Food and drink · County · Massachusetts
Coffee shops and cafes in Essex County, MA
How Essex County, MA compares with other counties and the U.S. for coffee shops and cafes: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 54 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #851 of 2,063 scored counties
#4 of 14 scored counties in Massachusetts
- Listings
- 345
- 141 chain locations (41%)
- Official establishments
- 268
- All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars · +2.7% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $1.4B
- On food away from home · $4,622 a household
- Spending per listing
- $4.2M
- 13% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 11.0
- In line with the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 826,653
- +2.3% since 2020
See the coffee shops and cafes around any address in Essex 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 Essex 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
At $4,622 per household (14% above the U.S. average), households in Essex County spend about $1.4B a year on food away from home. Spread across 345 coffee shops and cafes, that is $4.2M per cafe, 13% above the U.S. figure of $3.7M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only coffee shops and cafes.
There are 345 coffee shops and cafes on map listings in Essex County as of September 2026. Of those, 141 are chain locations, or 41%, against 39% across the U.S. That comes to 11.0 for every 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 11.0.
Official counts show 268 businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Essex County in 2023, up 2.7% from 2019. That is one for every 1,168 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. Another 41 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 8 SBA-backed loans worth $1.1M have gone to businesses classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Essex County.
Population estimates put the population change in Essex County from 2020 to 2025 at +2.3%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). For coffee shops and cafes, Essex County has a Groundwork market score of 54 (upper middle): #851 of 2,063 scored counties and #4 of 14 scored counties in Massachusetts.
How Essex County compares
The same measures for Massachusetts 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.
| Measure | Essex County | Massachusetts | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 11.0 | 12.3 | 11.0 |
| Spending per listing | $4.2M | $3.8M | $3.7M |
| Households per official establishment (all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars) | 1,168 | 1,044 | 1,518 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +2.7% | +9.5% | +24.3% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.3% | +2.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $4,622 | $4,685 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $101,883 | $103,960 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 54 | 52 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 261 → 268All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars · +2.7% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 3,237
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $78.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 41All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 345141 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 391The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 8
- Amount
- $1.1M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Essex 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 Essex County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 826,653+2.3% since 2020
- Households
- 313,147
- Median age
- 42.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 64%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 493 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 1,651
- Median household income
- $101,883+28.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $140,108
- Median home value
- $619,100
- Jobs located here
- 329,644
- Daytime population
- 736,954Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Essex 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 Essex County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardCoffee shops and cafes across Massachusetts
Every Massachusetts market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Massachusetts for coffee shops and cafes, numbered among those based in Massachusetts, with Essex County marked.
Top counties in Massachusetts
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Worcester County, MA | 64 | 303 | 9.0 | $4.9M | +3.7% | #463 of 2,063 |
| 2Plymouth County, MA | 56 | 226 | 11.1 | $4.4M | +3.5% | #769 of 2,063 |
| 3Middlesex County, MA | 55 | 787 | 12.4 | $4.2M | +2.8% | #812 of 2,063 |
| 4Essex County, MA | 54 | 345 | 11.0 | $4.2M | +2.3% | #851 of 2,063 |
| 5Norfolk County, MA | 53 | 356 | 12.6 | $4.2M | +2.2% | #888 of 2,063 |
| 6Hampden County, MA | 52 | 152 | 8.2 | $4.6M | +0.2% | #927 of 2,063 |
| 7Bristol County, MA | 51 | 236 | 10.1 | $4.1M | +2.9% | #975 of 2,063 |
| 8Hampshire County, MA | 45 | 92 | 14.8 | $2.8M | +10.4% | #1,223 of 2,063 |
| 9Franklin County, MA | 39 | 36 | 11.4 | $3.3M | −0.3% | #1,431 of 2,063 |
| 10Barnstable County, MA | 37 | 172 | 16.3 | $2.8M | +2.4% | #1,526 of 2,063 |
Other business types in Essex County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes59
- Sit-down restaurants57
- Fast food and sandwich shops73
- Pizza57
- Coffee shops and cafes54
- Bakeries and dessert shops43
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 coffee shops and cafes are in Essex County, MA?
As of September 2026, map listings count 345 coffee shops and cafes in Essex County. 141 of them (41%) are chain locations. The listings count coffee, tea, juice and bubble tea shops, and cafes. Official counts show 268 businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in 2023, up 2.7% 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. Official counts list 41 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Essex County, MA spend on food away from home?
About $1.4B a year, or $4,622 per household. That is 14% above the U.S. average (an index of 114, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 345 coffee shops and cafes on map listings, it comes to $4.2M 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 313,147 households in Essex County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Essex County, MA compare with the U.S. for coffee shops and cafes?
Essex County has 11.0 coffee shops and cafes per 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 11.0. Spending per cafe is $4.2M, 13% above the U.S. figure of $3.7M. At the U.S. ratio of coffee shops and cafes to household spending, Essex County would have about 391, against 345 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,168 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S. The official count rose 2.7% from 2019 to 2023, against +24.3% for the U.S.
How fast is Essex County, MA growing?
Population estimates put Essex County at 826,653 people in 2025, up 2.3% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 313,147 households. Median household income in Essex County is $101,883, 26% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 28.5%, 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. Essex County scores 54 for coffee shops and cafes (upper middle), #851 of 2,063 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Essex 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 Essex County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Essex 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 Essex 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.