State food-access profile · 254 counties

Food access in Texas

How far Texas 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).

Compiled by Plainfoodaccess, Food Access Editorial Process · June 23, 2026

25.0%
low-access pop.: 1,022
food-desert tracts: 11.6%
on SNAP: 254
counties

The statewide picture

About 6.3M Texas residents - 25.0% - live in a low-access area, and 1,022 census tracts across the state are USDA-designated food deserts.

6.3M
low-access residents: 2.1M
food-desert residents: 5.4%
households, no vehicle: 13.8%
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 Texas stands nationally

Every state colored by its population-weighted low-access share, Texas 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 Texas 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 254 counties and 30.2M residents, Texas's population-weighted low-access share is 25.0%.

A tract becomes a food desert only when its low-access residents are also low-income. That applies to 1,022 tracts in Texas, home to roughly 2.1M low-income, low-access residents. SNAP participation across the state averages 11.6% of households, and 5.4% 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.

254

Counties

25.0%

Low-access (pop-weighted)

6.3M

Low-access residents

11.6%

Avg. SNAP

Borden

100
Briscoe

100
Coke

100
Cottle

100
Foard

100
Irion

100
King

100
Loving

100

All counties in Texas

County	Population	Low-access	SNAP	No vehicle	Poverty
Borden County	713	100.0%	N/A	1.2%	7.4%
Briscoe County	1K	100.0%	6.5%	1.4%	16.8%
Coke County	3K	100.0%	14.7%	3.6%	22.9%
Cottle County	1K	100.0%	29.8%	2.8%	17.1%
Foard County	991	100.0%	1.8%	6.4%	5.6%
Irion County	1K	100.0%	3.9%	1.2%	10.8%
King County	211	100.0%	N/A	6.3%	23.7%
Loving County	33	100.0%	7.4%	7.4%	6.1%
Oldham County	2K	100.0%	1.3%	1.3%	20.7%
Real County	3K	100.0%	14.5%	4.4%	17.9%
Sterling County	1K	100.0%	12.0%	N/A	4.3%
Terrell County	835	100.0%	3.5%	5.3%	7.7%
Throckmorton County	2K	100.0%	10.6%	1.8%	24.2%
Armstrong County	2K	99.7%	3.4%	0.5%	5.2%
Hudspeth County	3K	99.6%	20.5%	5.2%	17.3%
Lipscomb County	3K	99.6%	6.0%	2.1%	11.5%
Glasscock County	1K	98.4%	9.8%	7.0%	8.9%
Kenedy County	145	97.4%	1.8%	16.4%	15.3%
Kent County	734	97.2%	17.2%	4.9%	9.9%
McMullen County	700	96.4%	3.9%	3.4%	12.3%
Roberts County	832	91.4%	3.4%	3.4%	5.6%
Franklin County	11K	74.2%	6.2%	1.9%	11.7%
Calhoun County	20K	68.5%	15.7%	5.1%	7.7%
Palo Pinto County	29K	68.1%	14.9%	4.1%	16.7%
Red River County	12K	65.6%	18.8%	2.6%	15.6%
Coryell County	85K	63.7%	12.7%	5.6%	11.2%
Clay County	10K	57.8%	6.4%	2.4%	8.4%
Dimmit County	8K	53.9%	25.8%	16.5%	41.1%
Val Verde County	48K	50.9%	21.8%	5.9%	16.6%
Bee County	31K	48.7%	13.6%	5.9%	17.6%
Dallam County	7K	48.1%	11.6%	2.2%	11.5%
Williamson County	673K	47.8%	4.4%	3.0%	6.4%
Jack County	9K	47.1%	10.6%	11.6%	13.0%
Kinney County	3K	46.5%	15.1%	5.1%	8.4%
Uvalde County	25K	45.2%	24.2%	5.6%	22.2%
Tyler County	20K	45.1%	16.4%	5.1%	17.9%
Anderson County	58K	43.8%	18.0%	5.8%	17.4%
Mitchell County	9K	43.5%	12.9%	3.0%	13.8%
Willacy County	20K	43.2%	31.9%	5.7%	24.0%
Childress County	7K	42.8%	8.8%	4.7%	15.3%
Terry County	12K	42.8%	26.7%	5.2%	18.3%
Gonzales County	20K	42.5%	16.3%	7.6%	15.8%
Erath County	44K	42.4%	6.8%	4.8%	16.6%
Runnels County	10K	41.5%	10.9%	3.2%	11.0%
Pecos County	15K	41.4%	13.5%	7.1%	21.6%
Guadalupe County	184K	41.3%	9.0%	3.2%	9.3%
McCulloch County	8K	40.9%	12.3%	4.3%	15.3%
Hockley County	21K	39.7%	12.0%	4.2%	13.1%
Houston County	22K	39.2%	17.9%	8.8%	15.0%
Wilbarger County	13K	38.7%	14.1%	5.2%	17.5%
Brewster County	10K	38.6%	6.8%	5.7%	8.9%
Dawson County	12K	37.5%	19.6%	5.0%	19.6%
San Saba County	6K	37.3%	9.5%	2.0%	10.7%
Fannin County	37K	36.9%	10.3%	3.4%	13.7%
Goliad County	7K	36.8%	10.4%	7.6%	13.0%
McLennan County	266K	36.8%	12.1%	5.3%	16.6%
Bandera County	22K	35.6%	7.2%	2.2%	13.5%
Brown County	38K	35.1%	11.9%	6.5%	15.3%
Jim Hogg County	5K	34.9%	30.8%	7.5%	31.4%
Montgomery County	684K	34.9%	6.6%	3.4%	9.4%
Hidalgo County	892K	34.7%	27.8%	5.6%	26.7%
Matagorda County	36K	34.7%	17.0%	6.0%	20.7%
Ellis County	213K	34.6%	6.8%	3.7%	6.9%
Wichita County	130K	34.6%	12.2%	7.1%	16.5%
Galveston County	359K	34.5%	10.5%	5.4%	11.7%
Llano County	22K	34.5%	7.5%	4.2%	12.0%
Starr County	66K	33.9%	42.5%	10.4%	33.5%
Cherokee County	52K	33.7%	14.7%	6.5%	18.2%
Kleberg County	31K	33.7%	21.4%	5.9%	28.1%
Lynn County	6K	33.7%	12.2%	3.7%	15.2%
Upton County	3K	33.4%	7.6%	2.8%	16.0%
Nueces County	353K	33.2%	17.5%	6.9%	17.4%
Howard County	32K	32.6%	12.4%	6.3%	13.8%
Newton County	12K	32.5%	14.2%	6.9%	19.0%
Titus County	31K	32.3%	19.4%	4.8%	17.1%
Cameron County	426K	32.2%	24.8%	6.6%	24.8%
Orange County	85K	32.0%	13.7%	4.7%	12.5%
Edwards County	1K	31.9%	22.5%	7.9%	31.9%
Swisher County	7K	31.8%	13.8%	6.1%	30.1%
Aransas County	25K	31.7%	8.6%	6.4%	14.2%
Zavala County	9K	31.6%	40.6%	8.0%	33.9%
Bell County	387K	31.3%	13.0%	5.3%	14.5%
Grimes County	31K	31.3%	13.8%	4.8%	14.6%
Lamar County	51K	31.3%	12.5%	7.1%	19.0%
Van Zandt County	63K	31.3%	11.0%	3.2%	11.1%
Hamilton County	8K	31.0%	12.9%	4.2%	16.5%
Madison County	14K	30.9%	10.6%	3.7%	10.9%
Maverick County	58K	30.8%	28.7%	6.6%	22.8%
San Patricio County	70K	30.7%	14.3%	6.4%	14.8%
Hardin County	58K	30.6%	12.9%	3.9%	12.1%
Tom Green County	120K	30.6%	9.6%	5.0%	11.1%
Hutchinson County	20K	30.3%	6.8%	3.9%	13.3%
Jeff Davis County	2K	30.1%	5.5%	2.5%	23.9%
Tarrant County	2.2M	30.1%	9.6%	4.6%	11.1%
Young County	18K	30.1%	11.3%	6.8%	16.5%
Brazoria County	391K	29.8%	8.1%	3.1%	7.4%
Fort Bend County	894K	29.5%	6.8%	3.2%	7.6%
Jones County	20K	29.4%	14.7%	5.3%	14.1%
La Salle County	7K	29.1%	13.9%	7.0%	21.4%
Bowie County	92K	28.9%	14.6%	6.9%	16.2%
Hopkins County	38K	28.8%	7.4%	3.6%	11.9%
Brazos County	242K	28.5%	8.6%	6.0%	24.3%
Callahan County	14K	28.5%	10.6%	2.7%	9.6%
Bexar County	2.1M	28.4%	13.8%	6.4%	14.6%
Stephens County	9K	27.6%	10.3%	8.4%	14.6%
Sherman County	2K	27.4%	4.4%	N/A	10.4%
Coleman County	8K	27.3%	13.1%	8.4%	19.6%
Haskell County	5K	27.1%	15.4%	3.3%	16.6%
Robertson County	17K	27.0%	15.6%	8.9%	13.5%
Rusk County	53K	26.9%	11.2%	4.5%	14.4%
Andrews County	19K	26.8%	13.0%	4.5%	15.6%
Ector County	165K	26.8%	12.5%	6.1%	16.5%
Concho County	3K	26.7%	6.9%	4.5%	11.4%
Duval County	10K	26.7%	24.9%	10.8%	33.3%
San Augustine County	8K	26.6%	23.4%	8.0%	27.1%
Travis County	1.3M	26.4%	5.6%	5.9%	10.9%
Eastland County	18K	26.3%	11.8%	5.0%	16.2%
Milam County	26K	26.1%	11.2%	5.5%	12.9%
Angelina County	87K	26.0%	16.7%	6.3%	15.8%
Hardeman County	4K	25.8%	13.7%	2.0%	10.7%
Yoakum County	8K	25.8%	3.3%	3.7%	16.8%
Bosque County	19K	25.6%	10.4%	2.3%	9.3%
Midland County	175K	25.1%	7.0%	4.4%	11.3%
Taylor County	146K	24.9%	11.1%	3.8%	14.7%
Mills County	5K	24.7%	13.2%	2.2%	7.2%
Hall County	3K	24.5%	13.9%	4.3%	16.3%
Potter County	116K	24.5%	14.6%	7.7%	20.8%
Jefferson County	254K	24.4%	16.9%	8.1%	19.5%
Presidio County	6K	24.4%	17.6%	5.7%	32.0%
Gregg County	125K	24.2%	13.5%	4.6%	16.1%
Burnet County	53K	24.1%	7.3%	3.7%	8.0%
Kimble County	4K	24.1%	11.4%	5.1%	11.7%
Hartley County	5K	23.9%	8.0%	2.7%	9.4%
Hood County	66K	23.9%	4.6%	2.6%	7.7%
Victoria County	91K	23.8%	14.2%	6.2%	16.2%
Frio County	19K	23.5%	23.6%	10.4%	19.5%
Hale County	32K	23.5%	23.0%	6.5%	20.5%
Nolan County	14K	23.5%	19.7%	8.5%	22.5%
Panola County	23K	23.1%	10.9%	5.2%	11.2%
Lamb County	13K	23.0%	14.2%	3.2%	15.0%
Denton County	980K	22.9%	4.4%	3.5%	7.1%
Gray County	21K	22.4%	13.9%	4.1%	15.7%
Nacogdoches County	65K	22.2%	16.6%	6.1%	21.8%
Navarro County	55K	22.2%	13.8%	4.5%	17.1%
Wood County	47K	21.8%	11.1%	5.1%	12.5%
Martin County	5K	21.4%	9.8%	N/A	8.3%
Washington County	37K	21.4%	10.7%	6.8%	13.4%
Cochran County	3K	21.2%	21.7%	5.4%	27.8%
Jim Wells County	39K	21.2%	24.0%	6.9%	24.7%
Mason County	4K	21.1%	4.7%	3.3%	7.0%
Reeves County	13K	21.1%	17.4%	6.1%	16.8%
Comanche County	14K	21.0%	10.5%	5.2%	16.2%
Colorado County	21K	20.9%	9.5%	4.7%	10.7%
Deaf Smith County	18K	20.7%	13.4%	4.6%	17.7%
Parker County	165K	20.7%	5.1%	3.1%	8.0%
Leon County	16K	20.5%	8.2%	3.0%	16.4%
El Paso County	871K	20.3%	19.3%	6.4%	18.7%
Rockwall County	124K	20.3%	4.3%	2.1%	4.0%
Jackson County	15K	20.2%	18.3%	7.0%	14.1%
Menard County	2K	20.2%	9.1%	1.1%	18.9%
Parmer County	10K	20.2%	4.9%	2.3%	10.2%
Smith County	242K	20.2%	9.1%	4.7%	11.6%
Johnson County	196K	20.1%	7.8%	2.6%	10.0%
Dickens County	2K	19.8%	14.9%	6.6%	18.0%
Garza County	5K	19.8%	11.0%	7.9%	8.4%
Collin County	1.2M	19.6%	3.1%	3.2%	6.2%
Refugio County	7K	19.2%	14.1%	10.4%	14.6%
Sutton County	3K	19.2%	6.7%	3.8%	4.5%
Harris County	4.8M	18.9%	13.4%	7.1%	16.3%
Atascosa County	51K	18.8%	16.2%	5.1%	15.8%
Freestone County	20K	18.7%	14.8%	2.5%	12.3%
Dallas County	2.6M	18.6%	10.5%	6.8%	13.9%
Fayette County	25K	18.6%	7.4%	6.1%	8.6%
Grayson County	143K	18.6%	8.3%	3.7%	11.2%
Motley County	1K	18.5%	12.6%	2.6%	16.1%
Webb County	269K	18.5%	23.7%	6.6%	21.3%
Archer County	9K	18.3%	6.5%	1.4%	9.2%
Henderson County	85K	18.3%	12.8%	4.6%	14.7%
Lubbock County	319K	18.2%	10.7%	5.8%	17.1%
Limestone County	22K	18.1%	16.6%	3.5%	17.1%
Shelby County	24K	17.9%	15.7%	6.7%	20.6%
Moore County	21K	17.8%	8.6%	6.7%	18.3%
Brooks County	7K	17.7%	35.7%	24.8%	19.4%
Carson County	6K	17.6%	4.4%	4.1%	7.4%
Waller County	62K	17.6%	12.9%	2.9%	14.6%
Caldwell County	49K	17.5%	11.4%	3.6%	13.2%
Bastrop County	107K	17.3%	7.5%	3.4%	10.2%
Fisher County	4K	17.0%	13.9%	4.3%	13.7%
Zapata County	14K	16.8%	31.3%	8.8%	38.4%
Burleson County	19K	16.5%	11.9%	4.0%	12.7%
Jasper County	33K	16.5%	15.6%	5.2%	20.7%
Cass County	29K	16.3%	16.6%	6.0%	17.5%
Lavaca County	21K	16.1%	8.3%	3.0%	11.5%
Medina County	54K	16.0%	10.7%	3.5%	9.6%
Lampasas County	23K	15.8%	8.7%	3.3%	9.1%
Karnes County	15K	15.7%	21.1%	9.8%	19.1%
Donley County	3K	15.6%	3.4%	3.2%	7.9%
Stonewall County	1K	15.4%	8.0%	4.7%	14.9%
Castro County	7K	15.3%	9.4%	1.7%	19.2%
Floyd County	5K	15.3%	12.9%	6.7%	17.9%
Sabine County	10K	15.2%	14.9%	2.7%	11.0%
Trinity County	14K	15.1%	16.5%	9.7%	17.6%
Comal County	184K	14.6%	4.4%	2.2%	6.5%
Shackelford County	3K	14.6%	8.3%	2.9%	9.5%
Montague County	21K	14.5%	9.8%	5.6%	14.2%
Hunt County	109K	14.3%	11.7%	3.7%	11.8%
Lee County	18K	14.0%	11.9%	3.2%	11.3%
Falls County	17K	13.8%	13.2%	5.8%	14.7%
Wharton County	42K	13.5%	13.9%	7.2%	13.6%
Crane County	5K	13.4%	3.9%	11.8%	10.9%
Walker County	80K	13.1%	10.5%	8.1%	18.4%
Knox County	3K	12.6%	14.0%	7.5%	15.7%
Kerr County	53K	11.8%	6.4%	6.2%	11.4%
Harrison County	70K	11.5%	12.8%	6.8%	15.6%
Ochiltree County	10K	11.5%	5.0%	5.3%	11.8%
Wheeler County	5K	11.5%	13.6%	6.0%	15.4%
Polk County	53K	11.0%	16.2%	3.8%	17.5%
Randall County	146K	10.8%	6.9%	3.3%	9.7%
Chambers County	51K	10.7%	5.8%	3.4%	11.9%
Kaufman County	173K	10.7%	9.9%	3.1%	9.7%
Camp County	13K	10.6%	16.6%	6.7%	19.9%
Hemphill County	3K	10.6%	9.1%	6.3%	6.2%
Schleicher County	2K	10.6%	7.3%	4.1%	9.9%
Gillespie County	28K	10.5%	3.6%	5.5%	9.2%
Live Oak County	12K	10.0%	16.5%	9.4%	17.1%
Scurry County	16K	10.0%	8.0%	5.7%	11.6%
Wise County	75K	9.9%	7.8%	2.6%	8.9%
Liberty County	103K	9.3%	16.6%	5.1%	18.7%
Cooke County	43K	9.0%	9.4%	3.9%	13.5%
Kendall County	49K	8.6%	4.5%	2.7%	5.0%
Hays County	269K	8.3%	5.0%	3.9%	12.1%
Ward County	11K	8.3%	9.1%	6.5%	14.9%
Marion County	10K	7.9%	20.5%	8.1%	18.3%
Culberson County	2K	7.8%	26.7%	5.2%	19.5%
Hansford County	5K	7.6%	2.8%	5.2%	8.6%
San Jacinto County	28K	7.6%	17.1%	4.2%	18.4%
Upshur County	43K	7.5%	12.3%	3.8%	12.4%
Austin County	31K	7.4%	9.2%	2.8%	12.0%
Baylor County	3K	7.4%	15.9%	7.0%	21.8%
Collingsworth County	3K	7.4%	17.3%	1.9%	21.8%
Delta County	5K	7.2%	11.0%	3.6%	11.4%
Crockett County	3K	6.7%	N/A	N/A	9.3%
Reagan County	3K	6.4%	6.0%	1.9%	11.8%
Bailey County	7K	6.3%	17.9%	10.2%	12.0%
Blanco County	12K	6.3%	4.7%	2.2%	8.4%
Winkler County	7K	5.9%	18.8%	3.1%	16.2%
Crosby County	5K	5.6%	24.2%	3.9%	20.1%
DeWitt County	20K	5.6%	11.8%	6.7%	17.6%
Wilson County	53K	5.2%	8.4%	3.2%	11.3%
Hill County	37K	5.0%	11.1%	5.2%	14.7%
Gaines County	22K	3.1%	7.8%	5.6%	6.8%
Morris County	12K	2.1%	13.6%	4.9%	19.5%
Rains County	13K	0.0%	11.2%	2.0%	10.0%
Somervell County	10K	0.0%	5.5%	2.4%	7.5%

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

25.0% of Texas residents, about 6.3M people, live in a low-access area.
1,022 census tracts are USDA food deserts, home to roughly 2.1M low-income, low-access residents.
11.6% of households receive SNAP, and 5.4% have no vehicle.
Borden County has the state's highest low-access share at 100.0%.

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 Texas has low food access?▼

25.0% of Texas residents live in low-access areas (population-weighted across the state's tracts), per the USDA Food Access Research Atlas (2019).

How many food deserts are in Texas?▼

1,022 census tracts in Texas are USDA-designated food deserts, both low-access and low-income, home to roughly 2.1M low-income residents.

What is the SNAP participation rate in Texas?▼

Across Texas counties, an average of 11.6% of households receive SNAP (Census ACS 2024), though rates vary between urban and rural areas.

Which county in Texas has the worst food access?▼

Borden County has the highest low-access share in Texas at 100.0%, with N/A SNAP participation.

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 2026-06-23 (most recent source-data vintage).

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