Food and drink · Small-town market · Vermont
Coffee shops and cafes in the Bennington, VT area
How the Bennington, VT area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for coffee shops and cafes: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 37 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #409 of 529 scored small-town markets
#2 of 4 scored small-town markets based in Vermont
- Listings
- 31
- 8 chain locations (26%)
- Official establishments
- 7
- All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars
- Household spending a year
- $57.8M
- On food away from home · $3,858 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.9M
- 50% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 20.7
- 88% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 36,630
- −1.8% since 2020
See the coffee shops and cafes around any address in the Bennington area
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 the Bennington area. 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 Bennington area scores 37 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for coffee shops and cafes, ranking #409 of 529 scored small-town markets and #2 of 4 scored small-town markets based in Vermont. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.
At $3,858 per household (5% below the U.S. average), households in the Bennington area spend about $57.8M a year on food away from home. That is about $1.9M of household spending for each cafe on map listings, 50% below the U.S. figure of $3.7M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only coffee shops and cafes.
There are 31 coffee shops and cafes on map listings in the Bennington area as of September 2026. 8 of them (26%) are chain locations, against 39% across the U.S. That comes to 20.7 for every 10,000 households, 88% above the U.S. rate of 11.0.
In 2023, official counts showed 7 businesses with payroll in the Bennington area classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars. That is one for every 2,141 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. Population estimates show the Bennington area declined 1.8% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How the Bennington area compares
The same measures for Vermont 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 | Bennington area | Vermont | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 20.7 | 12.7 | 11.0 |
| Spending per listing | $1.9M | $3.2M | $3.7M |
| Households per official establishment (all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars) | 2,141 | 1,562 | 1,518 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +13.6% | +24.3% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −1.8% | +0.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,858 | $4,013 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $73,325 | $81,203 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 37 | 37 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 7All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars
- Employees, 2023
- 116
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $2M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 0All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 318 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 16The 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 the Bennington area, 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 the Bennington area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 36,630−1.8% since 2020
- Households
- 14,987
- Median age
- 47.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 74%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 674 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 55
- Median household income
- $73,325+30.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $107,853
- Median home value
- $279,900
- Jobs located here
- 16,869
- Daytime population
- 38,521Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Bennington area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 the Bennington area. 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 Vermont
Every Vermont market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Vermont for coffee shops and cafes, numbered among those based in Vermont (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Bennington area marked.
Top small-town markets in Vermont
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lebanon-Claremont, NH-VT | 46 | 125 | 13.6 | $3M | +1.5% | #307 of 529 |
| 1Barre, VT | 43 | 41 | 15.9 | $2.5M | −0.2% | #345 of 529 |
| 2Bennington, VT | 37 | 31 | 20.7 | $1.9M | −1.8% | #409 of 529 |
| 3Rutland, VT | 35 | 30 | 11.8 | $3.1M | −1.4% | #433 of 529 |
| 4Brattleboro, VT | 28 | 38 | 19.2 | $2M | −1.4% | #488 of 529 |
Other business types in the Bennington area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes29
- Sit-down restaurants33
- Fast food and sandwich shops64
- Pizza58
- Coffee shops and cafes37
- Bakeries and dessert shops36
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 the Bennington, VT area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 31 coffee shops and cafes in the Bennington area. 8 of them (26%) are chain locations. The listings count coffee, tea, juice and bubble tea shops, and cafes. Official counts show 7 businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in 2023. The official count takes in all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars, not only coffee shops and cafes: bakeries and dessert shops are counted too.
How much do households in the Bennington, VT area spend on food away from home?
About $57.8M a year, or $3,858 per household. That is 5% below the U.S. average (an index of 95, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 31 coffee shops and cafes on map listings, it comes to $1.9M 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 14,987 households in the Bennington area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Bennington, VT area compare with the U.S. for coffee shops and cafes?
The Bennington area has 20.7 coffee shops and cafes per 10,000 households, 88% above the U.S. rate of 11.0. Spending per cafe is $1.9M, 50% below the U.S. figure of $3.7M. At the U.S. ratio of coffee shops and cafes to household spending, the Bennington area would have about 16, against 31 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,141 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S.
How fast is the Bennington, VT area growing?
Population estimates put the Bennington area at 36,630 people in 2025, down 1.8% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 14,987 households. Median household income in the Bennington area is $73,325, 9% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 30.5%, 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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 Bennington area scores 37 for coffee shops and cafes (lower middle), #409 of 529 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Bennington area. 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 the Bennington area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Bennington area?
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 the Bennington area. 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.