County food-access profile · Washington
Whatcom County, WA
Distance to a supermarket is a real obstacle for a meaningful share of Whatcom 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).
- 27.7%
- low-access pop.
- 3
- food-desert tracts
- 11.7%
- on SNAP
- 231K
- residents (ACS 2024)
The food-access picture
27.7% of Whatcom County residents live in a low-access area, and 3 of its 34 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts.
- 13
- low-access tracts
- 14K
- food-desert residents
- 6.4%
- households, no vehicle
- 12.9%
- 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 Whatcom County's low-access share at 27.7%, above the national share. 13 of the county's 34 census tracts are classified low-access, meaning residents there live far from a supermarket, an area covering about 55,784 people. 3 of those also meet the low-income condition that defines a food desert, home to roughly 14,367 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 Whatcom County compares nationally
Relative to the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA food-access data, Whatcom County's 27.7% low-access share is elevated, higher than 65% of them and ranked #1,104 most-affected nationwide.
Whatcom County: USDA Food-Access Tier Breakdown
All 34 census tracts in Whatcom County, grouped by USDA classification (see "How the USDA defines low-access and food-desert tracts" above for what each tier means).
Whatcom County vs. other Washington counties
Share of the population living in low-access areas, compared with other counties in Washington
- Whatcom
Whatcom County, WA
27.7 % low-access
- Adams
Adams County, WA
41.7 % low-access
- Asotin 13.8
Asotin County, WA
13.8 % low-access
- Benton
Benton County, WA
22.8 % low-access
- Chelan
Chelan County, WA
18.1 % low-access
- Clallam
Clallam County, WA
38.2 % low-access
Food Access (USDA FARA 2019)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Census Tracts | 34 |
| Atlas Population (2010 basis) | 201,140 |
| Low-Access Tracts | 13 |
| Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access) | 3 |
| Low-Access Population | 55,784 |
| Low-Access Share | 27.7%above the national average |
| Low-Income & Low-Access Population | 14,367 |
Demographics & Assistance (Census ACS 2024)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 230,503 |
| Median Household Income | $81,784 |
| Poverty Rate | 12.9%near the national average |
| SNAP Households | 11,003 |
| SNAP Participation Rate | 11.7%near the national average |
| Households Without a Vehicle | 6.4%below the national average |
| Group-Quarters Population | 2.1% |
About 11.7% of Whatcom County households receive SNAP, versus a U.S. county median in the 11–13% range (Census ACS).
What this means
- 27.7% of residents are low-access, above the national share for U.S. counties.
- 11.7% of households receive SNAP, the federal program that offsets food costs for 11,003 households here.
- 6.4% of households have no vehicle, the hidden multiplier that turns distance into a real barrier.
- 3 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 Whatcom County
above the national share
3 of Whatcom County's 34 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts, low-income areas where many residents also live far from a supermarket, about 8.8% of all its tracts.
A further 10 tracts are low-access but not low-income, bringing the total low-access tract count to 13.
An estimated 55,784 residents, roughly 27.7% of the county's 2010 population, live in one of these low-access areas.
Of those, 14,367 are also low-income, the group most exposed to genuine food hardship, since limited transportation compounds a limited budget.
The remaining 21 tracts (61.8%) meet the USDA's adequate-access threshold.
SNAP retailers in Whatcom County
Whatcom County has 154 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 10 store categories. Convenience Store lead with 82 locations (53% of the total), followed by combination grocery/other.
Convenience Store · 82
- 7-eleven 23140 b, bellingham
- 7-eleven 19648e, bellingham
- 7-eleven 23138d, bellingham
- 7-eleven 20938d, ferndale
- airport road lc, bellingham
- alexa's market, nooksack
- arco ampm 7038, bellingham
- axton northwest market, bellingham
- bakerview shell, bellingham
- beachwood park general store, blaine
- bender shell, lynden
- bens market #17, blaine
- benson market, ferndale
- blaine mart, blaine
- blaine shell, blaine
- breckenridge dairy, llc, sumas
- cascade convenience, bellingham
- cherry st market, sumas
- cornwall corner store, bellingham
- crazy dazy 9, blaine
- da vinci's market, bellingham
- delta country market, lynden
- deming quick stop, deming
- europa food, bellingham
- edaleen dairy, blaine
- edaleen dairy 2, sumas
- elm st market, bellingham
- fast way, bellingham
- ferndale express lane #248, ferndale
- factory shell, custer
- fairhaven arco/ampm 205, bellingham
- ferndale arco, ferndale
- ferndale asian grocery corporation, ferndale
- ferndale mini market, ferndale
- fishermans cove store, bellingham
- fort bellingham market & deli, bellingham
- front street market, lynden
- goldenrock enterprises, bellingham
- hinote's gas up, lynden
- in & out food mart n/a, bellingham
- j's airport food mart, bellingham
- jj's in and out, bellingham
- kendall market, maple falls
- lakeway mobil, bellingham
- lucky fuel, bellingham
- lummi mini mart, ferndale
- lynden arco, lynden
- lynden shell 1, lynden
- maple market, bellingham
- maplefuels wash-a-ton, maple falls
- marathon bellingham, bellingham
- marine dr market, bellingham
- mediterranean specialties 1, bellingham
- meridian supermart inc 5927, bellingham
- mi rancho meat market, bellingham
- midway gas & food, lynden
- n state st market, bellingham
- n state st market 1, bellingham
- neighborhood market, bellingham
- neighborhood market & deli, bellingham
- nooksack market center 1, deming
- northwood market, lynden
- nurvi llc, blaine
- paradise market, deming
- park manor shell, bellingham
- pilot travel center 583, ferndale
- portal way station, ferndale
- quick e mart, ferndale
- rome store, bellingham
- sunrise grocery, custer
- sahota mart ii inc, bellingham
- salish village travel center, bellingham
- silver beach grocery, bellingham
- slater arco am/pm 205, bellingham
- smart stop shell, bellingham
- speed pro truck stop, lynden
- starvin sams 19, ferndale
- starvin' sam's xvii 17, blaine
- sunset sinclair, bellingham
- the islander store, lummi island
- truck border chevron, blaine
- york's #1, blaine
Combination Grocery/Other · 15
- cvs pharmacy 11633, blaine
- cvs pharmacy 11634, lynden
- cvs pharmacy 11661, ferndale
- cvs pharmacy 11693, bellingham
- dollar tree 3137, bellingham
- dollar tree 3917, blaine
- dollar tree 3924, ferndale
- dollar tree 5143, bellingham
- dollar tree 6094, lynden
- dollar tree 8846, bellingham
- los patrones market, bellingham
- walgreens 16095, bellingham
- walgreens 5911, bellingham
- walgreens 7390, bellingham
- walgreens 7782, ferndale
Supermarket · 14
- blaine cost cutter 489, blaine
- everson market 43, everson
- grocery outlet of lynden 374, lynden
- safeway 1930, lynden
- safeway 3285, bellingham
- safeway inc dba haggen 3430, bellingham
- safeway inc dba haggen 3439, bellingham
- safeway inc dba haggen 3449, bellingham
- safeway inc dba haggen 3460, bellingham
- safeway inc dba haggen 3493, ferndale
- sumas market, sumas
- trader joe's bellingham (north) 274, bellingham
- trader joe's 0151, bellingham
- winco foods 118, bellingham
Super Store · 13
- bellingham grocery outlet 115, bellingham
- community food co-op, bellingham
- community food coop 02, bellingham
- costco 1216, bellingham
- fred meyer 025, bellingham
- fred meyer 667, bellingham
- ferndale grocery outlet 275, ferndale
- point roberts international market pl, point roberts
- target store t-0348, bellingham
- the fair food pavilion 441, lynden
- the market at birch bay 256, blaine
- walmart 2450, bellingham
- whole foods market 10637, bellingham
Farmers' Market · 8
- bellingham farmers market, bellingham
- bellingham dockside market nafmnp, bellingham
- bellingham farmers market, bellingham
- en valley farmers market, everson
- lynden farmers market, lynden
- twin sisters market, maple falls
- twin sisters market, bellingham
- twin sisters markets, deming
Bakery Specialty · 7
- franz bakery outlet 9030, bellingham
- great harvest bread co., bellingham
- papa murphy's wa-024, bellingham
- papa murphy's wa-040, bellingham
- papa murphy's wa-121, lynden
- papa murphy's wa-129, bellingham
- papa murphy's wa-143, ferndale
Small Grocery Store · 7
- carniceria el chapin, ferndale
- crossroads grocery inc, maple falls
- india fiji supermarket, ferndale
- intercontinental foods, bellingham
- super markets rafa, bellingham
- the welcome store, deming
- youngerstock, bellingham
Medium Grocery Store · 5
- euro market, bellingham
- india mart 1, bellingham
- la gloria store no, sumas
- nugents corner market, everson
- west coast oriental market 1, bellingham
Delivery Route · 2
- dandelion organic delivery, bellingham
- twin sisters market, everson
Large Grocery Store · 1
- bay center market, blaine
Source: USDA SNAP Retailer Locator, currently authorized retailers.
Other Counties in Washington
Compare Whatcom County vs Adams County → · All Washington counties →
Food access nationally, Washington in context
Whatcom County sits inside Washington (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 Whatcom County has low food access? ▼
What is the SNAP participation rate in Whatcom County? ▼
What is the poverty rate in Whatcom County? ▼
Is Whatcom County a food desert? ▼
What share of Whatcom 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.