Groceries and convenience · Metro area · Florida
Convenience stores in the Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL metro area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for convenience stores in the Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 50 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #199 of 387 scored metro areas
#14 of 22 scored metro areas based in Florida
- Listings
- 230
- 152 chain locations (66%)
- Official establishments
- 98
- +7.7% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $1.7B
- On groceries · $5,794 a household
- Spending per listing
- $7.3M
- 7% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 7.9
- In line with the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 874,790
- +19.8% since 2020
See the convenience stores around any address in the Lakeland-Winter Haven 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 Lakeland-Winter Haven 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
As of September 2026, map listings count 230 convenience stores in the Lakeland-Winter Haven metro area. Chain locations make up 66% of them, against 60% across the U.S. That is 7.9 per 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 8.0.
At $5,794 per household (8% below the U.S. average), households in the Lakeland-Winter Haven metro area spend about $1.7B a year on groceries. That is about $7.3M of household spending for each store on map listings, 7% below the U.S. figure of $7.9M. That spending covers all groceries, which convenience stores share with other businesses in the trade.
In 2023, official counts showed 98 businesses with payroll in the Lakeland-Winter Haven metro area classed as convenience stores, up 7.7% from 2019. That is one for every 2,953 households, against one for every 3,493 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $800K have gone to businesses classed as convenience stores in the Lakeland-Winter Haven metro area.
Population estimates put the population change in the Lakeland-Winter Haven metro area from 2020 to 2025 at +19.8%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for convenience stores in the Lakeland-Winter Haven metro area is 50 (upper middle), #199 of 387 scored metro areas and #14 of 22 scored metro areas based in Florida.
How the Lakeland-Winter Haven metro area compares
The same measures for Florida 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 | Lakeland-Winter Haven metro area | Florida | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 7.9 | 7.6 | 8.0 |
| Spending per listing | $7.3M | $8M | $7.9M |
| Households per official establishment | 2,953 | 2,728 | 3,493 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +7.7% | +16.7% | +22.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +19.8% | +8.7% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $5,794 | $6,077 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $65,978 | $74,568 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 50 | 54 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 98+7.7% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 355
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $7.2M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 230152 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 213The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 4
- Amount
- $800K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as convenience stores in the Lakeland-Winter Haven 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 Lakeland-Winter Haven metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 874,790+19.8% since 2020
- Households
- 289,425
- Median age
- 40.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 70%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 1,799 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 440
- Median household income
- $65,978+30.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $87,487
- Median home value
- $266,500
- Jobs located here
- 284,856
- Daytime population
- 728,367Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Lakeland-Winter Haven 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 Lakeland-Winter Haven 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 Florida
Every Florida market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Florida for convenience stores, numbered among those based in Florida, with the Lakeland-Winter Haven metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Florida
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Wildwood-The Villages, FL | 79 | 44 | 6.3 | $9.7M | +21.1% | #24 of 387 |
| 2Naples-Marco Island, FL | 73 | 108 | 6.5 | $10M | +10.6% | #46 of 387 |
| 3North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL | 68 | 252 | 6.5 | $9.6M | +13.2% | #70 of 387 |
| 4Punta Gorda, FL | 67 | 62 | 6.8 | $8.6M | +15.5% | #76 of 387 |
| 5Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL | 66 | 234 | 7.1 | $8.5M | +14.4% | #86 of 387 |
| 6Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL | 63 | 1,085 | 4.6 | $13.2M | +4.2% | #104 of 387 |
| 7Sebastian-Vero Beach-West Vero Corridor, FL | 62 | 42 | 5.9 | $10.2M | +7.7% | #114 of 387 |
| 8Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL | 61 | 114 | 9.5 | $6.6M | +9.4% | #122 of 387 |
| 9Port St. Lucie, FL | 58 | 144 | 7.0 | $8.6M | +16.0% | #148 of 387 |
| 10Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL | 56 | 1,039 | 7.8 | $7.8M | +7.3% | #161 of 387 |
| 14Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL | 50 | 230 | 7.9 | $7.3M | +19.8% | #199 of 387 |
Other business types in the Lakeland-Winter Haven 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 stores56
- Grocery stores57
- Convenience stores50
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 Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL metro area?
The Lakeland-Winter Haven metro area has 230 convenience stores on map listings as of September 2026. 152 of them (66%) are chain locations. The listings count convenience stores without fuel. Official counts show 98 businesses with payroll classed as convenience stores in 2023, up 7.7% from 2019.
How much do households in the Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL metro area spend on groceries?
About $1.7B a year, or $5,794 per household. That is 8% below the U.S. average (an index of 92, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 230 convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $7.3M per store. The spending figure covers all groceries, not only convenience stores. It is estimated from the incomes of the 289,425 households in the Lakeland-Winter Haven metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL metro area compare with the U.S. for convenience stores?
The Lakeland-Winter Haven metro area has 7.9 convenience stores per 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 8.0. Spending per store is $7.3M, 7% below the U.S. figure of $7.9M. At the national ratio of convenience stores to household spending, the Lakeland-Winter Haven metro area would have about 213, against 230 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,953 households, against one for every 3,493 across the U.S. The official count rose 7.7% from 2019 to 2023, against +22.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Lakeland-Winter Haven metro area at 874,790 people in 2025, up 19.8% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 289,425 households. Median household income in the Lakeland-Winter Haven metro area is $65,978, 18% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 30.4%, 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 Lakeland-Winter Haven metro area scores 50 for convenience stores (upper middle), #199 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 Lakeland-Winter Haven 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 Lakeland-Winter Haven metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Lakeland-Winter Haven 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 Lakeland-Winter Haven 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.