Food and drink · County · Massachusetts
Coffee shops and cafes in Suffolk County, MA
The coffee shops and cafes in Suffolk County, MA, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 31 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,721 of 2,063 scored counties
#13 of 14 scored counties in Massachusetts
- Listings
- 596
- 301 chain locations (51%)
- Official establishments
- 347
- All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars · +10.5% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $1.5B
- On food away from home · $4,495 a household
- Spending per listing
- $2.5M
- 33% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 18.2
- 65% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 791,891
- +0.1% since 2020
See the coffee shops and cafes around any address in Suffolk 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 Suffolk 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
The Groundwork market score for coffee shops and cafes in Suffolk County is 31 (lower middle), #1,721 of 2,063 scored counties and #13 of 14 scored counties in Massachusetts. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
At $4,495 per household (10% above the U.S. average), households in Suffolk County spend about $1.5B a year on food away from home. That works out to $2.5M per cafe, 33% below the U.S. figure of $3.7M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only coffee shops and cafes.
Suffolk County has 596 coffee shops and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. 301 of them (51%) are chain locations, against 39% across the U.S. That comes to 18.2 for every 10,000 households, 65% above the U.S. rate of 11.0.
In 2023, official counts showed 347 businesses with payroll in Suffolk County classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars, up 10.5% from 2019. That is one for every 943 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. Since fiscal 2022, 7 SBA-backed loans worth $1.6M have gone to businesses classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Suffolk County. Population estimates put the population change in Suffolk County from 2020 to 2025 at +0.1%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Suffolk 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 | Suffolk County | Massachusetts | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 18.2 | 12.3 | 11.0 |
| Spending per listing | $2.5M | $3.8M | $3.7M |
| Households per official establishment (all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars) | 943 | 1,044 | 1,518 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +10.5% | +9.5% | +24.3% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +0.1% | +2.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $4,495 | $4,685 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $95,631 | $103,960 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 31 | 52 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 314 → 347All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars · +10.5% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 5,288
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $145.5M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 25All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 596301 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 397The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 7
- Amount
- $1.6M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Suffolk 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 Suffolk County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 791,891+0.1% since 2020
- Households
- 327,167
- Median age
- 36.0
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 36%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.0
- Land area
- 58 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 13,478
- Median household income
- $95,631+37.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $139,221
- Median home value
- $705,800
- Jobs located here
- 748,596
- Daytime population
- 1,129,553Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Suffolk 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 Suffolk 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 Suffolk 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 |
| 13Suffolk County, MA | 31 | 596 | 18.2 | $2.5M | +0.1% | #1,721 of 2,063 |
Other business types in Suffolk County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes33
- Sit-down restaurants31
- Fast food and sandwich shops60
- Pizza49
- Coffee shops and cafes31
- Bakeries and dessert shops37
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 Suffolk County, MA?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 596 coffee shops and cafes in Suffolk County. 301 of them (51%) are chain locations. The listings count coffee, tea, juice and bubble tea shops, and cafes. Official counts show 347 businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in 2023, up 10.5% 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 25 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in Suffolk County, MA spend on food away from home?
About $1.5B a year, or $4,495 per household. That is 10% above the U.S. average (an index of 110, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 596 coffee shops and cafes on map listings, it comes to $2.5M 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 327,167 households in Suffolk County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Suffolk County, MA compare with the U.S. for coffee shops and cafes?
Suffolk County has 18.2 coffee shops and cafes per 10,000 households, 65% above the U.S. rate of 11.0. Spending per cafe is $2.5M, 33% below the U.S. figure of $3.7M. At the U.S. ratio of coffee shops and cafes to household spending, Suffolk County would have about 397, against 596 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 943 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S. The official count rose 10.5% from 2019 to 2023, against +24.3% for the U.S.
How fast is Suffolk County, MA growing?
Population estimates put Suffolk County at 791,891 people in 2025, up 0.1% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 327,167 households. Median household income in Suffolk County is $95,631, 18% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 37.3%, 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. Suffolk County scores 31 for coffee shops and cafes (lower middle), #1,721 of 2,063 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Suffolk 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 Suffolk County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Suffolk 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 Suffolk 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.