Groundwork

Groceries and convenience · County · Rhode Island

Convenience stores in Providence County, RI

How Providence County, RI compares with other counties and the U.S. for convenience stores: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 68 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #482 of 2,261 scored counties
#3 of 5 scored counties in Rhode Island

Listings
203
104 chain locations (51%)
Official establishments
99
+26.9% since 2019
Household spending a year
$1.7B
On groceries · $6,702 a household
Spending per listing
$8.6M
9% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
7.8
2% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
678,179
+2.8% since 2020

See the convenience stores around any address in Providence 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 Providence 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

At $6,702 per household (6% above the U.S. average), households in Providence County spend about $1.7B a year on groceries. Spread across 203 convenience stores, that is $8.6M per store, 9% above the U.S. figure of $7.9M. The spending figure covers all groceries, not only convenience stores.

There are 203 convenience stores on map listings in Providence County as of September 2026. 104 of them (51%) are chain locations, against 60% across the U.S. That is 7.8 per 10,000 households, 2% below the U.S. rate of 8.0.

In 2023, official counts showed 99 businesses with payroll in Providence County classed as convenience stores, up 26.9% from 2019. That is one for every 2,618 households, against one for every 3,493 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $468K have gone to businesses classed as convenience stores in Providence County.

Population estimates show Providence County grew 2.8% from 2020 to 2025, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). Providence County scores 68 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for convenience stores, ranking #482 of 2,261 scored counties and #3 of 5 scored counties in Rhode Island. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.

How Providence County compares

The same measures for Rhode Island 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 Providence County, RI compared with Rhode Island and the U.S.
MeasureProvidence CountyRhode IslandU.S.
Listings per 10k households7.87.98.0
Spending per listing$8.6M$8.7M$7.9M
Households per official establishment2,6183,0043,493
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+26.9%+23.5%+22.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025+2.8%+1.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on groceries$6,702$6,948$6,319
Median household income$78,787$87,796$80,734
Groundwork market score6857

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
78 → 99+26.9% over the period
Employees, 2023
386
Annual payroll, 2023
$8.8M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
203104 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
221The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
2
Amount
$468K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as convenience stores in Providence 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 Providence County

Population, 2025 estimate
678,179+2.8% since 2020
Households
259,210
Median age
39.4
Homes lived in by their owners
57%
Vehicles per household
1.6
Land area
410 sq. mi.
People per square mile
1,624
Median household income
$78,787+33.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$103,369
Median home value
$373,600
Jobs located here
293,972
Daytime population
648,043Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Providence 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 Providence 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 Rhode Island

Every Rhode Island market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Rhode Island for convenience stores, numbered among those based in Rhode Island, with Providence County marked.

Top counties in Rhode Island

Counties in Rhode Island ranked for convenience stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Bristol County, RI7784.0$19M−1.5%#239 of 2,261
2Kent County, RI76537.3$9.7M+1.8%#276 of 2,261
3Providence County, RI682037.8$8.6M+2.8%#482 of 2,261
4Washington County, RI665710.8$6.9M0.0%#557 of 2,261
5Newport County, RI59308.1$9M−2.9%#783 of 2,261

Other business types in Providence County

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

Questions

How many convenience stores are in Providence County, RI?

As of September 2026, map listings count 203 convenience stores in Providence County. 104 of them (51%) are chain locations. The listings count convenience stores without fuel. Official counts show 99 businesses with payroll classed as convenience stores in 2023, up 26.9% from 2019.

How much do households in Providence County, RI spend on groceries?

About $1.7B a year, or $6,702 per household. That is 6% above the U.S. average (an index of 106, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 203 convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $8.6M 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 259,210 households in Providence County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Providence County, RI compare with the U.S. for convenience stores?

Providence County has 7.8 convenience stores per 10,000 households, 2% below the U.S. rate of 8.0. Spending per store is $8.6M, 9% above the U.S. figure of $7.9M. At the U.S. ratio of convenience stores to household spending, Providence County would have about 221, against 203 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,618 households, against one for every 3,493 across the U.S. The official count rose 26.9% from 2019 to 2023, against +22.0% for the U.S.

How fast is Providence County, RI growing?

Population estimates put Providence County at 678,179 people in 2025, up 2.8% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 259,210 households. The median household income in Providence County is $78,787 a year, 2% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 33.6% from the 2015–2019 survey, 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. Providence County scores 68 for convenience stores (upper middle), #482 of 2,261 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Providence 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 Providence County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Providence 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 Providence 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.