Food and drink · County · Minnesota
Bakeries and dessert shops in Blue Earth County, MN
How Blue Earth County, MN compares with other counties and the U.S. for bakeries and dessert shops: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 57 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #646 of 1,889 scored counties
#36 of 45 scored counties in Minnesota
- Listings
- 20
- 8 chain locations (40%)
- Official establishments
- 18
- All snack bars and retail bakeries
- Household spending a year
- $104.6M
- On food away from home · $3,790 a household
- Spending per listing
- $5.2M
- 26% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 7.2
- 27% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 70,634
- +2.1% since 2020
See the bakeries and dessert shops around any address in Blue Earth 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 Blue Earth 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
At $3,790 per household (7% below the U.S. average), households in Blue Earth County spend about $104.6M a year on food away from home. That is about $5.2M of household spending for each shop on map listings, 26% above the U.S. figure of $4.1M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only bakeries and dessert shops.
There are 20 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings in Blue Earth County as of September 2026. Of those, 8 are chain locations, or 40%, against 35% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 7.2, 27% below the U.S. rate of 9.8.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Blue Earth County was 18 in 2023. That is one for every 1,534 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. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $75K has gone to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Blue Earth County.
Population estimates show Blue Earth County grew 2.1% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). Blue Earth County scores 57 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for bakeries and dessert shops, ranking #646 of 1,889 scored counties and #36 of 45 scored counties in Minnesota.
How Blue Earth County compares
The same measures for Minnesota 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 | Blue Earth County | Minnesota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 7.2 | 6.3 | 9.8 |
| Spending per listing | $5.2M | $6.8M | $4.1M |
| Households per official establishment (all snack bars and retail bakeries) | 1,534 | 1,893 | 1,369 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +18.7% | +24.6% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.1% | +2.1% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,790 | $4,330 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $74,477 | $89,062 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 57 | 80 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 18 → 18All snack bars and retail bakeries
- Employees, 2023
- 269
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $4.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 0All snack bars and retail bakeries with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 208 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 25The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $75K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Blue Earth 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 Blue Earth County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 70,634+2.1% since 2020
- Households
- 27,606
- Median age
- 34.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 61%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 748 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 93
- Median household income
- $74,477+29.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $93,438
- Median home value
- $266,700
- Jobs located here
- 37,905
- Daytime population
- 76,062Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Blue Earth 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 Blue Earth 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 Minnesota
Every Minnesota market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Minnesota for bakeries and dessert shops, numbered among those based in Minnesota, with Blue Earth County marked.
Top counties in Minnesota
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Wright County, MN | 93 | 28 | 5.2 | $9M | +11.1% | #9 of 1,889 |
| 2Sherburne County, MN | 92 | 13 | 3.7 | $12.7M | +6.8% | #10 of 1,889 |
| 3Scott County, MN | 89 | 25 | 4.5 | $11.3M | +5.1% | #18 of 1,889 |
| 4Clay County, MN | 86 | 11 | 4.2 | $9.6M | +3.6% | #34 of 1,889 |
| 5Chisago County, MN | 85 | 7 | 3.3 | $13.7M | +4.3% | #41 of 1,889 |
| 6Washington County, MN | 85 | 65 | 6.2 | $8.2M | +6.9% | #45 of 1,889 |
| 7Anoka County, MN | 83 | 76 | 5.5 | $8.2M | +4.7% | #60 of 1,889 |
| 8Dakota County, MN | 82 | 102 | 5.8 | $8.1M | +3.9% | #68 of 1,889 |
| 9Dodge County, MN | 81 | 5 | 6.2 | $7M | +2.3% | #72 of 1,889 |
| 10Rice County, MN | 81 | 14 | 6.0 | $6.8M | +4.2% | #74 of 1,889 |
| 36Blue Earth County, MN | 57 | 20 | 7.2 | $5.2M | +2.1% | #646 of 1,889 |
Other business types in Blue Earth County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes39
- Sit-down restaurants44
- Fast food and sandwich shops34
- Pizza42
- Coffee shops and cafes42
- Bakeries and dessert shops57
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 Blue Earth County, MN?
As of September 2026, map listings count 20 bakeries and dessert shops in Blue Earth County. 8 of them (40%) are chain locations. The listings count bakeries, ice cream, donut and dessert shops, candy stores. Official counts show 18 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.
How much do households in Blue Earth County, MN spend on food away from home?
About $104.6M a year, or $3,790 per household. That is 7% below the U.S. average (an index of 93, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 20 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings, it comes to $5.2M 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 27,606 households in Blue Earth County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Blue Earth County, MN compare with the U.S. for bakeries and dessert shops?
Blue Earth County has 7.2 bakeries and dessert shops per 10,000 households, 27% below the U.S. rate of 9.8. Spending per shop is $5.2M, 26% above the U.S. figure of $4.1M. At the U.S. ratio of bakeries and dessert shops to household spending, Blue Earth County would have about 25, against 20 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,534 households, against one for every 1,369 across the U.S.
How fast is Blue Earth County, MN growing?
Population estimates put Blue Earth County at 70,634 people in 2025, up 2.1% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 27,606 households. The median household income in Blue Earth County is $74,477 a year, 8% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 29.7% from the 2015–2019 survey, 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. Blue Earth County scores 57 for bakeries and dessert shops (upper middle), #646 of 1,889 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Blue Earth 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 Blue Earth County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Blue Earth 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 Blue Earth 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.