Groundwork

Groceries and convenience · County · Illinois

Convenience stores in St. Clair County, IL

The convenience stores in St. Clair County, IL, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 59 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #797 of 2,261 scored counties
#28 of 72 scored counties in Illinois

Listings
89
51 chain locations (57%)
Official establishments
17
−26.1% since 2019
Household spending a year
$606.4M
On groceries · $6,013 a household
Spending per listing
$6.8M
14% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
8.8
10% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
250,708
−2.5% since 2020

See the convenience stores around any address in St. Clair County

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 St. Clair County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

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 89 convenience stores in St. Clair County. Chain locations make up 57% of them, against 60% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 8.8, 10% above the U.S. rate of 8.0.

Household spending on groceries in St. Clair County comes to about $606.4M a year: $6,013 per household, 5% below the U.S. average. Spread across 89 convenience stores, that is $6.8M per store, 14% below the U.S. figure of $7.9M. That spending covers all groceries, which convenience stores share with other businesses in the trade.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as convenience stores in St. Clair County was 17 in 2023, down 26.1% from 2019. That is one for every 5,932 households, against one for every 3,493 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 3 SBA-backed loans worth $3.2M have gone to businesses classed as convenience stores in St. Clair County.

Population estimates put the population change in St. Clair County from 2020 to 2025 at −2.5%, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Groundwork market score for convenience stores in St. Clair County is 59 (upper middle), #797 of 2,261 scored counties and #28 of 72 scored counties in Illinois.

How St. Clair County compares

The same measures for Illinois 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.

Convenience stores in St. Clair County, IL compared with Illinois and the U.S.
MeasureSt. Clair CountyIllinoisU.S.
Listings per 10k households8.85.58.0
Spending per listing$6.8M$11.5M$7.9M
Households per official establishment5,9325,9603,493
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−26.1%+13.1%+22.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025−2.5%−0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on groceries$6,013$6,290$6,319
Median household income$73,854$83,390$80,734
Groundwork market score5962

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
23 → 17−26.1% over the period
Employees, 2023
39
Annual payroll, 2023
$1.2M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
8951 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
77The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
3
Amount
$3.2M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as convenience stores in St. Clair 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.

Population and households in St. Clair County

Population, 2025 estimate
250,708−2.5% since 2020
Households
100,846
Median age
40.3
Homes lived in by their owners
68%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
658 sq. mi.
People per square mile
386
Median household income
$73,854+33.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$96,153
Median home value
$180,300
Jobs located here
90,959
Daytime population
229,240Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in St. Clair 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 convenience stores on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of St. Clair County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Convenience stores across Illinois

Every Illinois market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Illinois for convenience stores, numbered among those based in Illinois, with St. Clair County marked.

Top counties in Illinois

Counties in Illinois ranked for convenience stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Kendall County, IL96184.0$17.3M+9.9%#4 of 2,261
2Lake County, IL861064.1$16.9M+0.8%#79 of 2,261
3McHenry County, IL85574.8$13.9M+2.5%#86 of 2,261
4Will County, IL851365.6$12.3M+2.2%#89 of 2,261
5Kane County, IL83995.4$12.6M+1.8%#116 of 2,261
6DuPage County, IL781734.9$14.1M+0.3%#210 of 2,261
7McLean County, IL78405.7$10.8M+0.1%#218 of 2,261
8DeKalb County, IL78225.6$10.7M+1.5%#219 of 2,261
9Boone County, IL7684.1$15.3M+0.4%#266 of 2,261
10Woodford County, IL7564.1$15.8M−0.8%#287 of 2,261
28St. Clair County, IL59898.8$6.8M−2.5%#797 of 2,261

Other business types in St. Clair County

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

Questions

How many convenience stores are in St. Clair County, IL?

There are 89 convenience stores on map listings in St. Clair County as of September 2026. 51 of them (57%) are chain locations. The listings count convenience stores without fuel. Official counts show 17 businesses with payroll classed as convenience stores in 2023, down 26.1% from 2019.

How much do households in St. Clair County, IL spend on groceries?

About $606.4M a year, or $6,013 per household. That is 5% below the U.S. average (an index of 95, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 89 convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $6.8M per store. The spending figure covers all groceries, not only convenience stores. It is estimated from the incomes of the 100,846 households in St. Clair County and national spending patterns by income.

How does St. Clair County, IL compare with the U.S. for convenience stores?

St. Clair County has 8.8 convenience stores per 10,000 households, 10% above the U.S. rate of 8.0. Spending per store is $6.8M, 14% below the U.S. figure of $7.9M. At the national ratio of convenience stores to household spending, St. Clair County would have about 77, against 89 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 5,932 households, against one for every 3,493 across the U.S. The official count fell 26.1% from 2019 to 2023, against +22.0% for the U.S.

How fast is St. Clair County, IL growing?

Population estimates put St. Clair County at 250,708 people in 2025, down 2.5% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 100,846 households. Median household income in St. Clair County is $73,854, 9% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 33.8%, 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. 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. St. Clair County scores 59 for convenience stores (upper middle), #797 of 2,261 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in St. Clair County. 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 St. Clair County

Screening a site or an acquisition in St. Clair 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 St. Clair 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.