Groundwork

Clothing and laundry · County · New Jersey

Dry cleaners in Middlesex County, NJ

How Middlesex County, NJ compares with other counties and the U.S. for dry cleaners: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 51 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #252 of 507 scored counties
#11 of 20 scored counties in New Jersey

Listings
53
4 chain locations (8%)
Official establishments
56
−25.3% since 2019
Household spending a year
$841.5M
On clothing, shoes and related services · $2,734 a household
Spending per listing
$15.9M
In line with the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
1.7
31% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
883,335
+2.6% since 2020

See the dry cleaners around any address in Middlesex County

The site report maps the dry cleaners 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 Middlesex 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

Household spending on clothing, shoes and related services in Middlesex County comes to about $841.5M a year: $2,734 per household, 33% above the U.S. average. Spread across 53 dry cleaners, that is $15.9M per shop, in line with the U.S. figure of $15.7M. The spending figure covers all clothing, shoes and related services, not only dry cleaners.

Middlesex County has 53 dry cleaners on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 8% of them, against 23% across the U.S. That is 1.7 per 10,000 households, 31% above the U.S. rate of 1.3.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as dry cleaning and laundry services in Middlesex County was 56 in 2023, down 25.3% from 2019. That is one for every 5,496 households, against one for every 8,177 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $296K has gone to businesses classed as dry cleaning and laundry services in Middlesex County.

Population estimates put the population change in Middlesex County from 2020 to 2025 at +2.6%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). For dry cleaners, Middlesex County has a Groundwork market score of 51 (upper middle): #252 of 507 scored counties and #11 of 20 scored counties in New Jersey.

How Middlesex County compares

The same measures for New Jersey and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all clothing, shoes and related services by the dry cleaners counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.

Dry cleaners in Middlesex County, NJ compared with New Jersey and the U.S.
MeasureMiddlesex CountyNew JerseyU.S.
Listings per 10k households1.71.91.3
Spending per listing$15.9M$14.1M$15.7M
Households per official establishment5,4964,2528,177
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−25.3%−18.1%−18.7%
Population growth, 2020–2025+2.6%+3.0%+3.1%
Spending per household on clothing, shoes and related services$2,734$2,665$2,055
Median household income$111,549$103,556$80,734
Groundwork market score5140

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
75 → 56−25.3% over the period
Employees, 2023
157
Annual payroll, 2023
$3.7M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
534 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
54The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
1
Amount
$296K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as dry cleaning and laundry services in Middlesex 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 Middlesex County

Population, 2025 estimate
883,335+2.6% since 2020
Households
307,782
Median age
40.6
Homes lived in by their owners
64%
Vehicles per household
1.7
Land area
309 sq. mi.
People per square mile
2,817
Median household income
$111,549+24.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$142,057
Median home value
$462,900
Jobs located here
459,830
Daytime population
901,798Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Middlesex 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 dry cleaners on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of Middlesex County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Dry cleaners across New Jersey

Every New Jersey market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in New Jersey for dry cleaners, numbered among those based in New Jersey, with Middlesex County marked.

Top counties in New Jersey

Counties in New Jersey ranked for dry cleaners by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Warren County, NJ6961.3$18.7M+3.2%#79 of 507
2Ocean County, NJ64271.1$21.9M+5.6%#117 of 507
3Atlantic County, NJ6190.8$27.5M+1.6%#144 of 507
4Gloucester County, NJ61151.3$19.6M+3.3%#150 of 507
5Burlington County, NJ60241.4$19.8M+4.3%#163 of 507
6Cape May County, NJ5951.1$22M−1.7%#172 of 507
7Cumberland County, NJ5750.9$22.4M+2.2%#190 of 507
8Hunterdon County, NJ5781.6$19.8M+2.3%#192 of 507
9Sussex County, NJ56101.7$15.8M+2.9%#209 of 507
10Somerset County, NJ55221.7$18.6M+3.5%#215 of 507
11Middlesex County, NJ51531.7$15.9M+2.6%#252 of 507

Other business types in Middlesex County

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

Questions

How many dry cleaners are in Middlesex County, NJ?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 53 dry cleaners in Middlesex County. 4 of them (8%) are chain locations. The listings count dry cleaners. Official counts show 56 businesses with payroll classed as dry cleaning and laundry services in 2023, down 25.3% from 2019.

How much do households in Middlesex County, NJ spend on clothing, shoes and related services?

About $841.5M a year, or $2,734 per household. That is 33% above the U.S. average (an index of 133, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 53 dry cleaners on map listings, it comes to $15.9M per shop. That spending covers all clothing, shoes and related services, which dry cleaners share with other businesses in the trade. It is estimated from the incomes of the 307,782 households in Middlesex County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Middlesex County, NJ compare with the U.S. for dry cleaners?

Middlesex County has 1.7 dry cleaners per 10,000 households, 31% above the U.S. rate of 1.3. Spending per shop is $15.9M, in line with the U.S. figure of $15.7M. At the U.S. ratio of dry cleaners to household spending, Middlesex County would have about 54, against 53 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 5,496 households, against one for every 8,177 across the U.S. The official count fell 25.3% from 2019 to 2023, against −18.7% for the U.S.

How fast is Middlesex County, NJ growing?

Population estimates put Middlesex County at 883,335 people in 2025, up 2.6% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 307,782 households. Median household income in Middlesex County is $111,549, 38% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 24.6%, 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. Middlesex County scores 51 for dry cleaners (upper middle), #252 of 507 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Middlesex County. It maps the dry cleaners 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 dry cleaners · All 56 business types in Middlesex County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Middlesex 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 Middlesex 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.