Groundwork

Groceries and convenience · County · Tennessee

Convenience stores in Carter County, TN

The convenience stores in Carter County, TN, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 50 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #1,130 of 2,261 scored counties
#40 of 80 scored counties in Tennessee

Listings
24
10 chain locations (42%)
Official establishments
3
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$129.2M
On groceries · $5,291 a household
Spending per listing
$5.4M
32% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
9.8
23% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
57,361
+1.7% since 2020

See the convenience stores around any address in Carter 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 Carter 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 $5,291 per household (16% below the U.S. average), households in Carter County spend about $129.2M a year on groceries. That is about $5.4M of household spending for each store on map listings, 32% below the U.S. figure of $7.9M. The spending figure covers all groceries, not only convenience stores.

There are 24 convenience stores on map listings in Carter County as of September 2026. 10 of them (42%) are chain locations, against 60% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 9.8, 23% above the U.S. rate of 8.0.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as convenience stores in Carter County was 3 in 2023. That is one for every 8,142 households, against one for every 3,493 across the U.S.

Population estimates show Carter County grew 1.7% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for convenience stores in Carter County is 50 (upper middle), #1,130 of 2,261 scored counties and #40 of 80 scored counties in Tennessee.

How Carter County compares

The same measures for Tennessee 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 Carter County, TN compared with Tennessee and the U.S.
MeasureCarter CountyTennesseeU.S.
Listings per 10k households9.89.48.0
Spending per listing$5.4M$6.3M$7.9M
Households per official establishment8,1424,1843,493
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+50.0%+22.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025+1.7%+5.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on groceries$5,291$5,923$6,319
Median household income$50,135$69,595$80,734
Groundwork market score5042

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
3
Employees, 2023
18
Annual payroll, 2023
$222K
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
2410 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
16The 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 Carter 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 Carter County

Population, 2025 estimate
57,361+1.7% since 2020
Households
24,425
Median age
45.2
Homes lived in by their owners
75%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
341 sq. mi.
People per square mile
166
Median household income
$50,135+31.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$66,526
Median home value
$168,200
Jobs located here
12,579
Daytime population
45,703Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

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

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Convenience stores across Tennessee

Every Tennessee market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Tennessee for convenience stores, numbered among those based in Tennessee, with Carter County marked.

Top counties in Tennessee

Counties in Tennessee ranked for convenience stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Williamson County, TN96515.5$13.3M+9.0%#5 of 2,261
2Fayette County, TN8484.6$13.4M+7.7%#96 of 2,261
3Washington County, TN81315.5$10.5M+6.0%#144 of 2,261
4Roane County, TN81135.7$10.3M+7.0%#145 of 2,261
5Wilson County, TN79488.1$8M+17.8%#199 of 2,261
6Montgomery County, TN77708.0$7.5M+13.0%#262 of 2,261
7Jefferson County, TN76146.4$9M+9.3%#277 of 2,261
8Sullivan County, TN75416.0$9.5M+3.5%#295 of 2,261
9Rutherford County, TN751189.1$6.9M+12.6%#308 of 2,261
10Sumner County, TN75789.9$6.4M+9.2%#309 of 2,261
40Carter County, TN50249.8$5.4M+1.7%#1,130 of 2,261

Other business types in Carter County

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

Questions

How many convenience stores are in Carter County, TN?

As of September 2026, map listings count 24 convenience stores in Carter County. 10 of them (42%) 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 Carter County, TN spend on groceries?

About $129.2M a year, or $5,291 per household. That is 16% below the U.S. average (an index of 84, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 24 convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $5.4M 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 24,425 households in Carter County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Carter County, TN compare with the U.S. for convenience stores?

Carter County has 9.8 convenience stores per 10,000 households, 23% above the U.S. rate of 8.0. Spending per store is $5.4M, 32% below the U.S. figure of $7.9M. At the U.S. ratio of convenience stores to household spending, Carter County would have about 16, against 24 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 8,142 households, against one for every 3,493 across the U.S.

How fast is Carter County, TN growing?

Population estimates put Carter County at 57,361 people in 2025, up 1.7% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 24,425 households. The median household income in Carter County is $50,135 a year, 38% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 31.6% 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. Carter County scores 50 for convenience stores (upper middle), #1,130 of 2,261 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Carter 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 Carter 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.