Food and drink · County · Tennessee
Bakeries and dessert shops in Rutherford County, TN
The bakeries and dessert shops in Rutherford County, TN, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 66 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #376 of 1,889 scored counties
#21 of 61 scored counties in Tennessee
- Listings
- 110
- 54 chain locations (49%)
- Official establishments
- 81
- All snack bars and retail bakeries · +50.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $518.2M
- On food away from home · $4,003 a household
- Spending per listing
- $4.7M
- 14% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 8.5
- 13% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 386,352
- +12.6% since 2020
See the bakeries and dessert shops around any address in Rutherford 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 Rutherford 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
Households in Rutherford County spend about $518.2M a year on food away from home, or $4,003 per household, 2% below the U.S. average. That is about $4.7M of household spending for each shop on map listings, 14% above the U.S. figure of $4.1M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only bakeries and dessert shops.
Rutherford County has 110 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings as of September 2026. 54 of them (49%) are chain locations, against 35% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 8.5, 13% below the U.S. rate of 9.8.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Rutherford County was 81 in 2023, up 50.0% from 2019. That is one for every 1,598 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. Official counts list 18 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $1.3M have gone to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Rutherford County.
Population estimates put the population change in Rutherford County from 2020 to 2025 at +12.6%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for bakeries and dessert shops in Rutherford County is 66 (upper middle), #376 of 1,889 scored counties and #21 of 61 scored counties in Tennessee. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.
How Rutherford County compares
The same measures for Tennessee 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 | Rutherford County | Tennessee | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 8.5 | 8.2 | 9.8 |
| Spending per listing | $4.7M | $4.5M | $4.1M |
| Households per official establishment (all snack bars and retail bakeries) | 1,598 | 1,740 | 1,369 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +50.0% | +60.1% | +24.6% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +12.6% | +5.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $4,003 | $3,670 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $85,470 | $69,595 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 66 | 56 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 54 → 81All snack bars and retail bakeries · +50.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,291
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $21.3M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 18All snack bars and retail bakeries with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 11054 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 125The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 4
- Amount
- $1.3M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Rutherford 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 Rutherford County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 386,352+12.6% since 2020
- Households
- 129,431
- Median age
- 35.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 65%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 620 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 582
- Median household income
- $85,470+26.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $105,856
- Median home value
- $382,600
- Jobs located here
- 144,864
- Daytime population
- 329,273Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Rutherford 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 Rutherford 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 Tennessee
Every Tennessee market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Tennessee for bakeries and dessert shops, numbered among those based in Tennessee, with Rutherford County marked.
Top counties in Tennessee
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Fayette County, TN | 93 | 5 | 2.9 | $13.8M | +7.7% | #5 of 1,889 |
| 2Roane County, TN | 86 | 8 | 3.5 | $10.3M | +7.0% | #33 of 1,889 |
| 3Cheatham County, TN | 84 | 5 | 3.1 | $12.9M | +4.1% | #54 of 1,889 |
| 4Jefferson County, TN | 82 | 10 | 4.6 | $7.6M | +9.3% | #69 of 1,889 |
| 5Loudon County, TN | 81 | 14 | 5.8 | $6.8M | +15.6% | #75 of 1,889 |
| 6Robertson County, TN | 78 | 16 | 5.7 | $6.8M | +9.9% | #109 of 1,889 |
| 7Sumner County, TN | 78 | 51 | 6.5 | $6.4M | +9.2% | #114 of 1,889 |
| 8Hawkins County, TN | 77 | 8 | 3.4 | $9.3M | +5.0% | #123 of 1,889 |
| 9Giles County, TN | 74 | 7 | 5.8 | $6M | +3.6% | #185 of 1,889 |
| 10Bedford County, TN | 74 | 13 | 6.7 | $5.2M | +9.7% | #193 of 1,889 |
| 21Rutherford County, TN | 66 | 110 | 8.5 | $4.7M | +12.6% | #376 of 1,889 |
Other business types in Rutherford County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes60
- Sit-down restaurants60
- Fast food and sandwich shops52
- Pizza64
- Coffee shops and cafes68
- Bakeries and dessert shops66
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 Rutherford County, TN?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 110 bakeries and dessert shops in Rutherford County. 54 of them (49%) are chain locations. The listings count bakeries, ice cream, donut and dessert shops, candy stores. Official counts show 81 businesses with payroll classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in 2023, up 50.0% 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. Official counts also show 18 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Rutherford County, TN spend on food away from home?
About $518.2M a year, or $4,003 per household. That is 2% below the U.S. average (an index of 98, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 110 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings, it comes to $4.7M 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 129,431 households in Rutherford County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Rutherford County, TN compare with the U.S. for bakeries and dessert shops?
Rutherford County has 8.5 bakeries and dessert shops per 10,000 households, 13% below the U.S. rate of 9.8. Spending per shop is $4.7M, 14% above the U.S. figure of $4.1M. At the U.S. ratio of bakeries and dessert shops to household spending, Rutherford County would have about 125, against 110 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,598 households, against one for every 1,369 across the U.S. The official count rose 50.0% from 2019 to 2023, against +24.6% for the U.S.
How fast is Rutherford County, TN growing?
Population estimates put Rutherford County at 386,352 people in 2025, up 12.6% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 129,431 households. The median household income in Rutherford County is $85,470 a year, 6% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 26.8% 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. Rutherford County scores 66 for bakeries and dessert shops (upper middle), #376 of 1,889 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Rutherford 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 Rutherford County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Rutherford 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 Rutherford 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.