Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Virginia

Coffee shops and cafes in Caroline County, VA

How Caroline County, VA 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 93 out of 100: Very high

Ranked #6 of 2,063 scored counties
#6 of 88 scored counties in Virginia

Listings
5
1 chain location (20%)
Official establishments
n/a
Fewer than 3, or not published
Household spending a year
$48.7M
On food away from home · $4,063 a household
Spending per listing
$9.7M
2.6 times the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
4.2
62% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
34,413
+11.3% since 2020

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

Caroline County scores 93 (very high) on the Groundwork market score for coffee shops and cafes, ranking #6 of 2,063 scored counties and #6 of 88 scored counties in Virginia. That puts it in the top 10% of counties for coffee shops and cafes.

Households in Caroline County spend about $48.7M a year on food away from home, or $4,063 per household, in line with the U.S. average. That is about $9.7M of household spending for each cafe on map listings, 2.6 times the U.S. figure of $3.7M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only coffee shops and cafes.

There are 5 coffee shops and cafes on map listings in Caroline County as of September 2026. One of them (20%) is a chain location, against 39% across the U.S. That is 4.2 per 10,000 households, 62% below the U.S. rate of 11.0.

Official counts don’t publish a figure for snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Caroline County, since they leave out counts under 3. Population estimates show Caroline County grew 11.3% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Caroline County compares

The same measures for Virginia 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 Caroline County, VA compared with Virginia and the U.S.
MeasureCaroline CountyVirginiaU.S.
Listings per 10k households4.28.611.0
Spending per listing$9.7M$5.1M$3.7M
Households per official establishment (all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars)n/a2,2201,518
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+21.1%+24.3%
Population growth, 2020–2025+11.3%+2.8%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$4,063$4,372$4,070
Median household income$87,407$93,170$80,734
Groundwork market score9384

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
51 chain location
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
13The 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 Caroline 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 Caroline County

Population, 2025 estimate
34,413+11.3% since 2020
Households
11,988
Median age
40.2
Homes lived in by their owners
82%
Vehicles per household
2.3
Land area
527 sq. mi.
People per square mile
61
Median household income
$87,407+34.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$103,835
Median home value
$307,700
Jobs located here
6,321
Daytime population
20,611Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Caroline 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 Caroline 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 Virginia

Every Virginia market ranked →

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

Top counties in Virginia

Counties in Virginia ranked for coffee shops and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Goochland County, VA9865.8$8.7M+17.4%#1 of 2,063
2King George County, VA9654.9$9.7M+10.5%#2 of 2,063
3Stafford County, VA95326.1$8.7M+8.3%#3 of 2,063
4Frederick County, VA94174.8$9.2M+8.8%#4 of 2,063
5New Kent County, VA9455.4$8.9M+21.2%#5 of 2,063
6Caroline County, VA9354.2$9.7M+11.3%#6 of 2,063
7Chesterfield County, VA93765.4$8.3M+8.7%#8 of 2,063
8Orange County, VA9385.4$8M+10.1%#10 of 2,063
9Spotsylvania County, VA92275.1$9.1M+10.5%#15 of 2,063
10Suffolk city, VA91246.3$6.6M+10.4%#18 of 2,063

Other business types in Caroline County

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

Questions

How many coffee shops and cafes are in Caroline County, VA?

As of September 2026, map listings count 5 coffee shops and cafes in Caroline County. One of them (20%) is a chain location. The listings count coffee, tea, juice and bubble tea shops, and cafes. No official count is published for snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Caroline County: counts under 3 are left out.

How much do households in Caroline County, VA spend on food away from home?

About $48.7M a year, or $4,063 per household. That is in line with the U.S. average (an index of 100, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 5 coffee shops and cafes on map listings, it comes to $9.7M 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 11,988 households in Caroline County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Caroline County has 4.2 coffee shops and cafes per 10,000 households, 62% below the U.S. rate of 11.0. Spending per cafe is $9.7M, 2.6 times the U.S. figure of $3.7M. At the U.S. ratio of coffee shops and cafes to household spending, Caroline County would have about 13, against 5 on map listings.

How fast is Caroline County, VA growing?

Population estimates put Caroline County at 34,413 people in 2025, up 11.3% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 11,988 households. Median household income in Caroline County is $87,407, 8% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 34.3%, 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. Caroline County scores 93 for coffee shops and cafes (very high), #6 of 2,063 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Caroline 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 Caroline 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.