State food-access profile · 5 counties
Food access in Rhode Island
How far Rhode Island residents live from a supermarket, where the food deserts are, and the SNAP, poverty, and vehicle-access context, from the USDA Food Access Research Atlas (2019) and the Census ACS (2024).
- 23.6%
- low-access pop.
- 13
- food-desert tracts
- 14.2%
- on SNAP
- 5
- counties
The statewide picture
About 249K Rhode Island residents - 23.6% - live in a low-access area, and 13 census tracts across the state are USDA-designated food deserts.
- 249K
- low-access residents
- 49K
- food-desert residents
- 9.2%
- households, no vehicle
- 11.2%
- below poverty line
Shares are population-weighted across the state's tracts, not an average of county percentages. Low access = >1 mile (urban) / >10 miles (rural) from a supermarket.
Where Rhode Island stands nationally
Every state colored by its population-weighted low-access share, Rhode Island is ringed. Click any state to compare.
USDA Economic Research Service, Food Access Research Atlas (2019), population-weighted · Census ACS 2024 context
The USDA Food Access Research Atlas evaluates every census tract in Rhode Island against the same rule used nationwide: a tract is low-access when many residents live more than one mile from a supermarket in urban areas, or more than ten miles in rural areas. Across 5 counties and 1.1M residents, Rhode Island's population-weighted low-access share is 23.6%.
A tract becomes a food desert only when its low-access residents are also low-income. That applies to 13 tracts in Rhode Island, home to roughly 49K low-income, low-access residents. SNAP participation across the state averages 14.2% of households, and 9.2% of households have no vehicle, the transport gap that turns distance into a real barrier. The county table below is sorted with the highest low-access share first, so the top rows are where distance, income, and vehicle gaps most consistently overlap.
Highest low-access counties in Rhode Island
Share of the population living in low-access areas, by county
- Bristol
Bristol County, RI
56 % low-access
- Newport
Newport County, RI
33.5 % low-access
- Kent
Kent County, RI
32.2 % low-access
- Washington
Washington County, RI
31.2 % low-access
- Providence 15.9
Providence County, RI
15.9 % low-access
All counties in Rhode Island
| County | Low-access | SNAP |
|---|---|---|
| Bristol County | 56.0% | 5.3% |
| Newport County | 33.5% | 8.2% |
| Kent County | 32.2% | 12.0% |
| Washington County | 31.2% | 5.7% |
| Providence County | 15.9% | 17.8% |
Source: USDA ERS Food Access Research Atlas (2019) + U.S. Census Bureau ACS (2024 5-year). Sorted by low-access share, highest first. USDA ERS Food Access Research Atlas (2019) + U.S. Census Bureau ACS (2024 5-year). Sorted by low-access share, highest first.
What this means for the state
- 23.6% of Rhode Island residents, about 249K people, live in a low-access area.
- 13 census tracts are USDA food deserts, home to roughly 49K low-income, low-access residents.
- 14.2% of households receive SNAP, and 9.2% have no vehicle.
- Bristol County has the state's highest low-access share at 56.0%.
USDA low-access figures reflect the 2019 Atlas (2010 tract populations); SNAP, poverty, and vehicle context is the Census ACS 2024 5-year estimates.
Frequently Asked Questions
What share of Rhode Island has low food access?▼
How many food deserts are in Rhode Island?▼
What is the SNAP participation rate in Rhode Island?▼
Which county in Rhode Island has the worst food access?▼
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service Food Access Research Atlas (2019 edition), 9,228 of roughly 71,700 U.S. census tracts meet the low-income, low-access food-desert threshold. The state and county figures on this page are aggregated from that tract-level data and joined to the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 2024 5-Year Estimates, released in December 2025. See our methodology for how the population-weighted shares are computed.
Data current as of (most recent source-data vintage).