Food and drink · Metro area · Texas
Bakeries and dessert shops in the Waco, TX metro area
The bakeries and dessert shops in the Waco, TX metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 27 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #361 of 387 scored metro areas
#19 of 26 scored metro areas based in Texas
- Listings
- 133
- 50 chain locations (38%)
- Official establishments
- 98
- All snack bars and retail bakeries · +63.8% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $396.7M
- On food away from home · $3,568 a household
- Spending per listing
- $3M
- 28% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 12.0
- 22% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 308,807
- +4.2% since 2020
See the bakeries and dessert shops around any address in the Waco 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 Waco 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 Waco metro area has a Groundwork market score of 27 (lower middle): #361 of 387 scored metro areas and #19 of 26 scored metro areas based in Texas. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
Households in the Waco metro area spend about $396.7M a year on food away from home, or $3,568 per household, 12% below the U.S. average. Spread across 133 bakeries and dessert shops, that is $3M per shop, 28% 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 133 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings in the Waco metro area as of September 2026. Of those, 50 are chain locations, or 38%, against 35% across the U.S. That is 12.0 per 10,000 households, 22% above the U.S. rate of 9.8.
Official counts show 98 businesses with payroll classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in the Waco metro area in 2023, up 63.8% from 2019. That is one for every 1,134 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, 8 SBA-backed loans worth $9.1M have gone to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in the Waco metro area. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Waco metro area grew 4.2%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Waco 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 | Waco metro area | Texas | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 12.0 | 11.8 | 9.8 |
| Spending per listing | $3M | $3.4M | $4.1M |
| Households per official establishment (all snack bars and retail bakeries) | 1,134 | 1,335 | 1,369 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +63.8% | +37.6% | +24.6% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +4.2% | +8.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,568 | $3,970 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $66,205 | $78,476 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 27 | 45 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 98All snack bars and retail bakeries · +63.8% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,219
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $19.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 21All snack bars and retail bakeries with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 13350 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 96The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 8
- Amount
- $9.1M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in the Waco 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 Waco metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 308,807+4.2% since 2020
- Households
- 111,178
- Median age
- 37.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 64%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 2,785 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 108
- Median household income
- $66,205
- Average household income
- $91,997
- Median home value
- $234,100
- Jobs located here
- 129,143
- Daytime population
- 295,622Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Waco 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 Waco 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 Waco 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 |
| 19Waco, TX | 27 | 133 | 12.0 | $3M | +4.2% | #361 of 387 |
Other business types in the Waco metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes31
- Sit-down restaurants42
- Fast food and sandwich shops28
- Pizza45
- Coffee shops and cafes36
- 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 the Waco, TX metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 133 bakeries and dessert shops in the Waco metro area. 50 of them (38%) are chain locations. The listings count bakeries, ice cream, donut and dessert shops, candy stores. Official counts show 98 businesses with payroll classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in 2023, up 63.8% 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 21 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Waco, TX metro area spend on food away from home?
About $396.7M a year, or $3,568 per household. That is 12% below the U.S. average (an index of 88, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 133 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings, it comes to $3M 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 111,178 households in the Waco metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Waco, TX metro area compare with the U.S. for bakeries and dessert shops?
The Waco metro area has 12.0 bakeries and dessert shops per 10,000 households, 22% above the U.S. rate of 9.8. Spending per shop is $3M, 28% below the U.S. figure of $4.1M. At the U.S. ratio of bakeries and dessert shops to household spending, the Waco metro area would have about 96, against 133 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,134 households, against one for every 1,369 across the U.S. The official count rose 63.8% from 2019 to 2023, against +24.6% for the U.S.
How fast is the Waco, TX metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Waco metro area at 308,807 people in 2025, up 4.2% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 111,178 households. The median household income in the Waco metro area is $66,205 a year, 18% below the U.S. median of $80,734.
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 Waco metro area scores 27 for bakeries and dessert shops (lower middle), #361 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 Waco 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 Waco metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Waco 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 Waco 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.