Signature · 30.9% low-access (#2 of 50)
Food access in Alaska
Alaska sits in the upper third nationally on low-access (30.9%, +8.8 pts vs U.S.), with USDA FARA 2019 + ACS 2024 context for 30 counties.
- 30.9%
- low-access pop.
- 33
- food-desert tracts
- 10.7%
- on SNAP
- 30
- counties
USDA FARA state access plate
State AK · Alaska
LA-ELEVATED · ABOVE-NATIONAL · LILA-CLUSTER · SNAP-TYPICAL · VEH-GAP · BOOK-LIGHT
- LA-ELEVATED 30.9% low-access
- ABOVE-NATIONAL +8.8 pts vs US
- LILA-CLUSTER 33 food-desert tracts
- SNAP-TYPICAL 10.7% SNAP
- VEH-GAP 10.2% no vehicle
- BOOK-LIGHT 30 counties
Nearest low-access peer: Georgia (+ 0.0 pts)
Alaska's slim county book (30)
Alaska covers 30 counties among 51 states and DC (atlas inventory, not a food-access quality ranking). Orthogonal to the low-access / SNAP charts below.
Alaska vs all states by county count
Where this state's county inventory sits among every tracked jurisdiction
30 36th of 51 higher than 15 of 51 states
Jurisdictions, banded by county inventory
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more states. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source USDA Food Access Research Atlas / Census county inventory · 2026-06-23
Upper-band statewide picture
According to USDA FARA, Alaska is in the upper third on low-access (30.9%, #2 of 50; ~217K residents) - +8.8 pts vs the U.S. mean.
- #2
- among states by low-access
- 217K
- low-access residents
- 55K
- food-desert residents
- 10.2%
- households, no vehicle
Population-weighted tract shares (not a county average). Upper-band states often pair elevated low-access with clustered LILA tracts.
Alaska on the national low-access cartogram
Alaska ringed at #2 of 50 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
Signature read: 30.9% low-access (#2 of 50) (+8.8 pts vs U.S. low-access).
Alaska sits in the upper third of states by population-weighted low-access share (30.9% , #2 of 50). The Atlas marks 33 food-desert tracts here (55K low-income low-access residents). Denali Borough alone holds about 0.8% of the state's low-access residents.
States near Alaska's elevated low-access or SNAP band
Two USDA/ACS-derived peer sets for Alaska. Neighbourhood chart below is local poles; these panels are full-corpus nearest neighbours excluding this state.
Similar low-access share
Nearest population-weighted low-access rates (30.9% here).
- Georgia · 30.9% low-access
- New Mexico · 31.7% low-access
- Wyoming · 29.7% low-access
- South Dakota · 29.1% low-access
Similar SNAP participation
Nearest household SNAP rates (10.7% here), deduped against the low-access panel.
- Vermont · 10.6% SNAP
- Tennessee · 10.8% SNAP
- South Carolina · 10.5% SNAP
- Maryland · 10.9% SNAP
Source: USDA Food Access Research Atlas (2019) + Census ACS 2024 SNAP. Floor county_count ≥ 5.
Alaska vs nearby high low-access peers
Poles + nearest state peers, not a full national reprint
- NM
NM 31.7%
31.7 % low-access
- AK
AK 30.9%
30.9 % low-access
- GA
GA 30.9%
30.9 % low-access
- WY
WY 29.7%
29.7 % low-access
- SD
SD 29.1%
29.1 % low-access
- DC 4.6
DC 4.6%
4.6 % low-access
Highest low-access counties in Alaska
Denali Borough ~0.8% of statewide low-access residents
- Denali Borough
Denali Borough, AK
100 % low-access
- Lake and Peninsula Borough
Lake and Peninsula Borough, AK
100 % low-access
- Hoonah-Angoon Census Area
Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, AK
99.4 % low-access
- Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area
Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, AK
89.6 % low-access
- Bethel Census Area
Bethel Census Area, AK
68.6 % low-access
- Bristol Bay Borough
Bristol Bay Borough, AK
56.3 % low-access
- Dillingham Census Area
Dillingham Census Area, AK
50.8 % low-access
- Northwest Arctic Borough
Northwest Arctic Borough, AK
46.2 % low-access
All counties in Alaska
| County | Low-access | SNAP |
|---|---|---|
| Denali Borough | 100.0% | 3.0% |
| Lake and Peninsula Borough | 100.0% | 29.3% |
| Hoonah-Angoon Census Area | 99.4% | 16.7% |
| Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area | 89.6% | 22.4% |
| Bethel Census Area | 68.6% | 42.4% |
| Bristol Bay Borough | 56.3% | 5.2% |
| Dillingham Census Area | 50.8% | 27.9% |
| Northwest Arctic Borough | 46.2% | 35.8% |
| Kodiak Island Borough | 42.7% | 5.8% |
| Aleutians East Borough | 39.0% | 14.5% |
| Fairbanks North Star Borough | 38.7% | 6.8% |
| North Slope Borough | 37.9% | 14.0% |
| Sitka City and Borough | 34.5% | 7.5% |
| Southeast Fairbanks Census Area | 29.7% | 8.6% |
| Matanuska-Susitna Borough | 28.9% | 9.4% |
| Anchorage Municipality | 28.4% | 8.7% |
| Kenai Peninsula Borough | 23.7% | 9.6% |
| Nome Census Area | 23.1% | 29.4% |
| Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area | 22.7% | 16.4% |
| Aleutians West Census Area | 21.4% | 4.8% |
| Wrangell City and Borough | 21.4% | 8.5% |
| Haines Borough | 20.7% | 4.7% |
| Juneau City and Borough | 20.7% | 6.4% |
| Petersburg Borough | 4.4% | 7.6% |
| Ketchikan Gateway Borough | 1.6% | 8.3% |
| Skagway Municipality | 0.3% | 2.7% |
| Yakutat City and Borough | 0.3% | 5.3% |
| Kusilvak Census Area | 0.0% | 51.4% |
| Chugach Census Area | N/A | 9.8% |
| Copper River Census Area | N/A | 12.8% |
Source: USDA ERS Food Access Research Atlas (2019) + U.S. Census Bureau ACS (2024 5-year). Sorted by low-access share, highest first.
Figures from USDA Food Access Research Atlas (2019) and Census ACS 2024 5-year. Compiled . Methodology · All states.
PlainFoodAccess renders this state summary 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. Statewide figures for Alaska are population-weighted aggregates of county Atlas and ACS records. 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.