Food and drink · Metro area · Texas
Bakeries and dessert shops in the Brownsville-Harlingen, TX metro area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for bakeries and dessert shops in the Brownsville-Harlingen, TX metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 21 out of 100: Low
Ranked #376 of 387 scored metro areas
#24 of 26 scored metro areas based in Texas
- Listings
- 179
- 34 chain locations (19%)
- Official establishments
- 99
- All snack bars and retail bakeries · +57.1% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $432.2M
- On food away from home · $3,122 a household
- Spending per listing
- $2.4M
- 42% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 12.9
- 32% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 433,946
- +3.0% since 2020
See the bakeries and dessert shops around any address in the Brownsville-Harlingen 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 Brownsville-Harlingen 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
For bakeries and dessert shops, the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area has a Groundwork market score of 21 (low): #376 of 387 scored metro areas and #24 of 26 scored metro areas based in Texas. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 179 bakeries and dessert shops in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area. Of those, 34 are chain locations, or 19%, against 35% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 12.9, 32% above the U.S. rate of 9.8.
Households in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area spend about $432.2M a year on food away from home, or $3,122 per household, 23% below the U.S. average. That is about $2.4M of household spending for each shop on map listings, 42% below 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.
In 2023, official counts showed 99 businesses with payroll in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area classed as snack bars and retail bakeries, up 57.1% from 2019. That is one for every 1,398 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. Since fiscal 2022, 8 SBA-backed loans worth $6.3M have gone to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area grew 3.0%, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area compares
The same measures for Texas 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 | Brownsville-Harlingen metro area | Texas | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 12.9 | 11.8 | 9.8 |
| Spending per listing | $2.4M | $3.4M | $4.1M |
| Households per official establishment (all snack bars and retail bakeries) | 1,398 | 1,335 | 1,369 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +57.1% | +37.6% | +24.6% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.0% | +8.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,122 | $3,970 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $52,601 | $78,476 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 21 | 45 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 99All snack bars and retail bakeries · +57.1% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 785
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $13.5M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 84All snack bars and retail bakeries with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 17934 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 104The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 8
- Amount
- $6.3M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in the Brownsville-Harlingen 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 Brownsville-Harlingen metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 433,946+3.0% since 2020
- Households
- 138,433
- Median age
- 33.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 65%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 892 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 478
- Median household income
- $52,601+35.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $71,931
- Median home value
- $136,500
- Jobs located here
- 146,355
- Daytime population
- 405,619Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Brownsville-Harlingen 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 Brownsville-Harlingen 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 Texas
Every Texas market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Texas for bakeries and dessert shops, numbered among those based in Texas, with the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Texas
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX | 65 | 978 | 9.9 | $4.6M | +14.0% | #76 of 387 |
| 2San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX | 49 | 1,039 | 10.7 | $3.6M | +9.5% | #207 of 387 |
| 3Midland, TX | 48 | 84 | 12.1 | $3.6M | +9.8% | #217 of 387 |
| 4Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | 48 | 3,592 | 12.4 | $3.5M | +10.6% | #218 of 387 |
| 5Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX | 47 | 3,230 | 12.1 | $3.4M | +10.3% | #229 of 387 |
| 6Killeen-Temple, TX | 46 | 157 | 8.8 | $4M | +7.2% | #238 of 387 |
| 7Sherman-Denison, TX | 44 | 65 | 11.8 | $3.2M | +12.8% | #255 of 387 |
| 8Odessa, TX | 43 | 69 | 10.7 | $3.5M | +5.0% | #261 of 387 |
| 9Corpus Christi, TX | 37 | 166 | 9.8 | $3.7M | +1.1% | #295 of 387 |
| 10College Station-Bryan, TX | 36 | 110 | 10.4 | $3.4M | +6.9% | #306 of 387 |
| 24Brownsville-Harlingen, TX | 21 | 179 | 12.9 | $2.4M | +3.0% | #376 of 387 |
Other business types in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes17
- Sit-down restaurants18
- Fast food and sandwich shops19
- Pizza30
- Coffee shops and cafes27
- Bakeries and dessert shops21
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 Brownsville-Harlingen, TX metro area?
There are 179 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area as of September 2026. 34 of them (19%) are chain locations. The listings count bakeries, ice cream, donut and dessert shops, candy stores. Official counts show 99 businesses with payroll classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in 2023, up 57.1% 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 84 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Brownsville-Harlingen, TX metro area spend on food away from home?
About $432.2M a year, or $3,122 per household. That is 23% below the U.S. average (an index of 77, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 179 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings, it comes to $2.4M 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 138,433 households in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Brownsville-Harlingen, TX metro area compare with the U.S. for bakeries and dessert shops?
The Brownsville-Harlingen metro area has 12.9 bakeries and dessert shops per 10,000 households, 32% above the U.S. rate of 9.8. Spending per shop is $2.4M, 42% below the U.S. figure of $4.1M. At the national ratio of bakeries and dessert shops to household spending, the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area would have about 104, against 179 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,398 households, against one for every 1,369 across the U.S. The official count rose 57.1% from 2019 to 2023, against +24.6% for the U.S.
How fast is the Brownsville-Harlingen, TX metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area at 433,946 people in 2025, up 3.0% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 138,433 households. Median household income in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area is $52,601, 35% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 35.7%, 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 Brownsville-Harlingen metro area scores 21 for bakeries and dessert shops (low), #376 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 Brownsville-Harlingen 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 Brownsville-Harlingen metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Brownsville-Harlingen 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 Brownsville-Harlingen 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.