Auto · Metro area · Pennsylvania
Gas stations in the Lancaster, PA metro area
How the Lancaster, PA metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for gas stations: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 64 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #103 of 387 scored metro areas
#5 of 16 scored metro areas based in Pennsylvania
- Listings
- 93
- 72 chain locations (77%)
- Official establishments
- 146
- +7.4% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $446.1M
- On gasoline and other fuels · $2,097 a household
- Spending per listing
- $4.8M
- Twice the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 4.4
- 60% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 563,159
- +1.9% since 2020
See the gas stations around any address in the Lancaster metro area
The site report maps the gas stations 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 Lancaster metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
Map listings as of September 2026 show 93 gas stations in the Lancaster metro area. Chain locations make up 77% of them, against 84% across the U.S. That comes to 4.4 for every 10,000 households, 60% below the U.S. rate of 10.9.
Households in the Lancaster metro area spend about $446.1M a year on gasoline and other fuels, or $2,097 per household, 19% below the U.S. average. That is about $4.8M of household spending for each station on map listings, twice the U.S. figure of $2.4M.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as gasoline stations in the Lancaster metro area was 146 in 2023, up 7.4% from 2019. That is one for every 1,457 households, against one for every 1,184 across the U.S. Official counts list 6 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $1M has gone to businesses classed as gasoline stations in the Lancaster metro area.
Population estimates show the Lancaster metro area grew 1.9% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for gas stations in the Lancaster metro area is 64 (upper middle), #103 of 387 scored metro areas and #5 of 16 scored metro areas based in Pennsylvania.
How the Lancaster metro area compares
The same measures for Pennsylvania and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all gasoline and other fuels by the gas stations counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.
| Measure | Lancaster metro area | Pennsylvania | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 4.4 | 7.3 | 10.9 |
| Spending per listing | $4.8M | $2.7M | $2.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,457 | 1,448 | 1,184 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +7.4% | −8.0% | −3.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.9% | +0.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on gasoline and other fuels | $2,097 | $1,930 | $2,595 |
| Median household income | $86,959 | $77,971 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 64 | 46 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 146+7.4% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 2,061
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $59.5M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 6Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 9372 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 187The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $1M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as gasoline stations in the Lancaster 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 Lancaster metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 563,159+1.9% since 2020
- Households
- 212,748
- Median age
- 40.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 70%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 944 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 591
- Median household income
- $86,959+31.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $112,346
- Median home value
- $301,100
- Jobs located here
- 258,003
- Daytime population
- 553,680Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Lancaster 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 gas stations on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Lancaster metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardGas stations across Pennsylvania
Every Pennsylvania market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Pennsylvania for gas stations, numbered among those based in Pennsylvania, with the Lancaster metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Pennsylvania
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Gettysburg, PA | 73 | 20 | 4.9 | $5M | +3.6% | #45 of 387 |
| 2York-Hanover, PA | 71 | 56 | 3.1 | $7.3M | +3.6% | #53 of 387 |
| 3Reading, PA | 65 | 81 | 5.0 | $4.3M | +2.7% | #95 of 387 |
| 4Chambersburg, PA | 65 | 37 | 5.8 | $4M | +3.0% | #96 of 387 |
| 5Lancaster, PA | 64 | 93 | 4.4 | $4.8M | +1.9% | #103 of 387 |
| 6Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | 61 | 1,504 | 6.1 | $3.2M | +1.4% | #119 of 387 |
| 7Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA | 57 | 175 | 7.1 | $2.9M | +4.2% | #147 of 387 |
| 8State College, PA | 53 | 35 | 5.9 | $3.2M | −0.4% | #171 of 387 |
| 9Lebanon, PA | 50 | 43 | 7.6 | $2.8M | +2.2% | #195 of 387 |
| 10Johnstown, PA | 48 | 29 | 5.2 | $3.7M | −3.2% | #206 of 387 |
Other business types in the Lancaster metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many gas stations are in the Lancaster, PA metro area?
There are 93 gas stations on map listings in the Lancaster metro area as of September 2026. 72 of them (77%) are chain locations. The listings count gas stations. Official counts show 146 businesses with payroll classed as gasoline stations in 2023, up 7.4% from 2019. Official counts also show 6 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Lancaster, PA metro area spend on gasoline and other fuels?
About $446.1M a year, or $2,097 per household. That is 19% below the U.S. average (an index of 81, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 93 gas stations on map listings, it comes to $4.8M per station. It is estimated from the incomes of the 212,748 households in the Lancaster metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Lancaster, PA metro area compare with the U.S. for gas stations?
The Lancaster metro area has 4.4 gas stations per 10,000 households, 60% below the U.S. rate of 10.9. Spending per station is $4.8M, twice the U.S. figure of $2.4M. At the national ratio of gas stations to household spending, the Lancaster metro area would have about 187, against 93 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,457 households, against one for every 1,184 across the U.S. The official count rose 7.4% from 2019 to 2023, against −3.1% for the U.S.
How fast is the Lancaster, PA metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Lancaster metro area at 563,159 people in 2025, up 1.9% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 212,748 households. The median household income in the Lancaster metro area is $86,959 a year, 8% above 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. The Lancaster metro area scores 64 for gas stations (upper middle), #103 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 Lancaster metro area. It maps the gas stations 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 gas stations · All 56 business types in the Lancaster metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Lancaster 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 Lancaster 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.