Food and drink · County · Missouri
Bakeries and dessert shops in St. Louis city, MO
How St. Louis city, MO 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 27 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,686 of 1,889 scored counties
#51 of 57 scored counties in Missouri
- Listings
- 136
- 28 chain locations (21%)
- Official establishments
- 93
- All snack bars and retail bakeries · +19.2% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $499.1M
- On food away from home · $3,445 a household
- Spending per listing
- $3.7M
- 11% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 9.4
- 4% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 278,144
- −7.4% since 2020
See the bakeries and dessert shops around any address in St. Louis city
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 St. Louis city. 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
For bakeries and dessert shops, St. Louis city has a Groundwork market score of 27 (lower middle): #1,686 of 1,889 scored counties and #51 of 57 scored counties in Missouri. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
Households in St. Louis city spend about $499.1M a year on food away from home, or $3,445 per household, 15% below the U.S. average. Spread across 136 bakeries and dessert shops, that is $3.7M per shop, 11% below the U.S. figure of $4.1M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only bakeries and dessert shops.
There are 136 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings in St. Louis city as of September 2026. Of those, 28 are chain locations, or 21%, against 35% across the U.S. That is 9.4 per 10,000 households, 4% below the U.S. rate of 9.8.
In 2023, official counts showed 93 businesses with payroll in St. Louis city classed as snack bars and retail bakeries, up 19.2% from 2019. That is one for every 1,558 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, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $2.6M have gone to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in St. Louis city. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of St. Louis city declined 7.4%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How St. Louis city compares
The same measures for Missouri 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 | St. Louis city | Missouri | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 9.4 | 8.1 | 9.8 |
| Spending per listing | $3.7M | $4.7M | $4.1M |
| Households per official establishment (all snack bars and retail bakeries) | 1,558 | 1,913 | 1,369 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +19.2% | +43.3% | +24.6% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −7.4% | +1.9% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,445 | $3,799 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $56,160 | $70,702 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 27 | 56 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 78 → 93All snack bars and retail bakeries · +19.2% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,004
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $24.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 10All snack bars and retail bakeries with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 13628 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 121The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 4
- Amount
- $2.6M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in St. Louis city, 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 St. Louis city
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 278,144−7.4% since 2020
- Households
- 144,891
- Median age
- 38.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 45%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.3
- Land area
- 62 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 4,675
- Median household income
- $56,160+27.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $81,764
- Median home value
- $197,500
- Jobs located here
- 229,379
- Daytime population
- 378,059Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in St. Louis city?
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 St. Louis city. 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 Missouri
Every Missouri market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Missouri for bakeries and dessert shops, numbered among those based in Missouri, with St. Louis city marked.
Top counties in Missouri
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Lincoln County, MO | 93 | 7 | 3.1 | $13.2M | +11.4% | #6 of 1,889 |
| 2Christian County, MO | 85 | 18 | 5.1 | $7.8M | +8.3% | #46 of 1,889 |
| 3Jefferson County, MO | 81 | 51 | 5.8 | $6.9M | +2.7% | #73 of 1,889 |
| 4Newton County, MO | 80 | 12 | 5.4 | $6.6M | +6.1% | #87 of 1,889 |
| 5Cass County, MO | 79 | 28 | 6.5 | $6.5M | +7.1% | #100 of 1,889 |
| 6Callaway County, MO | 78 | 7 | 4.2 | $8.7M | +3.2% | #104 of 1,889 |
| 7Lawrence County, MO | 72 | 8 | 5.5 | $6.2M | +3.7% | #217 of 1,889 |
| 8Clay County, MO | 71 | 78 | 7.6 | $5.5M | +4.3% | #247 of 1,889 |
| 9St. Charles County, MO | 70 | 135 | 8.4 | $5.6M | +4.9% | #266 of 1,889 |
| 10Pettis County, MO | 67 | 10 | 5.9 | $5.7M | +2.9% | #334 of 1,889 |
| 51St. Louis city, MO | 27 | 136 | 9.4 | $3.7M | −7.4% | #1,686 of 1,889 |
Other business types in St. Louis city
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes13
- Sit-down restaurants14
- Fast food and sandwich shops28
- Pizza31
- Coffee shops and cafes24
- Bakeries and dessert shops27
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 St. Louis city, MO?
As of September 2026, map listings count 136 bakeries and dessert shops in St. Louis city. 28 of them (21%) are chain locations. The listings count bakeries, ice cream, donut and dessert shops, candy stores. Official counts show 93 businesses with payroll classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in 2023, up 19.2% from 2019. 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 10 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in St. Louis city, MO spend on food away from home?
About $499.1M a year, or $3,445 per household. That is 15% below the U.S. average (an index of 85, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 136 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings, it comes to $3.7M 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 144,891 households in St. Louis city and national spending patterns by income.
How does St. Louis city, MO compare with the U.S. for bakeries and dessert shops?
St. Louis city has 9.4 bakeries and dessert shops per 10,000 households, 4% below the U.S. rate of 9.8. Spending per shop is $3.7M, 11% below the U.S. figure of $4.1M. At the U.S. ratio of bakeries and dessert shops to household spending, St. Louis city would have about 121, against 136 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,558 households, against one for every 1,369 across the U.S. The official count rose 19.2% from 2019 to 2023, against +24.6% for the U.S.
How fast is St. Louis city, MO growing?
Population estimates put St. Louis city at 278,144 people in 2025, down 7.4% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 144,891 households. The median household income in St. Louis city is $56,160 a year, 30% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 27.9% 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. St. Louis city scores 27 for bakeries and dessert shops (lower middle), #1,686 of 1,889 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in St. Louis city. 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 St. Louis city
Screening a site or an acquisition in St. Louis city?
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 St. Louis city. 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.