Groundwork

Groceries and convenience · Metro area · New York

Convenience stores in the Rochester, NY metro area

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

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 53 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #180 of 387 scored metro areas
#4 of 13 scored metro areas based in New York

Listings
341
188 chain locations (55%)
Official establishments
145
+20.3% since 2019
Household spending a year
$3B
On groceries · $6,651 a household
Spending per listing
$8.7M
10% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
7.6
5% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
1,056,149
−0.7% since 2020

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

As of September 2026, map listings count 341 convenience stores in the Rochester metro area. 188 of them (55%) are chain locations, against 60% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 7.6, 5% below the U.S. rate of 8.0.

Household spending on groceries in the Rochester metro area comes to about $3B a year: $6,651 per household, 5% above the U.S. average. Spread across 341 convenience stores, that is $8.7M per store, 10% above 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 the Rochester metro area was 145 in 2023, up 20.3% from 2019. That is one for every 3,075 households, against one for every 3,493 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 5 SBA-backed loans worth $497K have gone to businesses classed as convenience stores in the Rochester metro area.

Population estimates put the population change in the Rochester metro area from 2020 to 2025 at −0.7%, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Rochester metro area scores 53 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for convenience stores, ranking #180 of 387 scored metro areas and #4 of 13 scored metro areas based in New York.

How the Rochester metro area compares

The same measures for New York 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 Rochester, NY metro area compared with New York and the U.S.
MeasureRochester metro areaNew YorkU.S.
Listings per 10k households7.66.18.0
Spending per listing$8.7M$11.5M$7.9M
Households per official establishment3,0751,8073,493
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+20.3%+36.9%+22.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025−0.7%−0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on groceries$6,651$6,985$6,319
Median household income$76,284$85,974$80,734
Groundwork market score5354

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
145+20.3% over the period
Employees, 2023
471
Annual payroll, 2023
$11.4M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
341188 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
376The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
5
Amount
$497K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as convenience stores in the Rochester 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 Rochester metro area

Population, 2025 estimate
1,056,149−0.7% since 2020
Households
445,836
Median age
42.2
Homes lived in by their owners
67%
Vehicles per household
1.6
Land area
2,928 sq. mi.
People per square mile
362
Median household income
$76,284
Average household income
$100,943
Median home value
$204,600
Jobs located here
501,944
Daytime population
1,064,689Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Rochester 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 Rochester metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Convenience stores across New York

Every New York market ranked →

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

Top metro areas in New York

Metro areas in New York ranked for convenience stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Kiryas Joel-Poughkeepsie-Newburgh, NY631756.9$10.5M+3.0%#105 of 387
2New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ623,5304.8$15.3M+0.6%#111 of 387
3Ithaca, NY61317.2$9.3M−1.4%#119 of 387
4Rochester, NY533417.6$8.7M−0.7%#180 of 387
5Kingston, NY51648.6$8M+1.1%#192 of 387
6Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY493817.6$8.6M−0.8%#206 of 387
7Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY483739.7$7.2M+1.9%#216 of 387
8Glens Falls, NY427012.8$5.2M−1.9%#250 of 387
9Syracuse, NY382669.8$6.8M−1.3%#273 of 387
10Binghamton, NY3810210.0$6.4M−1.3%#277 of 387

Other business types in the Rochester metro area

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

Questions

How many convenience stores are in the Rochester, NY metro area?

The Rochester metro area has 341 convenience stores on map listings as of September 2026. 188 of them (55%) are chain locations. The listings count convenience stores without fuel. Official counts show 145 businesses with payroll classed as convenience stores in 2023, up 20.3% from 2019.

How much do households in the Rochester, NY metro area spend on groceries?

About $3B a year, or $6,651 per household. That is 5% above the U.S. average (an index of 105, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 341 convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $8.7M per store. The spending figure covers all groceries, not only convenience stores. It is estimated from the incomes of the 445,836 households in the Rochester metro area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Rochester, NY metro area compare with the U.S. for convenience stores?

The Rochester metro area has 7.6 convenience stores per 10,000 households, 5% below the U.S. rate of 8.0. Spending per store is $8.7M, 10% above the U.S. figure of $7.9M. At the national ratio of convenience stores to household spending, the Rochester metro area would have about 376, against 341 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 3,075 households, against one for every 3,493 across the U.S. The official count rose 20.3% from 2019 to 2023, against +22.0% for the U.S.

How fast is the Rochester, NY metro area growing?

Population estimates put the Rochester metro area at 1,056,149 people in 2025, down 0.7% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 445,836 households. Median household income in the Rochester metro area is $76,284, 6% 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 Rochester metro area scores 53 for convenience stores (upper middle), #180 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 Rochester 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 Rochester metro area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Rochester 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 Rochester 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.