Clothing and laundry · Metro area · Massachusetts
Clothing and shoe stores in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metro area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for clothing and shoe stores in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 66 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #82 of 387 scored metro areas
#4 of 6 scored metro areas based in Massachusetts
- Listings
- 3,281
- 1,654 chain locations (50%)
- Official establishments
- 1,668
- −12.6% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $5.5B
- On clothing, shoes and related services · $2,822 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.7M
- 31% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 16.9
- 4% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 5,034,221
- +2.3% since 2020
See the clothing and shoe stores around any address in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area
The site report maps the clothing and shoe stores 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 Boston-Cambridge-Newton 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
Household spending on clothing, shoes and related services in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area comes to about $5.5B a year: $2,822 per household, 37% above the U.S. average. Spread across 3,281 clothing and shoe stores, that is $1.7M per store, 31% above the U.S. figure of $1.3M. The spending figure covers all clothing, shoes and related services, not only clothing and shoe stores.
The Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area has 3,281 clothing and shoe stores on map listings as of September 2026. 1,654 of them (50%) are chain locations, against 44% across the U.S. That comes to 16.9 for every 10,000 households, 4% above the U.S. rate of 16.2.
Official counts show 1,668 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area in 2023, down 12.6% from 2019. That is one for every 1,163 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. Another 3,112 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 52 SBA-backed loans worth $6.1M have gone to businesses classed as clothing and shoe stores in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area grew 2.3%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for clothing and shoe stores in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area is 66 (upper middle), #82 of 387 scored metro areas and #4 of 6 scored metro areas based in Massachusetts. That puts it in the top quarter of metro areas.
How the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area compares
The same measures for Massachusetts and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all clothing, shoes and related services by the clothing and shoe stores 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 | Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area | Massachusetts | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 16.9 | 16.2 | 16.2 |
| Spending per listing | $1.7M | $1.7M | $1.3M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,163 | 1,233 | 1,273 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −12.6% | −12.9% | −12.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.3% | +2.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on clothing, shoes and related services | $2,822 | $2,675 | $2,055 |
| Median household income | $115,863 | $103,960 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 66 | 69 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 1,668−12.6% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 27,616
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $685.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 3,112Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 3,2811,654 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 4,310The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 52
- Amount
- $6.1M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as clothing and shoe stores in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton 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.
Population and households in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 5,034,221+2.3% since 2020
- Households
- 1,940,688
- Median age
- 40.8
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 62%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.6
- Land area
- 3,486 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 1,421
- Median household income
- $115,863+28.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $159,721
- Median home value
- $646,300
- Jobs located here
- 2,811,395
- Daytime population
- 5,216,901Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton 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 clothing and shoe stores on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardClothing and shoe stores across Massachusetts
Every Massachusetts market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Massachusetts for clothing and shoe stores, numbered among those based in Massachusetts (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Massachusetts
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Amherst Town-Northampton, MA | 93 | 52 | 8.4 | $2.9M | +10.4% | #1 of 387 |
| 2Worcester, MA | 90 | 314 | 9.4 | $2.7M | +3.7% | #2 of 387 |
| 3Springfield, MA | 69 | 230 | 12.5 | $1.7M | +0.2% | #64 of 387 |
| Providence-Warwick, RI-MA | 68 | 1,015 | 15.0 | $1.6M | +2.1% | #71 of 387 |
| 4Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | 66 | 3,281 | 16.9 | $1.7M | +2.3% | #82 of 387 |
| 5Barnstable Town, MA | 34 | 313 | 29.6 | $863K | +2.4% | #299 of 387 |
| 6Pittsfield, MA | 30 | 138 | 24.0 | $940K | −1.2% | #314 of 387 |
Other business types in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
- Clothing, shoes and laundry59
- Clothing and shoe stores66
- Laundromats57
- Dry cleaners34
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many clothing and shoe stores are in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 3,281 clothing and shoe stores in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area. 1,654 of them (50%) are chain locations. The listings count clothing, shoe and accessory stores and boutiques. Official counts show 1,668 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in 2023, down 12.6% from 2019. Official counts list 3,112 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metro area spend on clothing, shoes and related services?
About $5.5B a year, or $2,822 per household. That is 37% above the U.S. average (an index of 137, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 3,281 clothing and shoe stores on map listings, it comes to $1.7M per store. That spending covers all clothing, shoes and related services, which clothing and shoe stores share with other businesses in the trade. It is estimated from the incomes of the 1,940,688 households in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metro area compare with the U.S. for clothing and shoe stores?
The Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area has 16.9 clothing and shoe stores per 10,000 households, 4% above the U.S. rate of 16.2. Spending per store is $1.7M, 31% above the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the U.S. ratio of clothing and shoe stores to household spending, the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area would have about 4,310, against 3,281 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,163 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. The official count fell 12.6% from 2019 to 2023, against −12.2% for the U.S.
How fast is the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area at 5,034,221 people in 2025, up 2.3% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 1,940,688 households. Median household income in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area is $115,863, 44% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 28.3%, 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 Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area scores 66 for clothing and shoe stores (upper middle), #82 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 Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area. It maps the clothing and shoe stores 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 clothing and shoe stores · All 56 business types in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton 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 Boston-Cambridge-Newton 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.