Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Wisconsin

Bakeries and dessert shops in La Crosse County, WI

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

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 54 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #763 of 1,889 scored counties
#37 of 61 scored counties in Wisconsin

Listings
33
9 chain locations (27%)
Official establishments
41
All snack bars and retail bakeries · +46.4% since 2019
Household spending a year
$197.7M
On food away from home · $3,838 a household
Spending per listing
$6M
45% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
6.4
35% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
121,339
+0.3% since 2020

See the bakeries and dessert shops around any address in La Crosse 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 La Crosse 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

Household spending on food away from home in La Crosse County comes to about $197.7M a year: $3,838 per household, 6% below the U.S. average. That is about $6M of household spending for each shop on map listings, 45% above the U.S. figure of $4.1M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only bakeries and dessert shops.

There are 33 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings in La Crosse County as of September 2026. 9 of them (27%) are chain locations, against 35% across the U.S. That is 6.4 per 10,000 households, 35% below the U.S. rate of 9.8.

In 2023, official counts showed 41 businesses with payroll in La Crosse County classed as snack bars and retail bakeries, up 46.4% from 2019. That is one for every 1,256 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. Another 3 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $771K have gone to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in La Crosse County.

Population estimates put the population change in La Crosse County from 2020 to 2025 at +0.3%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). For bakeries and dessert shops, La Crosse County has a Groundwork market score of 54 (upper middle): #763 of 1,889 scored counties and #37 of 61 scored counties in Wisconsin.

How La Crosse County compares

The same measures for Wisconsin 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 La Crosse County, WI compared with Wisconsin and the U.S.
MeasureLa Crosse CountyWisconsinU.S.
Listings per 10k households6.47.69.8
Spending per listing$6M$5.2M$4.1M
Households per official establishment (all snack bars and retail bakeries)1,2561,7351,369
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+46.4%+35.1%+24.6%
Population growth, 2020–2025+0.3%+1.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,838$3,959$4,070
Median household income$73,013$77,485$80,734
Groundwork market score5464

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
28 → 41All snack bars and retail bakeries · +46.4% over the period
Employees, 2023
689
Annual payroll, 2023
$9M
One-person businesses, 2023
3All snack bars and retail bakeries with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
339 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
48The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
4
Amount
$771K

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

Population, 2025 estimate
121,339+0.3% since 2020
Households
51,497
Median age
39.7
Homes lived in by their owners
62%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
452 sq. mi.
People per square mile
267
Median household income
$73,013+26.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$97,214
Median home value
$257,000
Jobs located here
72,448
Daytime population
134,687Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in La Crosse 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 La Crosse 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 Wisconsin

Every Wisconsin market ranked →

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

Top counties in Wisconsin

Counties in Wisconsin ranked for bakeries and dessert shops by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Washington County, WI83264.6$9.6M+1.8%#57 of 1,889
2Pierce County, WI81106.3$6.8M+3.1%#76 of 1,889
3Oconto County, WI81105.9$6.4M+2.9%#77 of 1,889
4Clark County, WI7753.9$9.3M+1.2%#124 of 1,889
5Calumet County, WI76115.1$8.2M+2.9%#138 of 1,889
6St. Croix County, WI75256.7$7M+4.7%#162 of 1,889
7Winnebago County, WI72385.2$7.3M+1.4%#215 of 1,889
8Monroe County, WI7052.7$13.4M+0.6%#251 of 1,889
9Jefferson County, WI70195.4$7.3M+0.3%#255 of 1,889
10Fond du Lac County, WI70235.3$7.2M+0.5%#257 of 1,889
37La Crosse County, WI54336.4$6M+0.3%#763 of 1,889

Other business types in La Crosse County

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

Questions

How many bakeries and dessert shops are in La Crosse County, WI?

As of September 2026, map listings count 33 bakeries and dessert shops in La Crosse County. 9 of them (27%) are chain locations. The listings count bakeries, ice cream, donut and dessert shops, candy stores. Official counts show 41 businesses with payroll classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in 2023, up 46.4% 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 list 3 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in La Crosse County, WI spend on food away from home?

About $197.7M a year, or $3,838 per household. That is 6% below the U.S. average (an index of 94, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 33 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings, it comes to $6M 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 51,497 households in La Crosse County and national spending patterns by income.

How does La Crosse County, WI compare with the U.S. for bakeries and dessert shops?

La Crosse County has 6.4 bakeries and dessert shops per 10,000 households, 35% below the U.S. rate of 9.8. Spending per shop is $6M, 45% above the U.S. figure of $4.1M. At the U.S. ratio of bakeries and dessert shops to household spending, La Crosse County would have about 48, against 33 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,256 households, against one for every 1,369 across the U.S. The official count rose 46.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +24.6% for the U.S.

How fast is La Crosse County, WI growing?

Population estimates put La Crosse County at 121,339 people in 2025, up 0.3% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 51,497 households. The median household income in La Crosse County is $73,013 a year, 10% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 26.1% 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. La Crosse County scores 54 for bakeries and dessert shops (upper middle), #763 of 1,889 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in La Crosse 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 La Crosse County

Screening a site or an acquisition in La Crosse 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 La Crosse 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.