Groceries and convenience · Small-town market · Colorado
Convenience stores in the Sterling, CO area
The convenience stores in the Sterling, CO area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other small-town markets.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 28 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #451 of 529 scored small-town markets
#10 of 10 scored small-town markets based in Colorado
- Listings
- 9
- 1 chain location (11%)
- Official establishments
- 3
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $44.1M
- On groceries · $5,370 a household
- Spending per listing
- $4.9M
- 38% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 11.0
- 38% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 20,654
- −2.7% since 2020
See the convenience stores around any address in the Sterling 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 Sterling 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 Sterling area is 28 (lower middle), #451 of 529 scored small-town markets and #10 of 10 scored small-town markets based in Colorado. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 9 convenience stores in the Sterling area. One of them (11%) is a chain location, against 60% across the U.S. That comes to 11.0 for every 10,000 households, 38% above the U.S. rate of 8.0.
Household spending on groceries in the Sterling area comes to about $44.1M a year: $5,370 per household, 15% below the U.S. average. Spread across 9 convenience stores, that is $4.9M per store, 38% below the U.S. figure of $7.9M. That spending covers all groceries, which convenience stores share with other businesses in the trade.
Official counts show 3 businesses with payroll classed as convenience stores in the Sterling area in 2023. That is one for every 2,734 households, against one for every 3,493 across the U.S. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Sterling area declined 2.7%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How the Sterling 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 | Sterling area | Colorado | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 11.0 | 7.1 | 8.0 |
| Spending per listing | $4.9M | $9.2M | $7.9M |
| Households per official establishment | 2,734 | 7,862 | 3,493 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +21.8% | +22.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −2.7% | +3.9% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $5,370 | $6,458 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $51,829 | $95,470 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 28 | 73 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 3
- Employees, 2023
- 5
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $94K
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 91 chain location
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 6The 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 Sterling 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 Sterling area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 20,654−2.7% since 2020
- Households
- 8,203
- Median age
- 39.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 66%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 1,839 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 11
- Median household income
- $51,829−2.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $74,877
- Median home value
- $245,300
- Jobs located here
- 6,794
- Daytime population
- 18,497Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Sterling 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 convenience stores on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Sterling 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 small-town markets in Colorado for convenience stores, numbered among those based in Colorado, with the Sterling area marked.
Top small-town markets in Colorado
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Durango, CO | 87 | 15 | 6.2 | $10.1M | +2.2% | #3 of 529 |
| 2Rifle, CO | 83 | 27 | 8.3 | $7.7M | +1.2% | #11 of 529 |
| 3Steamboat Springs, CO | 77 | 14 | 8.4 | $7.7M | +0.9% | #43 of 529 |
| 4Edwards, CO | 76 | 13 | 5.9 | $11.3M | −2.4% | #47 of 529 |
| 5Montrose, CO | 72 | 15 | 8.3 | $7M | +4.1% | #73 of 529 |
| 6Breckenridge, CO | 65 | 19 | 12.2 | $5.5M | +1.1% | #133 of 529 |
| 7Cañon City, CO | 62 | 14 | 7.8 | $7.1M | +2.4% | #158 of 529 |
| 8Fort Morgan, CO | 59 | 11 | 9.9 | $5.7M | +4.2% | #196 of 529 |
| 9Alamosa, CO | 40 | 12 | 10.5 | $5M | +2.1% | #373 of 529 |
| 10Sterling, CO | 28 | 9 | 11.0 | $4.9M | −2.7% | #451 of 529 |
Other business types in the Sterling area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores28
- Grocery stores19
- Convenience stores28
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 Sterling, CO area?
There are 9 convenience stores on map listings in the Sterling area as of September 2026. One of them (11%) is a chain location. The listings count convenience stores without fuel. Official counts show 3 businesses with payroll classed as convenience stores in 2023.
How much do households in the Sterling, CO area spend on groceries?
About $44.1M a year, or $5,370 per household. That is 15% below the U.S. average (an index of 85, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 9 convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $4.9M per store. The spending figure covers all groceries, not only convenience stores. It is estimated from the incomes of the 8,203 households in the Sterling area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Sterling, CO area compare with the U.S. for convenience stores?
The Sterling area has 11.0 convenience stores per 10,000 households, 38% above the U.S. rate of 8.0. Spending per store is $4.9M, 38% below the U.S. figure of $7.9M. At the national ratio of convenience stores to household spending, the Sterling area would have about 6, against 9 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,734 households, against one for every 3,493 across the U.S.
How fast is the Sterling, CO area growing?
Population estimates put the Sterling area at 20,654 people in 2025, down 2.7% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 8,203 households. Median household income in the Sterling area is $51,829, 36% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median fell 2.8%, 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 Sterling area scores 28 for convenience stores (lower middle), #451 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 Sterling 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 Sterling area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Sterling 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 Sterling 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.