Groundwork

Food and drink · Small-town market · West Virginia

Coffee shops and cafes in the Fairmont, WV area

The coffee shops and cafes in the Fairmont, WV area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other small-town markets.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 64 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #110 of 529 scored small-town markets
#1 of 4 scored small-town markets based in West Virginia

Listings
16
4 chain locations (25%)
Official establishments
7
All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars
Household spending a year
$80.7M
On food away from home · $3,459 a household
Spending per listing
$5M
36% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
6.9
37% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
55,584
−1.2% since 2020

See the coffee shops and cafes around any address in the Fairmont 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 Fairmont area. 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 16 coffee shops and cafes in the Fairmont area. Of those, 4 are chain locations, or 25%, against 39% across the U.S. That is 6.9 per 10,000 households, 37% below the U.S. rate of 11.0.

Households in the Fairmont area spend about $80.7M a year on food away from home, or $3,459 per household, 15% below the U.S. average. That works out to $5M per cafe, 36% 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 7 businesses with payroll in the Fairmont area classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars. That is one for every 3,334 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 the Fairmont area from 2020 to 2025 at −1.2%, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Groundwork market score for coffee shops and cafes in the Fairmont area is 64 (upper middle), #110 of 529 scored small-town markets and #1 of 4 scored small-town markets based in West Virginia. That puts it in the top quarter of small-town markets.

How the Fairmont area compares

The same measures for West 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 Fairmont, WV area compared with West Virginia and the U.S.
MeasureFairmont areaWest VirginiaU.S.
Listings per 10k households6.97.311.0
Spending per listing$5M$4.6M$3.7M
Households per official establishment (all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars)3,3343,0231,518
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+39.3%+24.3%
Population growth, 2020–2025−1.2%−1.4%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,459$3,343$4,070
Median household income$67,370$59,608$80,734
Groundwork market score6455

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
7All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars
Employees, 2023
53
Annual payroll, 2023
$1M
One-person businesses, 2023
0All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
164 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
22The 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 Fairmont 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 Fairmont area

Population, 2025 estimate
55,584−1.2% since 2020
Households
23,339
Median age
41.1
Homes lived in by their owners
77%
Vehicles per household
1.7
Land area
309 sq. mi.
People per square mile
181
Median household income
$67,370+33.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$82,263
Median home value
$166,700
Jobs located here
18,773
Daytime population
50,587Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Fairmont 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 Fairmont area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Coffee shops and cafes across West Virginia

Every West Virginia market ranked →

The highest-scoring small-town markets in West Virginia for coffee shops and cafes, numbered among those based in West Virginia (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Fairmont area marked.

Top small-town markets in West Virginia

Small-town markets in West Virginia ranked for coffee shops and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Fairmont, WV64166.9$5M−1.2%#110 of 529
Cumberland, MD-WV61266.8$4.9M−1.3%#149 of 529
2Elkins, WV6054.7$6.8M−3.6%#157 of 529
3Bluefield, WV-VA60194.7$6.6M−3.8%#158 of 529
4Clarksburg, WV53257.0$4.8M−2.4%#231 of 529

Other business types in the Fairmont area

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

Questions

How many coffee shops and cafes are in the Fairmont, WV area?

There are 16 coffee shops and cafes on map listings in the Fairmont area as of September 2026. 4 of them (25%) 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. 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 the Fairmont, WV area spend on food away from home?

About $80.7M a year, or $3,459 per household. That is 15% below the U.S. average (an index of 85, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 16 coffee shops and cafes on map listings, it comes to $5M 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 23,339 households in the Fairmont area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Fairmont, WV area compare with the U.S. for coffee shops and cafes?

The Fairmont area has 6.9 coffee shops and cafes per 10,000 households, 37% below the U.S. rate of 11.0. Spending per cafe is $5M, 36% above the U.S. figure of $3.7M. At the national ratio of coffee shops and cafes to household spending, the Fairmont area would have about 22, against 16 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 3,334 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S.

How fast is the Fairmont, WV area growing?

Population estimates put the Fairmont area at 55,584 people in 2025, down 1.2% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 23,339 households. The median household income in the Fairmont area is $67,370 a year, 17% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 33.9% 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. 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 Fairmont area scores 64 for coffee shops and cafes (upper middle), #110 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 Fairmont 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 Fairmont area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Fairmont 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 Fairmont 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.