Food and drink · County · Connecticut
Bakeries and dessert shops in the Western Connecticut Planning Region, CT
The bakeries and dessert shops in the Western Connecticut Planning Region, CT, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 49 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #967 of 1,889 scored counties
#5 of 9 scored counties in Connecticut
- Listings
- 312
- 129 chain locations (41%)
- Official establishments
- 262
- All snack bars and retail bakeries
- Household spending a year
- $1.2B
- On food away from home · $5,267 a household
- Spending per listing
- $4M
- 4% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 13.3
- 36% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 640,482
- +3.5% since 2020
See the bakeries and dessert shops around any address in the Western Connecticut Planning Region
The site report maps the bakeries and dessert shops on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of the Western Connecticut Planning Region. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
Household spending on food away from home in the Western Connecticut Planning Region comes to about $1.2B a year: $5,267 per household, 29% above the U.S. average. That is about $4M of household spending for each shop on map listings, 4% below the U.S. figure of $4.1M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only bakeries and dessert shops.
The Western Connecticut Planning Region has 312 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 129 are chain locations, or 41%, against 35% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 13.3, 36% above the U.S. rate of 9.8.
Official counts show 262 businesses with payroll classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in the Western Connecticut Planning Region in 2023. That is one for every 898 households, against one for every 1,369 across the U.S. That count covers all snack bars and retail bakeries (coffee shops and cafes included), not only bakeries and dessert shops. Official counts also show 26 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 9 SBA-backed loans worth $1.4M have gone to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in the Western Connecticut Planning Region.
Population estimates show the Western Connecticut Planning Region grew 3.5% from 2020 to 2025, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). The Western Connecticut Planning Region scores 49 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for bakeries and dessert shops, ranking #967 of 1,889 scored counties and #5 of 9 scored counties in Connecticut.
How the Western Connecticut Planning Region compares
The same measures for Connecticut and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all food away from home by the bakeries and dessert shops counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.
| Measure | Western Connecticut Planning Region | Connecticut | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 13.3 | 11.3 | 9.8 |
| Spending per listing | $4M | $4M | $4.1M |
| Households per official establishment (all snack bars and retail bakeries) | 898 | 1,095 | 1,369 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +7.2% | +24.6% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.5% | +3.0% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $5,267 | $4,498 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $128,188 | $95,781 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 49 | 48 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 262All snack bars and retail bakeries
- Employees, 2023
- 2,522
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $63M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 26All snack bars and retail bakeries with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 312129 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 299The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 9
- Amount
- $1.4M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in the Western Connecticut Planning Region, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3. These official figures cover all snack bars and retail bakeries, not only bakeries and dessert shops.
Population and households in the Western Connecticut Planning Region
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 640,482+3.5% since 2020
- Households
- 235,379
- Median age
- 42.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 66%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 532 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 1,178
- Median household income
- $128,188
- Average household income
- $214,675
- Median home value
- $652,900
- Jobs located here
- 282,077
- Daytime population
- 636,160Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Western Connecticut Planning Region?
These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the bakeries and dessert shops on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Western Connecticut Planning Region. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardBakeries and dessert shops across Connecticut
Every Connecticut market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Connecticut for bakeries and dessert shops, numbered among those based in Connecticut, with the Western Connecticut Planning Region marked.
Top counties in Connecticut
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, CT | 60 | 163 | 9.0 | $4.6M | +3.2% | #546 of 1,889 |
| 2Greater Bridgeport Planning Region, CT | 52 | 126 | 10.5 | $4.2M | +4.1% | #857 of 1,889 |
| 3Northwest Hills Planning Region, CT | 52 | 54 | 11.3 | $3.9M | +2.2% | #866 of 1,889 |
| 4Capitol Planning Region, CT | 50 | 414 | 10.6 | $4.2M | +3.1% | #934 of 1,889 |
| 5Western Connecticut Planning Region, CT | 49 | 312 | 13.3 | $4M | +3.5% | #967 of 1,889 |
| 6South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT | 46 | 254 | 11.0 | $3.9M | +2.5% | #1,081 of 1,889 |
| 7Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region, CT | 43 | 102 | 13.8 | $3.4M | +2.3% | #1,197 of 1,889 |
| 8Northeastern Connecticut Planning Region, CT | 42 | 49 | 12.4 | $3.4M | +3.0% | #1,223 of 1,889 |
| 9Southeastern Connecticut Planning Region, CT | 40 | 148 | 12.8 | $3.3M | +2.0% | #1,307 of 1,889 |
Other business types in the Western Connecticut Planning Region
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes54
- Sit-down restaurants50
- Fast food and sandwich shops63
- Pizza63
- Coffee shops and cafes54
- Bakeries and dessert shops49
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many bakeries and dessert shops are in the Western Connecticut Planning Region, CT?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 312 bakeries and dessert shops in the Western Connecticut Planning Region. 129 of them (41%) are chain locations. The listings count bakeries, ice cream, donut and dessert shops, candy stores. Official counts show 262 businesses with payroll classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in 2023. The official count takes in all snack bars and retail bakeries, not only bakeries and dessert shops: coffee shops and cafes are counted too. Another 26 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Western Connecticut Planning Region, CT spend on food away from home?
About $1.2B a year, or $5,267 per household. That is 29% above the U.S. average (an index of 129, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 312 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings, it comes to $4M per shop. That spending covers all food away from home, which bakeries and dessert shops share with other businesses in the trade. It is estimated from the incomes of the 235,379 households in the Western Connecticut Planning Region and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Western Connecticut Planning Region, CT compare with the U.S. for bakeries and dessert shops?
The Western Connecticut Planning Region has 13.3 bakeries and dessert shops per 10,000 households, 36% above the U.S. rate of 9.8. Spending per shop is $4M, 4% below the U.S. figure of $4.1M. At the U.S. ratio of bakeries and dessert shops to household spending, the Western Connecticut Planning Region would have about 299, against 312 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 898 households, against one for every 1,369 across the U.S.
How fast is the Western Connecticut Planning Region, CT growing?
Population estimates put the Western Connecticut Planning Region at 640,482 people in 2025, up 3.5% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 235,379 households. The median household income in the Western Connecticut Planning Region is $128,188 a year, 59% above the U.S. median of $80,734.
What is the Groundwork market score?
The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. The Western Connecticut Planning Region scores 49 for bakeries and dessert shops (lower middle), #967 of 1,889 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Western Connecticut Planning Region. It maps the bakeries and dessert shops on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.
How the score works · Top markets for bakeries and dessert shops · All 56 business types in the Western Connecticut Planning Region
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Western Connecticut Planning Region?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of the Western Connecticut Planning Region. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.