Groundwork

Groceries and convenience · County · Iowa

Convenience stores in Van Buren County, IA

The convenience stores in Van Buren County, IA, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.

Groundwork market score

Not scored

Counties under 10,000 people aren’t scored, since a few businesses can swing their figures.

Listings
5
1 chain location (20%)
Official establishments
n/a
Fewer than 3, or not published
Household spending a year
$16.1M
On groceries · $5,562 a household
Spending per listing
$3.2M
59% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
17.3
2.2 times the U.S.
Population, 2025
7,131
−1.2% since 2020

See the convenience stores around any address in Van Buren 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 Van Buren County. 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

At $5,562 per household (12% below the U.S. average), households in Van Buren County spend about $16.1M a year on groceries. That is about $3.2M of household spending for each store on map listings, 59% below the U.S. figure of $7.9M. The spending figure covers all groceries, not only convenience stores.

Van Buren County has 5 convenience stores on map listings as of September 2026. One of them (20%) is a chain location, against 60% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 17.3, 2.2 times the U.S. rate of 8.0.

Official counts don’t publish a figure for convenience stores in Van Buren County, since they leave out counts under 3.

Population estimates put the population change in Van Buren County from 2020 to 2025 at −1.2%, against +3.1% for the U.S. Counties under 10,000 people aren’t given a market score, since a few businesses can swing their figures.

How Van Buren County compares

The same measures for Iowa 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 Van Buren County, IA compared with Iowa and the U.S.
MeasureVan Buren CountyIowaU.S.
Listings per 10k households17.38.48.0
Spending per listing$3.2M$7.2M$7.9M
Households per official establishmentn/a11,7473,493
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+67.2%+22.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025−1.2%+1.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on groceries$5,562$6,036$6,319
Median household income$61,161$75,059$80,734
Groundwork market scoreNot scored51

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
n/a
Employees, 2023
n/a
Annual payroll, 2023
n/a
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
51 chain location
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
2The 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 Van Buren 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 Van Buren County

Population, 2025 estimate
7,131−1.2% since 2020
Households
2,896
Median age
45.4
Homes lived in by their owners
82%
Vehicles per household
2.1
Land area
485 sq. mi.
People per square mile
15
Median household income
$61,161
Average household income
$82,878
Median home value
$114,600
Jobs located here
1,765
Daytime population
6,351Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Van Buren 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 Van Buren County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Convenience stores across Iowa

Every Iowa market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Iowa for convenience stores, numbered among those based in Iowa, with Van Buren County marked.

Top counties in Iowa

Counties in Iowa ranked for convenience stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Dallas County, IA94276.4$10.7M+17.8%#12 of 2,261
2Johnson County, IA84294.6$13.4M+4.6%#97 of 2,261
3Polk County, IA841527.4$8.5M+4.8%#108 of 2,261
4Warren County, IA84167.7$8.3M+9.0%#109 of 2,261
5Story County, IA83164.1$14.5M+2.7%#114 of 2,261
6Linn County, IA76666.9$8.9M+0.7%#279 of 2,261
7Pottawattamie County, IA71256.6$9M−0.7%#404 of 2,261
8Madison County, IA7169.0$7M+3.8%#413 of 2,261
9Washington County, IA7055.6$10.8M+0.6%#421 of 2,261
10Marion County, IA70107.5$8.1M+2.3%#434 of 2,261
Van Buren County, IANot scored517.3$3.2M−1.2%

Other business types in Van Buren County

None has a Groundwork market score here. Counties under 10,000 people aren’t scored, since a few businesses can swing their figures.

Questions

How many convenience stores are in Van Buren County, IA?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 5 convenience stores in Van Buren County. One of them (20%) is a chain location. The listings count convenience stores without fuel. No official count is published for convenience stores in Van Buren County: counts under 3 are left out.

How much do households in Van Buren County, IA spend on groceries?

About $16.1M a year, or $5,562 per household. That is 12% below the U.S. average (an index of 88, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 5 convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $3.2M 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 2,896 households in Van Buren County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Van Buren County, IA compare with the U.S. for convenience stores?

Van Buren County has 17.3 convenience stores per 10,000 households, 2.2 times the U.S. rate of 8.0. Spending per store is $3.2M, 59% below the U.S. figure of $7.9M. At the U.S. ratio of convenience stores to household spending, Van Buren County would have about 2, against 5 on map listings.

How fast is Van Buren County, IA growing?

Population estimates put Van Buren County at 7,131 people in 2025, down 1.2% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 2,896 households. The median household income in Van Buren County is $61,161 a year, 24% below the U.S. median of $80,734.

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 score leaves out counties under 10,000 people, where a handful of businesses would swing it.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Van Buren 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 Van Buren County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Van Buren 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 Van Buren 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.