Groundwork

Food and drink · County · South Dakota

Coffee shops and cafes in Clay County, SD

How Clay County, SD 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 28 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,827 of 2,063 scored counties
#15 of 17 scored counties in South Dakota

Listings
11
5 chain locations (45%)
Official establishments
3
All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars
Household spending a year
$19.2M
On food away from home · $3,461 a household
Spending per listing
$1.7M
53% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
19.8
80% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
15,031
+0.2% since 2020

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

The Groundwork market score for coffee shops and cafes in Clay County is 28 (lower middle), #1,827 of 2,063 scored counties and #15 of 17 scored counties in South Dakota. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

As of September 2026, map listings count 11 coffee shops and cafes in Clay County. Chain locations make up 45% of them, against 39% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 19.8, 80% above the U.S. rate of 11.0.

At $3,461 per household (15% below the U.S. average), households in Clay County spend about $19.2M a year on food away from home. That works out to $1.7M per cafe, 53% below 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 3 businesses with payroll in Clay County classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars. That is one for every 1,849 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. Population estimates put the population change in Clay County from 2020 to 2025 at +0.2%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Clay County compares

The same measures for South Dakota 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 Clay County, SD compared with South Dakota and the U.S.
MeasureClay CountySouth DakotaU.S.
Listings per 10k households19.812.611.0
Spending per listing$1.7M$3.1M$3.7M
Households per official establishment (all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars)1,8491,3791,518
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+44.8%+24.3%
Population growth, 2020–2025+0.2%+5.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,461$3,849$4,070
Median household income$56,850$75,081$80,734
Groundwork market score2842

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
4 → 3All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars
Employees, 2023
26
Annual payroll, 2023
$302K
One-person businesses, 2023
0All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
115 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
5The 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 Clay 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 Clay County

Population, 2025 estimate
15,031+0.2% since 2020
Households
5,547
Median age
31.1
Homes lived in by their owners
51%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
412 sq. mi.
People per square mile
37
Median household income
$56,850+12.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$78,631
Median home value
$232,300
Jobs located here
5,728
Daytime population
14,972Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Clay 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 Clay 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 South Dakota

Every South Dakota market ranked →

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

Top counties in South Dakota

Counties in South Dakota ranked for coffee shops and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Meade County, SD6797.5$5.2M+2.7%#382 of 2,063
2Codington County, SD57108.0$4.6M+4.3%#726 of 2,063
3Lincoln County, SD573512.6$3.6M+17.5%#746 of 2,063
4Brown County, SD54138.0$4.7M−1.7%#843 of 2,063
5Minnehaha County, SD539611.3$3.5M+7.6%#905 of 2,063
6Yankton County, SD501010.3$3.6M+1.5%#1,007 of 2,063
7Union County, SD501115.0$2.9M+3.3%#1,021 of 2,063
8Brookings County, SD502417.4$2.2M+9.6%#1,024 of 2,063
9Butte County, SD42511.6$3.3M+5.5%#1,318 of 2,063
10Hughes County, SD41912.4$3.2M−0.9%#1,347 of 2,063
15Clay County, SD281119.8$1.7M+0.2%#1,827 of 2,063

Other business types in Clay County

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

Questions

How many coffee shops and cafes are in Clay County, SD?

Clay County has 11 coffee shops and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. 5 of them (45%) are chain locations. The listings count coffee, tea, juice and bubble tea shops, and cafes. Official counts show 3 businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in 2023. That count covers all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars (bakeries and dessert shops included), not only coffee shops and cafes.

How much do households in Clay County, SD spend on food away from home?

About $19.2M a year, or $3,461 per household. That is 15% below the U.S. average (an index of 85, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 11 coffee shops and cafes on map listings, it comes to $1.7M 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 5,547 households in Clay County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Clay County has 19.8 coffee shops and cafes per 10,000 households, 80% above the U.S. rate of 11.0. Spending per cafe is $1.7M, 53% below the U.S. figure of $3.7M. At the national ratio of coffee shops and cafes to household spending, Clay County would have about 5, against 11 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,849 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S.

How fast is Clay County, SD growing?

Population estimates put Clay County at 15,031 people in 2025, up 0.2% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 5,547 households. The median household income in Clay County is $56,850 a year, 30% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 12.1% 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. Clay County scores 28 for coffee shops and cafes (lower middle), #1,827 of 2,063 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Clay 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 Clay 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.