Food and drink · County · Maine
Bakeries and dessert shops in Waldo County, ME
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for bakeries and dessert shops in Waldo County, ME, set against other counties and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 32 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,573 of 1,889 scored counties
#10 of 16 scored counties in Maine
- Listings
- 24
- 1 chain location (4%)
- Official establishments
- 13
- All snack bars and retail bakeries
- Household spending a year
- $63.2M
- On food away from home · $3,620 a household
- Spending per listing
- $2.6M
- 36% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 13.7
- 40% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 40,693
- +2.6% since 2020
See the bakeries and dessert shops around any address in Waldo 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 Waldo 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
The Groundwork market score for bakeries and dessert shops in Waldo County is 32 (lower middle), #1,573 of 1,889 scored counties and #10 of 16 scored counties in Maine. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 24 bakeries and dessert shops in Waldo County. One of them (4%) is a chain location, against 35% across the U.S. That is 13.7 per 10,000 households, 40% above the U.S. rate of 9.8.
At $3,620 per household (11% below the U.S. average), households in Waldo County spend about $63.2M a year on food away from home. Spread across 24 bakeries and dessert shops, that is $2.6M per shop, 36% 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.
In 2023, official counts showed 13 businesses with payroll in Waldo County classed as snack bars and retail bakeries. That is one for every 1,344 households, against one for every 1,369 across the U.S. The official count takes in all snack bars and retail bakeries, not only bakeries and dessert shops: coffee shops and cafes are counted too. Since fiscal 2022, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $776K have gone to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Waldo County. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Waldo County grew 2.6%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Waldo County compares
The same measures for Maine 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 | Waldo County | Maine | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 13.7 | 13.4 | 9.8 |
| Spending per listing | $2.6M | $2.9M | $4.1M |
| Households per official establishment (all snack bars and retail bakeries) | 1,344 | 963 | 1,369 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +19.2% | +24.6% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.6% | +3.7% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,620 | $3,835 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $72,782 | $74,733 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 32 | 26 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 10 → 13All snack bars and retail bakeries
- Employees, 2023
- 68
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $2.1M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 0All snack bars and retail bakeries with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 241 chain location
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 15The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 4
- Amount
- $776K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Waldo 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 Waldo County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 40,693+2.6% since 2020
- Households
- 17,470
- Median age
- 46.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 82%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 730 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 55
- Median household income
- $72,782+40.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $91,541
- Median home value
- $257,700
- Jobs located here
- 11,338
- Daytime population
- 35,620Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Waldo 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 Waldo 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 Maine
Every Maine market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Maine for bakeries and dessert shops, numbered among those based in Maine, with Waldo County marked.
Top counties in Maine
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Sagadahoc County, ME | 69 | 11 | 6.7 | $6M | +3.4% | #290 of 1,889 |
| 2Penobscot County, ME | 43 | 57 | 8.7 | $4.1M | +3.8% | #1,178 of 1,889 |
| 3Androscoggin County, ME | 40 | 46 | 9.8 | $3.6M | +4.8% | #1,301 of 1,889 |
| 4Piscataquis County, ME | 39 | 9 | 10.7 | $3.1M | +3.5% | #1,334 of 1,889 |
| 5Cumberland County, ME | 39 | 199 | 15.1 | $2.9M | +4.5% | #1,336 of 1,889 |
| 6Washington County, ME | 37 | 20 | 14.1 | $2.3M | +0.8% | #1,420 of 1,889 |
| 7York County, ME | 36 | 149 | 16.3 | $2.5M | +4.8% | #1,452 of 1,889 |
| 8Kennebec County, ME | 34 | 58 | 10.7 | $3.4M | +3.5% | #1,511 of 1,889 |
| 9Aroostook County, ME | 32 | 27 | 9.0 | $3.6M | −0.7% | #1,558 of 1,889 |
| 10Waldo County, ME | 32 | 24 | 13.7 | $2.6M | +2.6% | #1,573 of 1,889 |
Other business types in Waldo County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes66
- Sit-down restaurants69
- Fast food and sandwich shops80
- Pizza69
- Coffee shops and cafes40
- Bakeries and dessert shops32
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 Waldo County, ME?
There are 24 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings in Waldo County as of September 2026. One of them (4%) is a chain location. The listings count bakeries, ice cream, donut and dessert shops, candy stores. Official counts show 13 businesses with payroll classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in 2023. That count covers all snack bars and retail bakeries (coffee shops and cafes included), not only bakeries and dessert shops.
How much do households in Waldo County, ME spend on food away from home?
About $63.2M a year, or $3,620 per household. That is 11% below the U.S. average (an index of 89, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 24 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings, it comes to $2.6M 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 17,470 households in Waldo County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Waldo County, ME compare with the U.S. for bakeries and dessert shops?
Waldo County has 13.7 bakeries and dessert shops per 10,000 households, 40% above the U.S. rate of 9.8. Spending per shop is $2.6M, 36% below the U.S. figure of $4.1M. At the national ratio of bakeries and dessert shops to household spending, Waldo County would have about 15, against 24 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,344 households, against one for every 1,369 across the U.S.
How fast is Waldo County, ME growing?
Population estimates put Waldo County at 40,693 people in 2025, up 2.6% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 17,470 households. Median household income in Waldo County is $72,782, 10% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 40.2%, 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. Waldo County scores 32 for bakeries and dessert shops (lower middle), #1,573 of 1,889 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Waldo 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 Waldo County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Waldo 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 Waldo 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.