Food and drink · County · New York
Coffee shops and cafes in Rensselaer County, NY
How Rensselaer County, NY 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 59 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #637 of 2,063 scored counties
#9 of 61 scored counties in New York
- Listings
- 49
- 15 chain locations (31%)
- Official establishments
- 44
- All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars · +51.7% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $273.7M
- On food away from home · $4,105 a household
- Spending per listing
- $5.6M
- 51% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 7.3
- 34% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 160,510
- −0.2% since 2020
See the coffee shops and cafes around any address in Rensselaer 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 Rensselaer 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
Household spending on food away from home in Rensselaer County comes to about $273.7M a year: $4,105 per household, in line with the U.S. average. That works out to $5.6M per cafe, 51% above the U.S. figure of $3.7M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only coffee shops and cafes.
Rensselaer County has 49 coffee shops and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 15 are chain locations, or 31%, against 39% across the U.S. That is 7.3 per 10,000 households, 34% below the U.S. rate of 11.0.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Rensselaer County was 44 in 2023, up 51.7% from 2019. That is one for every 1,516 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 9 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $350K has gone to businesses classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Rensselaer County.
Population estimates put the population change in Rensselaer County from 2020 to 2025 at −0.2%, against +3.1% for the U.S. For coffee shops and cafes, Rensselaer County has a Groundwork market score of 59 (upper middle): #637 of 2,063 scored counties and #9 of 61 scored counties in New York.
How Rensselaer County compares
The same measures for New York 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 | Rensselaer County | New York | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 7.3 | 12.2 | 11.0 |
| Spending per listing | $5.6M | $3.5M | $3.7M |
| Households per official establishment (all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars) | 1,516 | 1,075 | 1,518 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +51.7% | +17.3% | +24.3% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −0.2% | −0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $4,105 | $4,270 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $87,915 | $85,974 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 59 | 36 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 29 → 44All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars · +51.7% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 441
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $9.9M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 9All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 4915 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 74The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $350K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Rensselaer 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 Rensselaer County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 160,510−0.2% since 2020
- Households
- 66,686
- Median age
- 41.3
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 65%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 653 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 246
- Median household income
- $87,915+27.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $107,086
- Median home value
- $258,400
- Jobs located here
- 52,657
- Daytime population
- 135,820Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Rensselaer 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 Rensselaer 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 New York
Every New York market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in New York for coffee shops and cafes, numbered among those based in New York, with Rensselaer County marked.
Top counties in New York
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Wyoming County, NY | 70 | 7 | 4.3 | $8.3M | −1.3% | #286 of 2,063 |
| 2Wayne County, NY | 70 | 21 | 5.5 | $6.8M | +0.1% | #291 of 2,063 |
| 3Putnam County, NY | 69 | 34 | 9.6 | $5.3M | +1.4% | #324 of 2,063 |
| 4Rockland County, NY | 67 | 90 | 8.7 | $5.6M | +5.9% | #378 of 2,063 |
| 5Washington County, NY | 66 | 10 | 4.1 | $8.9M | −2.9% | #393 of 2,063 |
| 6Saratoga County, NY | 66 | 90 | 8.8 | $5.2M | +2.3% | #401 of 2,063 |
| 7Schenectady County, NY | 61 | 58 | 8.7 | $4.6M | +3.0% | #565 of 2,063 |
| 8Richmond County, NY | 60 | 140 | 8.2 | $5.5M | +1.3% | #594 of 2,063 |
| 9Rensselaer County, NY | 59 | 49 | 7.3 | $5.6M | −0.2% | #637 of 2,063 |
| 10Westchester County, NY | 59 | 360 | 9.7 | $5.3M | +1.4% | #639 of 2,063 |
Other business types in Rensselaer 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 shops67
- Pizza54
- Coffee shops and cafes59
- 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 Rensselaer County, NY?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 49 coffee shops and cafes in Rensselaer County. 15 of them (31%) are chain locations. The listings count coffee, tea, juice and bubble tea shops, and cafes. Official counts show 44 businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in 2023, up 51.7% 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 9 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Rensselaer County, NY spend on food away from home?
About $273.7M a year, or $4,105 per household. That is in line with the U.S. average (an index of 101, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 49 coffee shops and cafes on map listings, it comes to $5.6M 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 66,686 households in Rensselaer County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Rensselaer County, NY compare with the U.S. for coffee shops and cafes?
Rensselaer County has 7.3 coffee shops and cafes per 10,000 households, 34% below the U.S. rate of 11.0. Spending per cafe is $5.6M, 51% above the U.S. figure of $3.7M. At the U.S. ratio of coffee shops and cafes to household spending, Rensselaer County would have about 74, against 49 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,516 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S. The official count rose 51.7% from 2019 to 2023, against +24.3% for the U.S.
How fast is Rensselaer County, NY growing?
Population estimates put Rensselaer County at 160,510 people in 2025, down 0.2% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 66,686 households. Median household income in Rensselaer County is $87,915, 9% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 27.4%, 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. Rensselaer County scores 59 for coffee shops and cafes (upper middle), #637 of 2,063 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Rensselaer 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 Rensselaer County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Rensselaer 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 Rensselaer 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.