Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Colorado

Coffee shops and cafes in Denver County, CO

The coffee shops and cafes in Denver County, CO, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 41 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,360 of 2,063 scored counties
#14 of 36 scored counties in Colorado

Listings
580
214 chain locations (37%)
Official establishments
283
All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars · +1.4% since 2019
Household spending a year
$1.5B
On food away from home · $4,462 a household
Spending per listing
$2.6M
30% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
17.3
57% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
740,613
+3.2% since 2020

See the coffee shops and cafes around any address in Denver 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 Denver 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 Denver County comes to about $1.5B a year: $4,462 per household, 10% above the U.S. average. Spread across 580 coffee shops and cafes, that is $2.6M per cafe, 30% below the U.S. figure of $3.7M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only coffee shops and cafes.

There are 580 coffee shops and cafes on map listings in Denver County as of September 2026. Of those, 214 are chain locations, or 37%, against 39% across the U.S. That comes to 17.3 for every 10,000 households, 57% above the U.S. rate of 11.0.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Denver County was 283 in 2023, up 1.4% from 2019. That is one for every 1,185 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S. That count covers all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars (bakeries and dessert shops included), not only coffee shops and cafes. Official counts also show 28 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 16 SBA-backed loans worth $7.2M have gone to businesses classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Denver County.

Population estimates show Denver County grew 3.2% from 2020 to 2025, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for coffee shops and cafes in Denver County is 41 (lower middle), #1,360 of 2,063 scored counties and #14 of 36 scored counties in Colorado.

How Denver County compares

The same measures for Colorado 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 Denver County, CO compared with Colorado and the U.S.
MeasureDenver CountyColoradoU.S.
Listings per 10k households17.313.611.0
Spending per listing$2.6M$3.2M$3.7M
Households per official establishment (all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars)1,1851,3511,518
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+1.4%+22.5%+24.3%
Population growth, 2020–2025+3.2%+3.9%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$4,462$4,421$4,070
Median household income$94,718$95,470$80,734
Groundwork market score4151

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
279 → 283All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars · +1.4% over the period
Employees, 2023
3,665
Annual payroll, 2023
$93.9M
One-person businesses, 2023
28All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
580214 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
404The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
16
Amount
$7.2M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Denver 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 Denver County

Population, 2025 estimate
740,613+3.2% since 2020
Households
335,428
Median age
36.7
Homes lived in by their owners
49%
Vehicles per household
1.5
Land area
153 sq. mi.
People per square mile
4,696
Median household income
$94,718+38.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$136,552
Median home value
$616,000
Jobs located here
557,999
Daytime population
911,038Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Denver 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 Denver 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 Colorado

Every Colorado market ranked →

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

Top counties in Colorado

Counties in Colorado ranked for coffee shops and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Elbert County, CO891010.0$5.2M+16.5%#28 of 2,063
2Adams County, CO741538.1$5.3M+6.6%#208 of 2,063
3Douglas County, CO7314410.3$5.5M+10.9%#237 of 2,063
4Broomfield County, CO71319.8$5.2M+6.3%#275 of 2,063
5Park County, CO661112.2$3.6M+5.1%#415 of 2,063
6Weld County, CO6214311.5$3.8M+14.2%#550 of 2,063
7Arapahoe County, CO5728311.0$4.2M+2.8%#731 of 2,063
8Pueblo County, CO54547.9$4.4M+0.6%#846 of 2,063
9Jefferson County, CO5127711.5$4.2M−0.5%#972 of 2,063
10El Paso County, CO4937713.0$3.3M+3.2%#1,063 of 2,063
14Denver County, CO4158017.3$2.6M+3.2%#1,360 of 2,063

Other business types in Denver County

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

Questions

How many coffee shops and cafes are in Denver County, CO?

As of September 2026, map listings count 580 coffee shops and cafes in Denver County. 214 of them (37%) are chain locations. The listings count coffee, tea, juice and bubble tea shops, and cafes. Official counts show 283 businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in 2023, up 1.4% from 2019. The official count takes in all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars, not only coffee shops and cafes: bakeries and dessert shops are counted too. Another 28 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

How much do households in Denver County, CO spend on food away from home?

About $1.5B a year, or $4,462 per household. That is 10% above the U.S. average (an index of 110, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 580 coffee shops and cafes on map listings, it comes to $2.6M per cafe. That spending covers all food away from home, which coffee shops and cafes share with other businesses in the trade. It is estimated from the incomes of the 335,428 households in Denver County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Denver County has 17.3 coffee shops and cafes per 10,000 households, 57% above the U.S. rate of 11.0. Spending per cafe is $2.6M, 30% below the U.S. figure of $3.7M. At the U.S. ratio of coffee shops and cafes to household spending, Denver County would have about 404, against 580 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,185 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S. The official count rose 1.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +24.3% for the U.S.

How fast is Denver County, CO growing?

Population estimates put Denver County at 740,613 people in 2025, up 3.2% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 335,428 households. Median household income in Denver County is $94,718, 17% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 38.1%, 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. Denver County scores 41 for coffee shops and cafes (lower middle), #1,360 of 2,063 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Denver 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 Denver County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Denver 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 Denver 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.