Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Alabama

Coffee shops and cafes in Mobile County, AL

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for coffee shops and cafes in Mobile County, AL, set against other counties and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 56 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #761 of 2,063 scored counties
#22 of 46 scored counties in Alabama

Listings
112
49 chain locations (44%)
Official establishments
55
All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars · +31.0% since 2019
Household spending a year
$544.6M
On food away from home · $3,369 a household
Spending per listing
$4.9M
31% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
6.9
37% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
411,658
−0.7% since 2020

See the coffee shops and cafes around any address in Mobile County

The site report maps the coffee shops and cafes 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 Mobile 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

As of September 2026, map listings count 112 coffee shops and cafes in Mobile County. Chain locations make up 44% of them, against 39% across the U.S. That is 6.9 per 10,000 households, 37% below the U.S. rate of 11.0.

Households in Mobile County spend about $544.6M a year on food away from home, or $3,369 per household, 17% below the U.S. average. That works out to $4.9M per cafe, 31% above the U.S. figure of $3.7M. That spending covers all food away from home, which coffee shops and cafes share with other businesses in the trade.

In 2023, official counts showed 55 businesses with payroll in Mobile County classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars, up 31.0% from 2019. That is one for every 2,939 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S. The official count takes in all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars, not only coffee shops and cafes: bakeries and dessert shops are counted too. Official counts list 35 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $300K has gone to businesses classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Mobile County.

Population estimates show Mobile County declined 0.7% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S. Mobile County scores 56 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for coffee shops and cafes, ranking #761 of 2,063 scored counties and #22 of 46 scored counties in Alabama.

How Mobile County compares

The same measures for Alabama and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all food away from home by the coffee shops and cafes counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.

Coffee shops and cafes in Mobile County, AL compared with Alabama and the U.S.
MeasureMobile CountyAlabamaU.S.
Listings per 10k households6.97.711.0
Spending per listing$4.9M$4.6M$3.7M
Households per official establishment (all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars)2,9392,5481,518
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+31.0%+61.3%+24.3%
Population growth, 2020–2025−0.7%+3.2%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,369$3,519$4,070
Median household income$58,880$63,999$80,734
Groundwork market score5667

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
42 → 55All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars · +31.0% over the period
Employees, 2023
722
Annual payroll, 2023
$12.3M
One-person businesses, 2023
35All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
11249 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
147The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
1
Amount
$300K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Mobile 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 and nonalcoholic beverage bars, not only coffee shops and cafes.

Population and households in Mobile County

Population, 2025 estimate
411,658−0.7% since 2020
Households
161,665
Median age
39.0
Homes lived in by their owners
66%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
1,229 sq. mi.
People per square mile
336
Median household income
$58,880+23.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$81,726
Median home value
$190,700
Jobs located here
181,672
Daytime population
421,837Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Mobile 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 coffee shops and cafes on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of Mobile County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Coffee shops and cafes across Alabama

Every Alabama market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Alabama for coffee shops and cafes, numbered among those based in Alabama, with Mobile County marked.

Top counties in Alabama

Counties in Alabama ranked for coffee shops and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Limestone County, AL88297.1$5.7M+18.0%#34 of 2,063
2St. Clair County, AL87154.3$8.6M+7.1%#39 of 2,063
3Shelby County, AL79566.4$6.9M+6.5%#115 of 2,063
4Elmore County, AL78216.4$5.9M+4.2%#139 of 2,063
5Chilton County, AL7784.5$7.5M+5.9%#149 of 2,063
6Jackson County, AL7483.7$8.5M+3.3%#196 of 2,063
7Autauga County, AL74135.7$6.6M+5.1%#201 of 2,063
8Blount County, AL71125.4$6.3M+1.8%#268 of 2,063
9Talladega County, AL6982.4$13.3M+0.3%#313 of 2,063
10Tuscaloosa County, AL69637.0$5.1M+3.8%#330 of 2,063
22Mobile County, AL561126.9$4.9M−0.7%#761 of 2,063

Other business types in Mobile County

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

Questions

How many coffee shops and cafes are in Mobile County, AL?

Mobile County has 112 coffee shops and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. 49 of them (44%) are chain locations. The listings count coffee, tea, juice and bubble tea shops, and cafes. Official counts show 55 businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in 2023, up 31.0% from 2019. That count covers all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars (bakeries and dessert shops included), not only coffee shops and cafes. Official counts also show 35 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Mobile County, AL spend on food away from home?

About $544.6M a year, or $3,369 per household. That is 17% below the U.S. average (an index of 83, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 112 coffee shops and cafes on map listings, it comes to $4.9M per cafe. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only coffee shops and cafes. It is estimated from the incomes of the 161,665 households in Mobile County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Mobile County, AL compare with the U.S. for coffee shops and cafes?

Mobile County has 6.9 coffee shops and cafes per 10,000 households, 37% below the U.S. rate of 11.0. Spending per cafe is $4.9M, 31% above the U.S. figure of $3.7M. At the national ratio of coffee shops and cafes to household spending, Mobile County would have about 147, against 112 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,939 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S. The official count rose 31.0% from 2019 to 2023, against +24.3% for the U.S.

How fast is Mobile County, AL growing?

Population estimates put Mobile County at 411,658 people in 2025, down 0.7% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 161,665 households. The median household income in Mobile County is $58,880 a year, 27% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 23.7% 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. Mobile County scores 56 for coffee shops and cafes (upper middle), #761 of 2,063 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Mobile County. It maps the coffee shops and cafes 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 coffee shops and cafes · All 56 business types in Mobile County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Mobile 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 Mobile 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.