Groundwork

Health care · County · Michigan

Optometrists and eye clinics in Alpena County, MI

How Alpena County, MI compares with other counties and the U.S. for optometrists and eye clinics: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 26 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,129 of 1,302 scored counties
#48 of 49 scored counties in Michigan

Listings
7
2 chain locations (29%)
Official establishments
4
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$15.8M
On medical and dental services · $1,216 a household
Spending per listing
$2.3M
28% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
5.4
32% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
28,853
−0.1% since 2020

See the optometrists and eye clinics around any address in Alpena County

The site report maps the optometrists and eye clinics 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 Alpena 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

For optometrists and eye clinics, Alpena County has a Groundwork market score of 26 (lower middle): #1,129 of 1,302 scored counties and #48 of 49 scored counties in Michigan. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

As of September 2026, map listings count 7 optometrists and eye clinics in Alpena County. Of those, 2 are chain locations, or 29%, against 20% across the U.S. That is 5.4 per 10,000 households, 32% above the U.S. rate of 4.1.

Household spending on medical and dental services in Alpena County comes to about $15.8M a year: $1,216 per household, 6% below the U.S. average. That works out to $2.3M per practice, 28% below the U.S. figure of $3.1M. That spending covers all medical and dental services, which optometrists and eye clinics share with other businesses in the trade.

In 2023, official counts showed 4 businesses with payroll in Alpena County classed as offices of optometrists. That is one for every 3,255 households, against one for every 5,742 across the U.S. Population estimates show Alpena County declined 0.1% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S.

How Alpena County compares

The same measures for Michigan and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all medical and dental services by the optometrists and eye clinics counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.

Optometrists and eye care in Alpena County, MI compared with Michigan and the U.S.
MeasureAlpena CountyMichiganU.S.
Listings per 10k households5.43.94.1
Spending per listing$2.3M$3.7M$3.1M
Households per official establishment3,2557,0405,742
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+1.8%+0.2%
Population growth, 2020–2025−0.1%+0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on medical and dental services$1,216$1,412$1,288
Median household income$53,950$72,875$80,734
Groundwork market score2670

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
3 → 4
Employees, 2023
36
Annual payroll, 2023
$1.3M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
72 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
5The 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 offices of optometrists in Alpena 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 Alpena County

Population, 2025 estimate
28,853−0.1% since 2020
Households
13,019
Median age
47.4
Homes lived in by their owners
80%
Vehicles per household
1.7
Land area
572 sq. mi.
People per square mile
50
Median household income
$53,950+24.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$74,418
Median home value
$153,900
Jobs located here
11,363
Daytime population
29,194Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Alpena 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 optometrists and eye clinics on map listings by name and distance.

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

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Optometrists and eye care across Michigan

Every Michigan market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Michigan for optometrists and eye clinics, numbered among those based in Michigan, with Alpena County marked.

Top counties in Michigan

Counties in Michigan ranked for optometrists and eye clinics by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Allegan County, MI87112.4$6M+2.1%#9 of 1,302
2Ottawa County, MI80383.4$4.5M+3.9%#56 of 1,302
3Monroe County, MI79213.3$4.3M+0.7%#69 of 1,302
4Macomb County, MI771263.5$4.1M+0.7%#102 of 1,302
5Barry County, MI7683.3$4.3M+2.2%#114 of 1,302
6Van Buren County, MI7551.6$8.2M+0.7%#116 of 1,302
7Wayne County, MI741812.6$5.1M−1.1%#131 of 1,302
8Livingston County, MI74314.1$4.1M+1.7%#137 of 1,302
9St. Clair County, MI71192.8$4.9M+0.1%#177 of 1,302
10Marquette County, MI7072.5$5.2M+2.3%#196 of 1,302
48Alpena County, MI2675.4$2.3M−0.1%#1,129 of 1,302

Other business types in Alpena County

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

Questions

How many optometrists and eye clinics are in Alpena County, MI?

Alpena County has 7 optometrists and eye clinics on map listings as of September 2026. 2 of them (29%) are chain locations. The listings count optometrists and eye clinics. Official counts show 4 businesses with payroll classed as offices of optometrists in 2023.

How much do households in Alpena County, MI spend on medical and dental services?

About $15.8M a year, or $1,216 per household. That is 6% below the U.S. average (an index of 94, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 7 optometrists and eye clinics on map listings, it comes to $2.3M per practice. The spending figure covers all medical and dental services, not only optometrists and eye clinics. It is estimated from the incomes of the 13,019 households in Alpena County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Alpena County, MI compare with the U.S. for optometrists and eye clinics?

Alpena County has 5.4 optometrists and eye clinics per 10,000 households, 32% above the U.S. rate of 4.1. Spending per practice is $2.3M, 28% below the U.S. figure of $3.1M. At the national ratio of optometrists and eye clinics to household spending, Alpena County would have about 5, against 7 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 3,255 households, against one for every 5,742 across the U.S.

How fast is Alpena County, MI growing?

Population estimates put Alpena County at 28,853 people in 2025, down 0.1% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 13,019 households. The median household income in Alpena County is $53,950 a year, 33% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 24.4% 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. Alpena County scores 26 for optometrists and eye clinics (lower middle), #1,129 of 1,302 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Alpena County. It maps the optometrists and eye clinics 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 optometrists and eye clinics · All 56 business types in Alpena County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Alpena 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 Alpena 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.