Food and drink · Metro area · Massachusetts
Bakeries and dessert shops in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metro area
How the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for bakeries and dessert shops: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 45 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #245 of 387 scored metro areas
#4 of 6 scored metro areas based in Massachusetts
- Listings
- 2,342
- 934 chain locations (40%)
- Official establishments
- 2,178
- All snack bars and retail bakeries · +14.6% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $9.6B
- On food away from home · $4,945 a household
- Spending per listing
- $4.1M
- In line with the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 12.1
- 23% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 5,034,221
- +2.3% since 2020
See the bakeries and dessert shops around any address in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area
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 Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area. 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
Map listings as of September 2026 show 2,342 bakeries and dessert shops in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area. Of those, 934 are chain locations, or 40%, against 35% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 12.1, 23% above the U.S. rate of 9.8.
Households in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area spend about $9.6B a year on food away from home, or $4,945 per household, 21% above the U.S. average. That works out to $4.1M per shop, in line with 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.
Official counts show 2,178 businesses with payroll classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area in 2023, up 14.6% from 2019. That is one for every 891 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. Another 147 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 66 SBA-backed loans worth $17M have gone to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area.
Population estimates put the population change in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area from 2020 to 2025 at +2.3%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). For bakeries and dessert shops, the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area has a Groundwork market score of 45 (lower middle): #245 of 387 scored metro areas and #4 of 6 scored metro areas based in Massachusetts.
How the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area compares
The same measures for Massachusetts 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 | Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area | Massachusetts | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 12.1 | 12.0 | 9.8 |
| Spending per listing | $4.1M | $3.9M | $4.1M |
| Households per official establishment (all snack bars and retail bakeries) | 891 | 931 | 1,369 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +14.6% | +14.8% | +24.6% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.3% | +2.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $4,945 | $4,685 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $115,863 | $103,960 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 45 | 42 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 2,178All snack bars and retail bakeries · +14.6% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 29,769
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $726.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 147All snack bars and retail bakeries with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 2,342934 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 2,316The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 66
- Amount
- $17M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area, 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 Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 5,034,221+2.3% since 2020
- Households
- 1,940,688
- Median age
- 40.8
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 62%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.6
- Land area
- 3,486 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 1,421
- Median household income
- $115,863+28.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $159,721
- Median home value
- $646,300
- Jobs located here
- 2,811,395
- Daytime population
- 5,216,901Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area. 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 Massachusetts
Every Massachusetts market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Massachusetts for bakeries and dessert shops, numbered among those based in Massachusetts (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Massachusetts
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Worcester, MA | 49 | 367 | 10.9 | $4.1M | +3.7% | #204 of 387 |
| 2Amherst Town-Northampton, MA | 49 | 65 | 10.5 | $4M | +10.4% | #205 of 387 |
| 3Springfield, MA | 45 | 150 | 8.1 | $4.6M | +0.2% | #240 of 387 |
| 4Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | 45 | 2,342 | 12.1 | $4.1M | +2.3% | #245 of 387 |
| Providence-Warwick, RI-MA | 31 | 889 | 13.2 | $3.2M | +2.1% | #335 of 387 |
| 5Barnstable Town, MA | 29 | 219 | 20.7 | $2.2M | +2.4% | #354 of 387 |
| 6Pittsfield, MA | 25 | 73 | 12.7 | $3.1M | −1.2% | #369 of 387 |
Other business types in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes64
- Sit-down restaurants59
- Fast food and sandwich shops76
- Pizza56
- Coffee shops and cafes47
- Bakeries and dessert shops45
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 Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metro area?
There are 2,342 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area as of September 2026. 934 of them (40%) are chain locations. The listings count bakeries, ice cream, donut and dessert shops, candy stores. Official counts show 2,178 businesses with payroll classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in 2023, up 14.6% from 2019. That count covers all snack bars and retail bakeries (coffee shops and cafes included), not only bakeries and dessert shops. Official counts list 147 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metro area spend on food away from home?
About $9.6B a year, or $4,945 per household. That is 21% above the U.S. average (an index of 121, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 2,342 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings, it comes to $4.1M 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 1,940,688 households in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metro area compare with the U.S. for bakeries and dessert shops?
The Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area has 12.1 bakeries and dessert shops per 10,000 households, 23% above the U.S. rate of 9.8. Spending per shop is $4.1M, in line with the U.S. figure of $4.1M. At the national ratio of bakeries and dessert shops to household spending, the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area would have about 2,316, against 2,342 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 891 households, against one for every 1,369 across the U.S. The official count rose 14.6% from 2019 to 2023, against +24.6% for the U.S.
How fast is the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area at 5,034,221 people in 2025, up 2.3% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 1,940,688 households. Median household income in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area is $115,863, 44% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 28.3%, 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. The Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area scores 45 for bakeries and dessert shops (lower middle), #245 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area. 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 Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area?
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 Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area. 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.