Groundwork

Groceries and convenience · Metro area · Montana

Convenience stores in the Missoula, MT metro area

The convenience stores in the Missoula, MT metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 74 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #42 of 387 scored metro areas
#2 of 5 scored metro areas based in Montana

Listings
34
16 chain locations (47%)
Official establishments
3
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$325.7M
On groceries · $5,939 a household
Spending per listing
$9.6M
22% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
6.2
22% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
128,698
+4.7% since 2020

See the convenience stores around any address in the Missoula 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 Missoula metro area. 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

As of September 2026, map listings count 34 convenience stores in the Missoula metro area. Of those, 16 are chain locations, or 47%, against 60% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 6.2, 22% below the U.S. rate of 8.0.

Household spending on groceries in the Missoula metro area comes to about $325.7M a year: $5,939 per household, 6% below the U.S. average. That works out to $9.6M per store, 22% above 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 Missoula metro area in 2023. That is one for every 18,276 households, against one for every 3,493 across the U.S.

Population estimates put the population change in the Missoula metro area from 2020 to 2025 at +4.7%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). For convenience stores, the Missoula metro area has a Groundwork market score of 74 (upper middle): #42 of 387 scored metro areas and #2 of 5 scored metro areas based in Montana. That puts it in the top quarter of metro areas.

How the Missoula metro area compares

The same measures for Montana 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 Missoula, MT metro area compared with Montana and the U.S.
MeasureMissoula metro areaMontanaU.S.
Listings per 10k households6.28.68.0
Spending per listing$9.6M$6.9M$7.9M
Households per official establishment18,27616,3883,493
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+21.7%+22.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025+4.7%+5.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on groceries$5,939$5,881$6,319
Median household income$74,989$72,509$80,734
Groundwork market score7456

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
3
Employees, 2023
32
Annual payroll, 2023
$680K
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
3416 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
41The 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 Missoula 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 Missoula metro area

Population, 2025 estimate
128,698+4.7% since 2020
Households
54,829
Median age
39.1
Homes lived in by their owners
60%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
3,813 sq. mi.
People per square mile
33
Median household income
$74,989
Average household income
$102,725
Median home value
$466,400
Jobs located here
67,485
Daytime population
132,972Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Missoula 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 Missoula metro area. 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 Montana

Every Montana market ranked →

The highest-scoring metro areas in Montana for convenience stores, numbered among those based in Montana, with the Missoula metro area marked.

Top metro areas in Montana

Metro areas in Montana ranked for convenience stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Bozeman, MT80397.6$8.4M+7.7%#18 of 387
2Missoula, MT74346.2$9.6M+4.7%#42 of 387
3Helena, MT73276.9$8.8M+7.7%#47 of 387
4Billings, MT64739.3$6.5M+4.8%#103 of 387
5Great Falls, MT36298.1$7M+0.7%#287 of 387

Other business types in the Missoula metro area

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

Questions

How many convenience stores are in the Missoula, MT metro area?

The Missoula metro area has 34 convenience stores on map listings as of September 2026. 16 of them (47%) are chain locations. 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 Missoula, MT metro area spend on groceries?

About $325.7M a year, or $5,939 per household. That is 6% below the U.S. average (an index of 94, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 34 convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $9.6M per store. The spending figure covers all groceries, not only convenience stores. It is estimated from the incomes of the 54,829 households in the Missoula metro area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Missoula, MT metro area compare with the U.S. for convenience stores?

The Missoula metro area has 6.2 convenience stores per 10,000 households, 22% below the U.S. rate of 8.0. Spending per store is $9.6M, 22% above the U.S. figure of $7.9M. At the national ratio of convenience stores to household spending, the Missoula metro area would have about 41, against 34 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 18,276 households, against one for every 3,493 across the U.S.

How fast is the Missoula, MT metro area growing?

Population estimates put the Missoula metro area at 128,698 people in 2025, up 4.7% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 54,829 households. Median household income in the Missoula metro area is $74,989, 7% 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 Missoula metro area scores 74 for convenience stores (upper middle), #42 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 Missoula 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 Missoula metro area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Missoula 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 Missoula 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.