Groceries and convenience · Metro area · Colorado
Convenience stores in the Boulder, CO metro area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for convenience stores in the Boulder, CO metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 76 out of 100: High
Ranked #31 of 387 scored metro areas
#4 of 7 scored metro areas based in Colorado
- Listings
- 72
- 54 chain locations (75%)
- Official establishments
- 13
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $914.2M
- On groceries · $6,672 a household
- Spending per listing
- $12.7M
- 61% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 5.3
- 34% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 328,560
- −0.7% since 2020
See the convenience stores around any address in the Boulder metro area
The site report maps the convenience stores 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 Boulder metro 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 Groundwork market score for convenience stores in the Boulder metro area is 76 (high), #31 of 387 scored metro areas and #4 of 7 scored metro areas based in Colorado. That puts it in the top 10% of metro areas for convenience stores.
Households in the Boulder metro area spend about $914.2M a year on groceries, or $6,672 per household, 6% above the U.S. average. That is about $12.7M of household spending for each store on map listings, 61% above the U.S. figure of $7.9M. The spending figure covers all groceries, not only convenience stores.
The Boulder metro area has 72 convenience stores on map listings as of September 2026. 54 of them (75%) are chain locations, against 60% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 5.3, 34% below the U.S. rate of 8.0.
Official counts show 13 businesses with payroll classed as convenience stores in the Boulder metro area in 2023. That is one for every 10,539 households, against one for every 3,493 across the U.S. Population estimates put the population change in the Boulder metro area from 2020 to 2025 at −0.7%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How the Boulder metro area compares
The same measures for Colorado and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all groceries by the convenience stores 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 | Boulder metro area | Colorado | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 5.3 | 7.1 | 8.0 |
| Spending per listing | $12.7M | $9.2M | $7.9M |
| Households per official establishment | 10,539 | 7,862 | 3,493 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +21.8% | +22.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −0.7% | +3.9% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $6,672 | $6,458 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $103,994 | $95,470 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 76 | 73 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 13
- Employees, 2023
- 88
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $2.7M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 7254 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 116The 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 convenience stores in the Boulder metro 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.
Population and households in the Boulder metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 328,560−0.7% since 2020
- Households
- 137,008
- Median age
- 39.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 62%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 726 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 453
- Median household income
- $103,994+25.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $148,846
- Median home value
- $756,300
- Jobs located here
- 190,563
- Daytime population
- 376,803Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Boulder metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the convenience stores on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Boulder metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardConvenience stores across Colorado
Every Colorado market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Colorado for convenience stores, numbered among those based in Colorado, with the Boulder metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Colorado
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Greeley, CO | 87 | 82 | 6.6 | $9.7M | +14.2% | #2 of 387 |
| 2Fort Collins-Loveland, CO | 84 | 85 | 5.5 | $11.6M | +4.8% | #7 of 387 |
| 3Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO | 81 | 771 | 6.3 | $10.6M | +4.1% | #14 of 387 |
| 4Boulder, CO | 76 | 72 | 5.3 | $12.7M | −0.7% | #31 of 387 |
| 5Colorado Springs, CO | 68 | 224 | 7.4 | $8.5M | +3.1% | #72 of 387 |
| 6Grand Junction, CO | 41 | 69 | 10.5 | $5.6M | +4.4% | #255 of 387 |
| 7Pueblo, CO | 37 | 65 | 9.5 | $5.9M | +0.6% | #283 of 387 |
Other business types in the Boulder metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores73
- Grocery stores68
- Convenience stores76
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many convenience stores are in the Boulder, CO metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 72 convenience stores in the Boulder metro area. 54 of them (75%) are chain locations. The listings count convenience stores without fuel. Official counts show 13 businesses with payroll classed as convenience stores in 2023.
How much do households in the Boulder, CO metro area spend on groceries?
About $914.2M a year, or $6,672 per household. That is 6% above the U.S. average (an index of 106, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 72 convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $12.7M per store. That spending covers all groceries, which convenience stores share with other businesses in the trade. It is estimated from the incomes of the 137,008 households in the Boulder metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Boulder, CO metro area compare with the U.S. for convenience stores?
The Boulder metro area has 5.3 convenience stores per 10,000 households, 34% below the U.S. rate of 8.0. Spending per store is $12.7M, 61% above the U.S. figure of $7.9M. At the U.S. ratio of convenience stores to household spending, the Boulder metro area would have about 116, against 72 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 10,539 households, against one for every 3,493 across the U.S.
How fast is the Boulder, CO metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Boulder metro area at 328,560 people in 2025, down 0.7% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 137,008 households. The median household income in the Boulder metro area is $103,994 a year, 29% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 25.3% 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. The Boulder metro area scores 76 for convenience stores (high), #31 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Boulder metro area. It maps the convenience stores 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 convenience stores · All 56 business types in the Boulder metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Boulder metro 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 Boulder metro 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.