Food and drink · County · Wisconsin
Bakeries and dessert shops in Marathon County, WI
The bakeries and dessert shops in Marathon County, WI, 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 #355 of 1,889 scored counties
#19 of 61 scored counties in Wisconsin
- Listings
- 31
- 10 chain locations (32%)
- Official establishments
- 34
- All snack bars and retail bakeries · +70.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $225.9M
- On food away from home · $3,904 a household
- Spending per listing
- $7.3M
- 76% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 5.4
- 45% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 139,432
- +1.0% since 2020
See the bakeries and dessert shops around any address in Marathon 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 Marathon 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
As of September 2026, map listings count 31 bakeries and dessert shops in Marathon County. Chain locations make up 32% of them, against 35% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 5.4, 45% below the U.S. rate of 9.8.
Household spending on food away from home in Marathon County comes to about $225.9M a year: $3,904 per household, 4% below the U.S. average. Spread across 31 bakeries and dessert shops, that is $7.3M per shop, 76% above 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.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Marathon County was 34 in 2023, up 70.0% from 2019. That is one for every 1,702 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. Official counts also show 5 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $576K has gone to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Marathon County.
Population estimates put the population change in Marathon County from 2020 to 2025 at +1.0%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for bakeries and dessert shops in Marathon County is 66 (upper middle), #355 of 1,889 scored counties and #19 of 61 scored counties in Wisconsin. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.
How Marathon 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.
| Measure | Marathon County | Wisconsin | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 5.4 | 7.6 | 9.8 |
| Spending per listing | $7.3M | $5.2M | $4.1M |
| Households per official establishment (all snack bars and retail bakeries) | 1,702 | 1,735 | 1,369 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +70.0% | +35.1% | +24.6% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.0% | +1.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,904 | $3,959 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $77,884 | $77,485 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 66 | 64 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 20 → 34All snack bars and retail bakeries · +70.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 285
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $5.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 5All snack bars and retail bakeries with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 3110 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 55The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $576K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Marathon 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 Marathon County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 139,432+1.0% since 2020
- Households
- 57,866
- Median age
- 42.0
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 73%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 1,545 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 90
- Median household income
- $77,884+24.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $97,899
- Median home value
- $219,600
- Jobs located here
- 72,449
- Daytime population
- 141,458Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Marathon 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 Marathon 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 Wisconsin
Every Wisconsin market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Wisconsin for bakeries and dessert shops, numbered among those based in Wisconsin, with Marathon County marked.
Top counties in Wisconsin
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Washington County, WI | 83 | 26 | 4.6 | $9.6M | +1.8% | #57 of 1,889 |
| 2Pierce County, WI | 81 | 10 | 6.3 | $6.8M | +3.1% | #76 of 1,889 |
| 3Oconto County, WI | 81 | 10 | 5.9 | $6.4M | +2.9% | #77 of 1,889 |
| 4Clark County, WI | 77 | 5 | 3.9 | $9.3M | +1.2% | #124 of 1,889 |
| 5Calumet County, WI | 76 | 11 | 5.1 | $8.2M | +2.9% | #138 of 1,889 |
| 6St. Croix County, WI | 75 | 25 | 6.7 | $7M | +4.7% | #162 of 1,889 |
| 7Winnebago County, WI | 72 | 38 | 5.2 | $7.3M | +1.4% | #215 of 1,889 |
| 8Monroe County, WI | 70 | 5 | 2.7 | $13.4M | +0.6% | #251 of 1,889 |
| 9Jefferson County, WI | 70 | 19 | 5.4 | $7.3M | +0.3% | #255 of 1,889 |
| 10Fond du Lac County, WI | 70 | 23 | 5.3 | $7.2M | +0.5% | #257 of 1,889 |
| 19Marathon County, WI | 66 | 31 | 5.4 | $7.3M | +1.0% | #355 of 1,889 |
Other business types in Marathon County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes58
- Sit-down restaurants58
- Fast food and sandwich shops64
- Pizza71
- Coffee shops and cafes62
- 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 Marathon County, WI?
Marathon County has 31 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings as of September 2026. 10 of them (32%) are chain locations. The listings count bakeries, ice cream, donut and dessert shops, candy stores. Official counts show 34 businesses with payroll classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in 2023, up 70.0% from 2019. That count covers all snack bars and retail bakeries (coffee shops and cafes included), not only bakeries and dessert shops. Another 5 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in Marathon County, WI spend on food away from home?
About $225.9M a year, or $3,904 per household. That is 4% below the U.S. average (an index of 96, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 31 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings, it comes to $7.3M 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 57,866 households in Marathon County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Marathon County, WI compare with the U.S. for bakeries and dessert shops?
Marathon County has 5.4 bakeries and dessert shops per 10,000 households, 45% below the U.S. rate of 9.8. Spending per shop is $7.3M, 76% above the U.S. figure of $4.1M. At the national ratio of bakeries and dessert shops to household spending, Marathon County would have about 55, against 31 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,702 households, against one for every 1,369 across the U.S. The official count rose 70.0% from 2019 to 2023, against +24.6% for the U.S.
How fast is Marathon County, WI growing?
Population estimates put Marathon County at 139,432 people in 2025, up 1.0% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 57,866 households. Median household income in Marathon County is $77,884, 4% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 24.4%, 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. Marathon County scores 66 for bakeries and dessert shops (upper middle), #355 of 1,889 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Marathon 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 Marathon County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Marathon 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 Marathon 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.