Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Montana

Coffee shops and cafes in Carter County, MT

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

Groundwork market score

Not scored

Counties under 10,000 people aren’t scored, since a few businesses can swing their figures.

Listings
2
1 chain location (50%)
Official establishments
n/a
Fewer than 3, or not published
Household spending a year
$1.8M
On food away from home · $3,070 a household
Spending per listing
$921K
Too few listings to compare
Listings per 10k households
33.3
Too few listings to compare
Population, 2025
1,383
−1.6% since 2020

See the coffee shops and cafes around any address in Carter 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 Carter 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

Map listings as of September 2026 show 2 coffee shops and cafes in Carter County. That is 33.3 per 10,000 households.

At $3,070 per household (25% below the U.S. average), households in Carter County spend about $1.8M a year on food away from home. That is about $921K of household spending for each cafe on map listings. That spending covers all food away from home, which coffee shops and cafes share with other businesses in the trade.

There is no official count of businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Carter County: counts under 3 aren’t published.

Population estimates show Carter County declined 1.6% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S. Counties under 10,000 people aren’t given a market score, since a few businesses can swing their figures.

How Carter County compares

The same measures for Montana 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 Carter County, MT compared with Montana and the U.S.
MeasureCarter CountyMontanaU.S.
Listings per 10k households33.319.211.0
Spending per listing$921K$1.9M$3.7M
Households per official establishment (all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars)n/a1,0751,518
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+33.9%+24.3%
Population growth, 2020–2025−1.6%+5.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,070$3,748$4,070
Median household income$54,167$72,509$80,734
Groundwork market scoreNot scored24

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
n/aAll snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars
Employees, 2023
n/a
Annual payroll, 2023
n/a
One-person businesses, 2023
0All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
21 chain location
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
1The 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 snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Carter 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 Carter County

Population, 2025 estimate
1,383−1.6% since 2020
Households
600
Median age
57.0
Homes lived in by their owners
62%
Vehicles per household
2.6
Land area
3,341 sq. mi.
People per square mile
0
Median household income
$54,167
Average household income
$67,789
Median home value
$199,200
Jobs located here
290
Daytime population
1,228Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Carter 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 Carter 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 Montana

Every Montana market ranked →

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

Top counties in Montana

Counties in Montana ranked for coffee shops and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Ravalli County, MT503217.1$2.1M+9.4%#1,025 of 2,063
2Lewis and Clark County, MT414715.1$2.6M+5.8%#1,359 of 2,063
3Gallatin County, MT3813025.4$1.7M+7.7%#1,506 of 2,063
4Yellowstone County, MT3710715.3$2.5M+4.5%#1,530 of 2,063
5Carbon County, MT361021.4$1.8M+9.1%#1,569 of 2,063
6Richland County, MT35511.3$3.5M−1.3%#1,577 of 2,063
7Missoula County, MT349518.0$2.1M+4.4%#1,635 of 2,063
8Flathead County, MT339721.9$1.7M+10.1%#1,664 of 2,063
9Silver Bow County, MT312113.6$2.4M+2.6%#1,722 of 2,063
10Lake County, MT313023.9$1.5M+6.9%#1,731 of 2,063
Carter County, MTNot scored233.3$921K−1.6%

Other business types in Carter County

None has a Groundwork market score here. Counties under 10,000 people aren’t scored, since a few businesses can swing their figures.

Questions

How many coffee shops and cafes are in Carter County, MT?

There are 2 coffee shops and cafes on map listings in Carter County as of September 2026. The listings count coffee, tea, juice and bubble tea shops, and cafes. No official count is published for snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Carter County: counts under 3 are left out.

How much do households in Carter County, MT spend on food away from home?

About $1.8M a year, or $3,070 per household. That is 25% below the U.S. average (an index of 75, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 2 coffee shops and cafes on map listings, it comes to $921K 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 600 households in Carter County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Carter County has 2 coffee shops and cafes on map listings, too few for a steady comparison with the U.S. rate. At the national ratio of coffee shops and cafes to household spending, Carter County would have about 1, against 2 on map listings.

How fast is Carter County, MT growing?

Population estimates put Carter County at 1,383 people in 2025, down 1.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 600 households. The median household income in Carter County is $54,167 a year, 33% 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 score leaves out counties under 10,000 people, where a handful of businesses would swing it.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Carter 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 Carter 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.