Food and drink · County · Texas
Bakeries and dessert shops in Hidalgo County, TX
How Hidalgo County, TX 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 31 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,605 of 1,889 scored counties
#115 of 147 scored counties in Texas
- Listings
- 426
- 89 chain locations (21%)
- Official establishments
- 160
- All snack bars and retail bakeries · +42.9% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $858.3M
- On food away from home · $3,176 a household
- Spending per listing
- $2M
- 51% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 15.8
- 61% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 921,549
- +5.6% since 2020
See the bakeries and dessert shops around any address in Hidalgo 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 Hidalgo 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
The Groundwork market score for bakeries and dessert shops in Hidalgo County is 31 (lower middle), #1,605 of 1,889 scored counties and #115 of 147 scored counties in Texas. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
As of September 2026, map listings count 426 bakeries and dessert shops in Hidalgo County. Chain locations make up 21% of them, against 35% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 15.8, 61% above the U.S. rate of 9.8.
Households in Hidalgo County spend about $858.3M a year on food away from home, or $3,176 per household, 22% below the U.S. average. Spread across 426 bakeries and dessert shops, that is $2M per shop, 51% 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.
Official counts show 160 businesses with payroll classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Hidalgo County in 2023, up 42.9% from 2019. That is one for every 1,689 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, 9 SBA-backed loans worth $1.9M have gone to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Hidalgo County. Population estimates show Hidalgo County grew 5.6% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Hidalgo County 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 | Hidalgo County | Texas | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 15.8 | 11.8 | 9.8 |
| Spending per listing | $2M | $3.4M | $4.1M |
| Households per official establishment (all snack bars and retail bakeries) | 1,689 | 1,335 | 1,369 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +42.9% | +37.6% | +24.6% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +5.6% | +8.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,176 | $3,970 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $54,338 | $78,476 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 31 | 45 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 112 → 160All snack bars and retail bakeries · +42.9% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,511
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $28.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 308All snack bars and retail bakeries with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 42689 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 207The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 9
- Amount
- $1.9M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Hidalgo 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 Hidalgo County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 921,549+5.6% since 2020
- Households
- 270,210
- Median age
- 31.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 67%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 1,571 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 568
- Median household income
- $54,338+35.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $74,309
- Median home value
- $140,900
- Jobs located here
- 292,679
- Daytime population
- 862,027Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Hidalgo 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 Hidalgo 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 Texas
Every Texas market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Texas for bakeries and dessert shops, numbered among those based in Texas, with Hidalgo County marked.
Top counties in Texas
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Waller County, TX | 90 | 12 | 6.5 | $6.3M | +21.9% | #17 of 1,889 |
| 2Guadalupe County, TX | 80 | 41 | 6.3 | $6.7M | +15.8% | #86 of 1,889 |
| 3Bastrop County, TX | 78 | 27 | 7.3 | $5.5M | +21.3% | #118 of 1,889 |
| 4Medina County, TX | 76 | 11 | 6.2 | $6.2M | +11.4% | #144 of 1,889 |
| 5Llano County, TX | 74 | 8 | 7.4 | $5.1M | +9.5% | #195 of 1,889 |
| 6Wilson County, TX | 73 | 15 | 8.2 | $5.1M | +12.2% | #210 of 1,889 |
| 7San Jacinto County, TX | 71 | 6 | 5.5 | $6.2M | +7.1% | #240 of 1,889 |
| 8Coryell County, TX | 68 | 17 | 6.3 | $5.6M | +3.0% | #316 of 1,889 |
| 9Aransas County, TX | 67 | 9 | 7.2 | $5M | +9.3% | #342 of 1,889 |
| 10Fannin County, TX | 65 | 12 | 9.4 | $3.9M | +9.2% | #404 of 1,889 |
| 115Hidalgo County, TX | 31 | 426 | 15.8 | $2M | +5.6% | #1,605 of 1,889 |
Other business types in Hidalgo County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes31
- Sit-down restaurants33
- Fast food and sandwich shops32
- Pizza53
- Coffee shops and cafes40
- Bakeries and dessert shops31
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 Hidalgo County, TX?
Hidalgo County has 426 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings as of September 2026. 89 of them (21%) are chain locations. The listings count bakeries, ice cream, donut and dessert shops, candy stores. Official counts show 160 businesses with payroll classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in 2023, up 42.9% from 2019. That count covers all snack bars and retail bakeries (coffee shops and cafes included), not only bakeries and dessert shops. Another 308 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in Hidalgo County, TX spend on food away from home?
About $858.3M a year, or $3,176 per household. That is 22% below the U.S. average (an index of 78, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 426 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings, it comes to $2M 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 270,210 households in Hidalgo County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Hidalgo County, TX compare with the U.S. for bakeries and dessert shops?
Hidalgo County has 15.8 bakeries and dessert shops per 10,000 households, 61% above the U.S. rate of 9.8. Spending per shop is $2M, 51% below the U.S. figure of $4.1M. At the national ratio of bakeries and dessert shops to household spending, Hidalgo County would have about 207, against 426 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,689 households, against one for every 1,369 across the U.S. The official count rose 42.9% from 2019 to 2023, against +24.6% for the U.S.
How fast is Hidalgo County, TX growing?
Population estimates put Hidalgo County at 921,549 people in 2025, up 5.6% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 270,210 households. Median household income in Hidalgo County is $54,338, 33% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 35.8%, 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. Hidalgo County scores 31 for bakeries and dessert shops (lower middle), #1,605 of 1,889 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Hidalgo 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 Hidalgo County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Hidalgo 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 Hidalgo 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.