Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Pennsylvania

Coffee shops and cafes in Allegheny County, PA

How Allegheny County, PA 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 46 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,166 of 2,063 scored counties
#50 of 63 scored counties in Pennsylvania

Listings
544
200 chain locations (37%)
Official establishments
361
All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars · +21.6% since 2019
Household spending a year
$2.2B
On food away from home · $4,017 a household
Spending per listing
$4M
9% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
10.0
9% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
1,225,035
−2.0% since 2020

See the coffee shops and cafes around any address in Allegheny 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 Allegheny 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 544 coffee shops and cafes in Allegheny County. Chain locations make up 37% of them, against 39% across the U.S. That comes to 10.0 for every 10,000 households, 9% below the U.S. rate of 11.0.

Households in Allegheny County spend about $2.2B a year on food away from home, or $4,017 per household, in line with the U.S. average. That is about $4M of household spending for each cafe on map listings, 9% above the U.S. figure of $3.7M. That spending covers all food away from home, which coffee shops and cafes share with other businesses in the trade.

In 2023, official counts showed 361 businesses with payroll in Allegheny County classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars, up 21.6% from 2019. That is one for every 1,512 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S. 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 also show 41 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 25 SBA-backed loans worth $7.5M have gone to businesses classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Allegheny County.

Population estimates put the population change in Allegheny County from 2020 to 2025 at −2.0%, against +3.1% for the U.S. Allegheny County scores 46 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for coffee shops and cafes, ranking #1,166 of 2,063 scored counties and #50 of 63 scored counties in Pennsylvania.

How Allegheny County compares

The same measures for Pennsylvania 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 Allegheny County, PA compared with Pennsylvania and the U.S.
MeasureAllegheny CountyPennsylvaniaU.S.
Listings per 10k households10.08.611.0
Spending per listing$4M$4.6M$3.7M
Households per official establishment (all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars)1,5121,8151,518
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+21.6%+14.1%+24.3%
Population growth, 2020–2025−2.0%+0.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$4,017$3,973$4,070
Median household income$78,548$77,971$80,734
Groundwork market score4660

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
297 → 361All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars · +21.6% over the period
Employees, 2023
4,819
Annual payroll, 2023
$88.8M
One-person businesses, 2023
41All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
544200 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
592The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
25
Amount
$7.5M

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

Population, 2025 estimate
1,225,035−2.0% since 2020
Households
545,802
Median age
42.1
Homes lived in by their owners
65%
Vehicles per household
1.5
Land area
730 sq. mi.
People per square mile
1,696
Median household income
$78,548+28.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$110,072
Median home value
$227,600
Jobs located here
728,045
Daytime population
1,373,985Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Allegheny 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 Allegheny 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 Pennsylvania

Every Pennsylvania market ranked →

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

Top counties in Pennsylvania

Counties in Pennsylvania ranked for coffee shops and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Perry County, PA79116.0$6.4M+2.1%#116 of 2,063
2York County, PA791266.9$5.8M+3.6%#119 of 2,063
3Franklin County, PA77446.9$5.5M+3.0%#158 of 2,063
4Pike County, PA77208.2$4.8M+7.2%#165 of 2,063
5Schuylkill County, PA74203.4$10.2M+1.5%#194 of 2,063
6Lehigh County, PA74926.4$6.4M+2.7%#204 of 2,063
7Chester County, PA741899.2$5.6M+4.2%#205 of 2,063
8Cumberland County, PA74918.6$4.9M+6.5%#214 of 2,063
9Adams County, PA73245.9$6.8M+3.6%#226 of 2,063
10Berks County, PA731207.4$5.4M+2.7%#238 of 2,063
50Allegheny County, PA4654410.0$4M−2.0%#1,166 of 2,063

Other business types in Allegheny County

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

Questions

How many coffee shops and cafes are in Allegheny County, PA?

There are 544 coffee shops and cafes on map listings in Allegheny County as of September 2026. 200 of them (37%) are chain locations. The listings count coffee, tea, juice and bubble tea shops, and cafes. Official counts show 361 businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in 2023, up 21.6% from 2019. 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.

How much do households in Allegheny County, PA spend on food away from home?

About $2.2B a year, or $4,017 per household. That is in line with the U.S. average (an index of 99, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 544 coffee shops and cafes on map listings, it comes to $4M 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 545,802 households in Allegheny County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Allegheny County has 10.0 coffee shops and cafes per 10,000 households, 9% below the U.S. rate of 11.0. Spending per cafe is $4M, 9% above the U.S. figure of $3.7M. At the national ratio of coffee shops and cafes to household spending, Allegheny County would have about 592, against 544 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,512 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S. The official count rose 21.6% from 2019 to 2023, against +24.3% for the U.S.

How fast is Allegheny County, PA growing?

Population estimates put Allegheny County at 1,225,035 people in 2025, down 2.0% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 545,802 households. The median household income in Allegheny County is $78,548 a year, 3% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 28.7% from the 2015–2019 survey, 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. Allegheny County scores 46 for coffee shops and cafes (lower middle), #1,166 of 2,063 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Allegheny 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 Allegheny 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.