgo, monroe
- dueys stop and shop 4, waxhaw
- express mart, monroe
- exxon, indian trail
- fairview grocery 17391, monroe
- fast mart 8, monroe
- fiesta food mart, monroe
- fill & go express llc, monroe
- flowers bakery outlet 485, monroe
- gas express llc gx 801, monroe
- gas express llc gx 802, monroe
- gas express llc gx 803, indian trail
- gas express llc gx 804, waxhaw
- gate service station 416, matthews
- icemorlee food store, monroe
- international grocery, indian trail
- jack mart, monroe
- joe's kwik marts 6018, monroe
- joe's kwik marts 6019, monroe
- k & k 23 llc, monroe
- la tienda mexicana de monroe, incorporated, monroe
- low price grocery, monroe
- market express 17378, indian trail
- market express 17381, indian trail
- market express 17382, matthews
- market express 17384, matthews
- market express 17393, monroe
- market express 17395, indian trail
- market express 17396, matthews
- monroe discount beverages, monroe
- murphy usa 6536, monroe
- murphy usa 7610, indian trail
- quiktrip 1074, monroe
- quiktrip 1054, monroe
- racetrac 2662, monroe
- raceway#7, monroe
- save n go, monroe
- shop n go, monroe
- singh's mart, monroe
- skyway exxon 1, monroe
- speedway 7997, marshville
- sunny food mart, monroe
- sunset mart, monroe
- t & m food mart, monroe
- unionville market, monroe
- wingate food mart, wingate
- wingate valero, wingate
- xpress mart 1, wingate
Combination Grocery/Other · 41
- cvs pharmacy 162, waxhaw
- cvs pharmacy 1737, matthews
- cvs pharmacy 1742, monroe
- cvs pharmacy 2877, matthews
- cvs pharmacy 5341, waxhaw
- cvs pharmacy 7564, monroe
- cvs pharmacy 7573, marshville
- cvs pharmacy 7943, waxhaw
- cvs pharmacy 3440, waxhaw
- cvs pharmacy 3593, monroe
- dollar general 1750, monroe
- dollar general 4178, monroe
- dollar general 6162, stallings
- dollar general 6206, monroe
- dollar general 7033, wingate
- dollar general 8843, marshville
- dollar general 9293, waxhaw
- dollar tree 2101, monroe
- dollartree 9191, monroe
- dollar general 11992, monroe
- dollar general 12078, monroe
- dollar general 15036, marshville
- dollar general 17143, monroe
- dollar general 22939, monroe
- dollar general 24612, monroe
- dollar tree 4219, stallings
- dollar tree 504, indian trail
- dollar tree 6758, indian trail
- dollar tree 7701, monroe
- family dollar 2712, marshville
- family dollar 34, monroe
- family dollar 4241, monroe
- family dollar 5876, waxhaw
- family dollar 6052, indian trail
- family dollar store 10720, wingate
- golden key european food mkt, indian trail
- walgreens 7401, indian trail
- walgreens 02700, monroe
- walgreens 10255, matthews
- walgreens 11692, monroe
- walgreens 12350, matthews
Supermarket · 18
- aldi 6, waxhaw
- aldi 66077, monroe
- aldi 66105, indian trail
- compare foods, monroe
- food lion 1614, indian trail
- food lion 2229, monroe
- food lion 2256, matthews
- food lion 2608, indian trail
- food lion 34, monroe
- food lion 422, marshville
- food lion 446, monroe
- food lion 458, waxhaw
- food lion 507, monroe
- food lion 532, indian trail
- food lion 953, wingate
- lowes foods 291, waxhaw
- publix north carolina lp 1556, monroe
- publix north carolina, lp 1704, marvin
Super Store · 16
- harris teeter 039, matthews
- harris teeter 129, indian trail
- harris teeter 249, wesley chapel
- harris teeter 343, weddington
- harris teeter 182, waxhaw
- harris teeter 273, matthews
- harris teeter 473, matthews
- lidl 1097, indian trail
- t & g plaza llc, matthews
- target store t-2074, monroe
- target 2395, wesley chapel
- walmart neighborhood market 7180, waxhaw
- walmart supercenter 3700, indian trail
- walmart supercenter 877, monroe
- walmart supercenter 877, monroe
- wow supermarket 1, monroe
Medium Grocery Store · 3
- california market, monroe
- el ranchero supermarket 1, monroe
- frontier meat processing, waxhaw
Farmers' Market · 2
- union county farmer's market, monroe
- waxhaw farmers market, inc, waxhaw
Seafood Specialty · 2
- amore seafood market llc, monroe
- j & j fresh fish market, wingate
Small Grocery Store · 2
- carniceria morelos 601073517, monroe
- la poblanita supermarket 1, monroe
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 Union County vs Alamance County → · All North Carolina counties →
Counties near Union County's elevated low-access or SNAP band
SNAP-led peer set first for Union County (7.6%), with low-access neighbours deduped against it, both outside North Carolina.
Similar low-access share
Nearest low-access rates outside NC (39.3% here).
- Cibola County, NM · 39.3% low-access
- Cibola County, NM · 39.3% low-access
- Lyon County, NV · 39.3% low-access
- Lyon County, NV · 39.3% low-access
Similar SNAP participation
Nearest household SNAP rates outside NC (7.6% here).
- Greenville County, SC · 7.6% SNAP
- Greenville County, SC · 7.6% SNAP
- Moniteau County, MO · 7.6% SNAP
- Moniteau County, MO · 7.6% 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.
Union County inside a higher low-access state context
Union 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 Union County, NC are computed from the joined Atlas and ACS records for FIPS 37179. 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.