Food and drink · County · Iowa
Bakeries and dessert shops in Shelby County, IA
The bakeries and dessert shops in Shelby County, IA, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 44 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,153 of 1,889 scored counties
#32 of 47 scored counties in Iowa
- Listings
- 5
- 1 chain location (20%)
- Official establishments
- n/a
- Fewer than 3, or not published
- Household spending a year
- $19.1M
- On food away from home · $3,913 a household
- Spending per listing
- $3.8M
- 8% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 10.2
- 4% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 11,689
- −0.2% since 2020
See the bakeries and dessert shops around any address in Shelby County
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 Shelby County. 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
As of September 2026, map listings count 5 bakeries and dessert shops in Shelby County. One of them (20%) is a chain location, against 35% across the U.S. That comes to 10.2 for every 10,000 households, 4% above the U.S. rate of 9.8.
At $3,913 per household (4% below the U.S. average), households in Shelby County spend about $19.1M a year on food away from home. Spread across 5 bakeries and dessert shops, that is $3.8M per shop, 8% below the U.S. figure of $4.1M. That spending covers all food away from home, which bakeries and dessert shops share with other businesses in the trade.
There is no official count of businesses with payroll classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Shelby County: counts under 3 aren’t published.
Population estimates show Shelby County declined 0.2% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S. Shelby County scores 44 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for bakeries and dessert shops, ranking #1,153 of 1,889 scored counties and #32 of 47 scored counties in Iowa.
How Shelby County compares
The same measures for Iowa 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 | Shelby County | Iowa | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 10.2 | 8.0 | 9.8 |
| Spending per listing | $3.8M | $4.8M | $4.1M |
| Households per official establishment (all snack bars and retail bakeries) | n/a | 1,583 | 1,369 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +52.2% | +24.6% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −0.2% | +1.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,913 | $3,880 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $72,738 | $75,059 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 44 | 53 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- n/aAll snack bars and retail bakeries
- Employees, 2023
- n/a
- Annual payroll, 2023
- n/a
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 0All snack bars and retail bakeries with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 51 chain location
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 5The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Shelby County, 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 Shelby County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 11,689−0.2% since 2020
- Households
- 4,882
- Median age
- 44.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 78%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.2
- Land area
- 591 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 20
- Median household income
- $72,738+25.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $97,055
- Median home value
- $164,000
- Jobs located here
- 5,366
- Daytime population
- 11,696Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Shelby County?
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 Shelby County. 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 Iowa
Every Iowa market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Iowa for bakeries and dessert shops, numbered among those based in Iowa, with Shelby County marked.
Top counties in Iowa
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Warren County, IA | 82 | 11 | 5.3 | $8.2M | +9.0% | #67 of 1,889 |
| 2Dallas County, IA | 80 | 32 | 7.5 | $6.3M | +17.8% | #89 of 1,889 |
| 3Jones County, IA | 74 | 5 | 6.1 | $6.1M | +2.9% | #184 of 1,889 |
| 4Madison County, IA | 74 | 5 | 7.5 | $5.6M | +3.8% | #190 of 1,889 |
| 5Buchanan County, IA | 66 | 5 | 6.1 | $6.2M | +1.3% | #360 of 1,889 |
| 6Boone County, IA | 63 | 5 | 4.6 | $8.8M | +0.4% | #433 of 1,889 |
| 7Muscatine County, IA | 63 | 10 | 5.8 | $6.4M | −3.0% | #439 of 1,889 |
| 8Pottawattamie County, IA | 62 | 27 | 7.2 | $5.3M | −0.7% | #469 of 1,889 |
| 9Polk County, IA | 61 | 184 | 9.0 | $4.7M | +4.8% | #515 of 1,889 |
| 10Mahaska County, IA | 60 | 5 | 5.7 | $6.3M | −1.2% | #531 of 1,889 |
| 32Shelby County, IA | 44 | 5 | 10.2 | $3.8M | −0.2% | #1,153 of 1,889 |
Other business types in Shelby County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes46
- Sit-down restaurants52
- Fast food and sandwich shops51
- Pizza
- Coffee shops and cafes33
- Bakeries and dessert shops44
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 Shelby County, IA?
Shelby County has 5 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings as of September 2026. One of them (20%) is a chain location. The listings count bakeries, ice cream, donut and dessert shops, candy stores. No official count is published for snack bars and retail bakeries in Shelby County: counts under 3 are left out.
How much do households in Shelby County, IA spend on food away from home?
About $19.1M a year, or $3,913 per household. That is 4% below the U.S. average (an index of 96, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 5 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings, it comes to $3.8M per shop. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only bakeries and dessert shops. It is estimated from the incomes of the 4,882 households in Shelby County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Shelby County, IA compare with the U.S. for bakeries and dessert shops?
Shelby County has 10.2 bakeries and dessert shops per 10,000 households, 4% above the U.S. rate of 9.8. Spending per shop is $3.8M, 8% below the U.S. figure of $4.1M. The count on map listings matches the U.S. ratio of bakeries and dessert shops to household spending.
How fast is Shelby County, IA growing?
Population estimates put Shelby County at 11,689 people in 2025, down 0.2% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 4,882 households. Median household income in Shelby County is $72,738, 10% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 25.4%, before inflation.
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. Shelby County scores 44 for bakeries and dessert shops (lower middle), #1,153 of 1,889 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Shelby County. 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 Shelby County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Shelby County?
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 Shelby County. 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.