Clothing and laundry · Metro area · Montana
Clothing and shoe stores in the Helena, MT metro area
How the Helena, MT metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for clothing and shoe stores: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 80 out of 100: High
Ranked #20 of 387 scored metro areas
#1 of 5 scored metro areas based in Montana
- Listings
- 38
- 16 chain locations (42%)
- Official establishments
- 12
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $70.6M
- On clothing, shoes and related services · $1,810 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.9M
- 46% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 9.7
- 40% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 97,153
- +7.7% since 2020
See the clothing and shoe stores around any address in the Helena 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 Helena 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 clothing and shoe stores, the Helena metro area has a Groundwork market score of 80 (high): #20 of 387 scored metro areas and #1 of 5 scored metro areas based in Montana. That puts it in the top 10% of metro areas for clothing and shoe stores.
As of September 2026, map listings count 38 clothing and shoe stores in the Helena metro area. Of those, 16 are chain locations, or 42%, against 44% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 9.7, 40% below the U.S. rate of 16.2.
Household spending on clothing, shoes and related services in the Helena metro area comes to about $70.6M a year: $1,810 per household, 12% below the U.S. average. That is about $1.9M of household spending for each store on map listings, 46% above the U.S. figure of $1.3M. That spending covers all clothing, shoes and related services, which clothing and shoe stores share with other businesses in the trade.
In 2023, official counts showed 12 businesses with payroll in the Helena metro area classed as clothing and shoe stores. That is one for every 3,253 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Helena metro area grew 7.7%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Helena metro area compares
The same measures for Montana 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 | Helena metro area | Montana | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 9.7 | 14.5 | 16.2 |
| Spending per listing | $1.9M | $1.2M | $1.3M |
| Households per official establishment | 3,253 | 1,504 | 1,273 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | −4.4% | −12.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +7.7% | +5.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on clothing, shoes and related services | $1,810 | $1,721 | $2,055 |
| Median household income | $78,528 | $72,509 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 80 | 46 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 12
- Employees, 2023
- 139
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $2.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 47Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 3816 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 56The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as clothing and shoe stores in the Helena 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 Helena metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 97,153+7.7% since 2020
- Households
- 39,033
- Median age
- 42.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 73%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 6,308 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 15
- Median household income
- $78,528
- Average household income
- $105,667
- Median home value
- $401,200
- Jobs located here
- 45,504
- Daytime population
- 94,274Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Helena 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 Helena 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 Montana
Every Montana market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Montana for clothing and shoe stores, numbered among those based in Montana, with the Helena metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Montana
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Helena, MT | 80 | 38 | 9.7 | $1.9M | +7.7% | #20 of 387 |
| 2Billings, MT | 43 | 117 | 14.9 | $1.2M | +4.8% | #241 of 387 |
| 3Great Falls, MT | 42 | 44 | 12.4 | $1.3M | +0.7% | #249 of 387 |
| 4Bozeman, MT | 41 | 105 | 20.5 | $965K | +7.7% | #265 of 387 |
| 5Missoula, MT | 38 | 89 | 16.2 | $1.1M | +4.7% | #279 of 387 |
Other business types in the Helena 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 laundry80
- Clothing and shoe stores80
- Laundromats
- Dry cleaners
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many clothing and shoe stores are in the Helena, MT metro area?
The Helena metro area has 38 clothing and shoe stores on map listings as of September 2026. 16 of them (42%) are chain locations. The listings count clothing, shoe and accessory stores and boutiques. Official counts show 12 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in 2023. Official counts list 47 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Helena, MT metro area spend on clothing, shoes and related services?
About $70.6M a year, or $1,810 per household. That is 12% below the U.S. average (an index of 88, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 38 clothing and shoe stores on map listings, it comes to $1.9M per store. The spending figure covers all clothing, shoes and related services, not only clothing and shoe stores. It is estimated from the incomes of the 39,033 households in the Helena metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Helena, MT metro area compare with the U.S. for clothing and shoe stores?
The Helena metro area has 9.7 clothing and shoe stores per 10,000 households, 40% below the U.S. rate of 16.2. Spending per store is $1.9M, 46% above the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the national ratio of clothing and shoe stores to household spending, the Helena metro area would have about 56, against 38 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 3,253 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S.
How fast is the Helena, MT metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Helena metro area at 97,153 people in 2025, up 7.7% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 39,033 households. The median household income in the Helena metro area is $78,528 a year, 3% 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 Helena metro area scores 80 for clothing and shoe stores (high), #20 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 Helena 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 Helena metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Helena 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 Helena 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.