Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Montana

Bakeries and dessert shops in Missoula County, MT

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for bakeries and dessert shops in Missoula County, MT, set against other counties and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 49 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #962 of 1,889 scored counties
#6 of 15 scored counties in Montana

Listings
47
16 chain locations (34%)
Official establishments
49
All snack bars and retail bakeries · −9.3% since 2019
Household spending a year
$201.9M
On food away from home · $3,833 a household
Spending per listing
$4.3M
4% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
8.9
9% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
123,513
+4.4% since 2020

See the bakeries and dessert shops around any address in Missoula 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 Missoula County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey 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 47 bakeries and dessert shops in Missoula County. Chain locations make up 34% of them, against 35% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 8.9, 9% below the U.S. rate of 9.8.

At $3,833 per household (6% below the U.S. average), households in Missoula County spend about $201.9M a year on food away from home. That works out to $4.3M per shop, 4% above 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 49 businesses with payroll classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Missoula County in 2023, down 9.3% from 2019. That is one for every 1,075 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 6 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $628K has gone to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Missoula County.

Population estimates put the population change in Missoula County from 2020 to 2025 at +4.4%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). For bakeries and dessert shops, Missoula County has a Groundwork market score of 49 (lower middle): #962 of 1,889 scored counties and #6 of 15 scored counties in Montana.

How Missoula County compares

The same measures for Montana 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.

Bakeries and dessert shops in Missoula County, MT compared with Montana and the U.S.
MeasureMissoula CountyMontanaU.S.
Listings per 10k households8.97.99.8
Spending per listing$4.3M$4.7M$4.1M
Households per official establishment (all snack bars and retail bakeries)1,0751,0401,369
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−9.3%+32.4%+24.6%
Population growth, 2020–2025+4.4%+5.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,833$3,748$4,070
Median household income$75,598$72,509$80,734
Groundwork market score4948

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
54 → 49All snack bars and retail bakeries · −9.3% over the period
Employees, 2023
656
Annual payroll, 2023
$12.9M
One-person businesses, 2023
6All snack bars and retail bakeries with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
4716 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
49The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
1
Amount
$628K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Missoula 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 Missoula County

Population, 2025 estimate
123,513+4.4% since 2020
Households
52,679
Median age
38.7
Homes lived in by their owners
59%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
2,593 sq. mi.
People per square mile
47
Median household income
$75,598+39.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$103,306
Median home value
$472,100
Jobs located here
66,258
Daytime population
128,477Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Missoula 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 Missoula County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Bakeries and dessert shops across Montana

Every Montana market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Montana for bakeries and dessert shops, numbered among those based in Montana, with Missoula County marked.

Top counties in Montana

Counties in Montana ranked for bakeries and dessert shops by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Ravalli County, MT75126.4$5.7M+9.4%#171 of 1,889
2Lewis and Clark County, MT66196.1$6.4M+5.8%#357 of 1,889
3Gallatin County, MT535310.3$4.2M+7.7%#826 of 1,889
4Cascade County, MT52205.6$6.4M+0.7%#838 of 1,889
5Yellowstone County, MT51618.7$4.5M+4.5%#892 of 1,889
6Missoula County, MT49478.9$4.3M+4.4%#962 of 1,889
7Lincoln County, MT4766.6$4.6M+13.1%#1,028 of 1,889
8Lake County, MT45118.7$4M+6.9%#1,118 of 1,889
9Flathead County, MT45449.9$3.8M+10.1%#1,119 of 1,889
10Park County, MT4389.6$3.9M+5.7%#1,183 of 1,889

Other business types in Missoula County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many bakeries and dessert shops are in Missoula County, MT?

There are 47 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings in Missoula County as of September 2026. 16 of them (34%) are chain locations. The listings count bakeries, ice cream, donut and dessert shops, candy stores. Official counts show 49 businesses with payroll classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in 2023, down 9.3% 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 6 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Missoula County, MT spend on food away from home?

About $201.9M a year, or $3,833 per household. That is 6% below the U.S. average (an index of 94, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 47 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings, it comes to $4.3M 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 52,679 households in Missoula County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Missoula County, MT compare with the U.S. for bakeries and dessert shops?

Missoula County has 8.9 bakeries and dessert shops per 10,000 households, 9% below the U.S. rate of 9.8. Spending per shop is $4.3M, 4% above the U.S. figure of $4.1M. At the national ratio of bakeries and dessert shops to household spending, Missoula County would have about 49, against 47 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,075 households, against one for every 1,369 across the U.S. The official count fell 9.3% from 2019 to 2023, against +24.6% for the U.S.

How fast is Missoula County, MT growing?

Population estimates put Missoula County at 123,513 people in 2025, up 4.4% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 52,679 households. Median household income in Missoula County is $75,598, 6% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 39.8%, 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. Missoula County scores 49 for bakeries and dessert shops (lower middle), #962 of 1,889 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Missoula 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 Missoula County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Missoula 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 Missoula 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.