County food-access profile · Utah
Washington County, UT
Distance to a supermarket is a real obstacle for a meaningful share of Washington 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).
- 35.6%
- low-access pop.
- 5
- food-desert tracts
- 4.5%
- on SNAP
- 196K
- residents (ACS 2024)
The food-access picture
35.6% of Washington County residents live in a low-access area, and 5 of its 21 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts.
- 14
- low-access tracts
- 15K
- food-desert residents
- 3.3%
- households, no vehicle
- 9.8%
- 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 Washington County's low-access share at 35.6%, above the national share. 14 of the county's 21 census tracts are classified low-access, meaning residents there live far from a supermarket, an area covering about 49,224 people. 5 of those also meet the low-income condition that defines a food desert, home to roughly 14,648 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 Washington County compares nationally
Relative to the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA food-access data, Washington County's 35.6% low-access share is elevated, higher than 82% of them and ranked #570 most-affected nationwide.
Washington County: USDA Food-Access Tier Breakdown
All 21 census tracts in Washington County, grouped by USDA classification (see "How the USDA defines low-access and food-desert tracts" above for what each tier means).
Washington County vs. other Utah counties
Share of the population living in low-access areas, compared with other counties in Utah
- Washington 35.6
Washington County, UT
35.6 % low-access
- Beaver 14.4
Beaver County, UT
14.4 % low-access
- Box Elder 16.8
Box Elder County, UT
16.8 % low-access
- Cache 33.3
Cache County, UT
33.3 % low-access
- Carbon 26
Carbon County, UT
26 % low-access
- Daggett
Daggett County, UT
100 % low-access
Food Access (USDA FARA 2019)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Census Tracts | 21 |
| Atlas Population (2010 basis) | 138,115 |
| Low-Access Tracts | 14 |
| Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access) | 5 |
| Low-Access Population | 49,224 |
| Low-Access Share | 35.6%well above the national average |
| Low-Income & Low-Access Population | 14,648 |
Demographics & Assistance (Census ACS 2024)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 196,431 |
| Median Household Income | $80,632 |
| Poverty Rate | 9.8%below the national average |
| SNAP Households | 3,112 |
| SNAP Participation Rate | 4.5%well below the national average |
| Households Without a Vehicle | 3.3%well below the national average |
| Group-Quarters Population | 1.4% |
About 4.5% of Washington County households receive SNAP, versus a U.S. county median in the 11–13% range (Census ACS).
What this means
- 35.6% of residents are low-access, above the national share for U.S. counties.
- 4.5% of households receive SNAP, the federal program that offsets food costs for 3,112 households here.
- 3.3% 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 Washington County
above the national share
5 of Washington County's 21 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts, low-income areas where many residents also live far from a supermarket, about 23.8% of all its tracts.
A further 9 tracts are low-access but not low-income, bringing the total low-access tract count to 14.
An estimated 49,224 residents, roughly 35.6% of the county's 2010 population, live in one of these low-access areas.
Of those, 14,648 are also low-income, the group most exposed to genuine food hardship, since limited transportation compounds a limited budget.
The remaining 7 tracts (33.3%) meet the USDA's adequate-access threshold.
SNAP retailers in Washington County
Washington County has 80 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 9 store categories. Convenience Store lead with 27 locations (34% of the total), followed by combination grocery/other.
Convenience Store · 27
- 7-eleven hurricane 53614, hurricane
- canyon crossing, ivins
- dixie nutrition, saint george
- ernie too, hurricane
- gas stop hurricane, hurricane
- gas stop washigton, washington
- golden fortune oriental market llc, saint george
- hart's 95 washington 80195, washington
- lightfoot's, santa clara
- lightfoots inc, ivins
- maverick 521, saint george
- maverik 585, saint george
- maverik 594, hurricane
- maverik, inc 229, saint george
- maverik, inc 241, saint george
- maverik, inc 370, saint george
- maverik, inc 390, washington
- maverik, inc 402, hurricane
- maverik, inc 435, la verkin
- maverik, inc 487, saint george
- maverik, inc 620, saint george
- maverik, inc 657, washington
- maverik, inc 680, st george
- maverik, inc 698, saint george
- pilot travel center 775, saint george
- sapp bros travel center st george 36210, toquerville
- sunset texaco, saint george
Combination Grocery/Other · 21
- dollartree 8572, santa clara
- digby's market 10584, st. george
- dixie meats 1, saint george
- dollar general 19312, saint george
- dollar tree 2681, st george
- dollar tree 3017, saint george
- dollar tree 7263, hurricane
- dollar tree 7594, washington
- family dollar store 10255, enterprise
- family dollar 11372, ivins
- family dollar 11454, veyo
- family dollar 6024, washington
- family dollar store 10829, la verkin
- finney farm hildale, hildale
- finney farm st. george, saint george
- terrible's 368, saint george
- terrible's 370, washington city
- terrible's 421, springdale
- walgreens 07052, st george
- walgreens 11673, hurricane
- walgreens 11674, saint george
Supermarket · 12
- 3 amigos market, saint george
- albertsons 1329, saint george
- albertsons 301, washington
- carters market, enterprise
- harmons dixie 061, saint george
- harmons santa clara 65, santa clara
- lin's supermarkets, inc 10834, st. george
- lins 10830, hurricane
- lins 10836, saint george
- natural grocers by vitamin cottage u033, washington
- solfoods supermarket, springdale
- sprouts farmers market 606, saint george
Super Store · 9
- costco wholesale 0672, st george
- davis food and drug / farmers market 1934, la verkin
- smith's 278, saint george
- smiths 280, saint george
- smiths food & drug center 189, saint george
- target stores t- 1357, st george
- walmart 1439, washington
- walmart sc 3220, saint george
- walmart sc 4678, hurricane
Medium Grocery Store · 4
- cjavelina island market, saint george
- corona flores latinos market, saint george
- dixie nutrition 2, hurricane
- red mountain market, ivins
Bakery Specialty · 3
- papa cmc llc ut004, saint george
- papa murphys pizza ut035, hurricane
- papa murphys ut042, saint george
Farmers' Market · 2
- hurricane utah farmers market nafmnp, hurricane
- st. george downtown farmers market, saint george
Fruits/Veg Specialty · 1
- frei's fresh produce, santa clara
Small Grocery Store · 1
- jie ren, saint george
Source: USDA SNAP Retailer Locator, currently authorized retailers.
Other Counties in Utah
Compare Washington County vs Beaver County → · All Utah counties →
Food access nationally, Utah in context
Washington County sits inside Utah (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 Washington County has low food access? ▼
What is the SNAP participation rate in Washington County? ▼
What is the poverty rate in Washington County? ▼
Is Washington County a food desert? ▼
What share of Washington 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.