Groundwork

Auto · Metro area · Wisconsin

Gas stations in the Wausau, WI metro area

The gas stations in the Wausau, WI metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 55 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #163 of 387 scored metro areas
#4 of 13 scored metro areas based in Wisconsin

Listings
61
57 chain locations (93%)
Official establishments
50
−16.7% since 2019
Household spending a year
$165.2M
On gasoline and other fuels · $2,855 a household
Spending per listing
$2.7M
14% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
10.5
4% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
139,432
+1.0% since 2020

See the gas stations around any address in the Wausau 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 Wausau metro area. 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

Households in the Wausau metro area spend about $165.2M a year on gasoline and other fuels, or $2,855 per household, 10% above the U.S. average. Spread across 61 gas stations, that is $2.7M per station, 14% above the U.S. figure of $2.4M.

There are 61 gas stations on map listings in the Wausau metro area as of September 2026. 57 of them (93%) are chain locations, against 84% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 10.5, 4% below the U.S. rate of 10.9.

In 2023, official counts showed 50 businesses with payroll in the Wausau metro area classed as gasoline stations, down 16.7% from 2019. That is one for every 1,157 households, against one for every 1,184 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $2.9M have gone to businesses classed as gasoline stations in the Wausau metro area.

Population estimates show the Wausau metro area grew 1.0% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). For gas stations, the Wausau metro area has a Groundwork market score of 55 (upper middle): #163 of 387 scored metro areas and #4 of 13 scored metro areas based in Wisconsin.

How the Wausau metro area compares

The same measures for Wisconsin 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.

Gas stations in Wausau, WI metro area compared with Wisconsin and the U.S.
MeasureWausau metro areaWisconsinU.S.
Listings per 10k households10.511.310.9
Spending per listing$2.7M$2.4M$2.4M
Households per official establishment1,1579791,184
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−16.7%−0.8%−3.1%
Population growth, 2020–2025+1.0%+1.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on gasoline and other fuels$2,855$2,672$2,595
Median household income$77,884$77,485$80,734
Groundwork market score5541

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
50−16.7% over the period
Employees, 2023
824
Annual payroll, 2023
$21.3M
One-person businesses, 2023
0Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
6157 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
69The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
2
Amount
$2.9M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as gasoline stations in the Wausau 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 Wausau metro area

Population, 2025 estimate
139,432+1.0% since 2020
Households
57,866
Median age
42.0
Homes lived in by their owners
73%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
1,545 sq. mi.
People per square mile
90
Median household income
$77,884
Average household income
$97,899
Median home value
$219,600
Jobs located here
72,449
Daytime population
141,458Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Wausau 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 Wausau metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Gas stations across Wisconsin

Every Wisconsin market ranked →

The highest-scoring metro areas in Wisconsin for gas stations, numbered among those based in Wisconsin (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Wausau metro area marked.

Top metro areas in Wisconsin

Metro areas in Wisconsin ranked for gas stations by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI718775.9$4.5M+2.6%#55 of 387
1Madison, WI622387.9$3.2M+4.1%#110 of 387
2La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN58506.9$3.8M+0.4%#138 of 387
3Appleton, WI57949.4$3M+2.7%#145 of 387
4Wausau, WI556110.5$2.7M+1.0%#163 of 387
5Eau Claire, WI50719.9$2.8M+2.6%#194 of 387
6Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI485638.6$2.8M0.0%#208 of 387
7Oshkosh-Neenah, WI467710.6$2.5M+1.4%#223 of 387
8Kenosha, WI447110.3$2.7M−0.4%#236 of 387
9Racine-Mount Pleasant, WI448310.3$2.6M+0.4%#237 of 387

Other business types in the Wausau metro area

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

Questions

How many gas stations are in the Wausau, WI metro area?

As of September 2026, map listings count 61 gas stations in the Wausau metro area. 57 of them (93%) are chain locations. The listings count gas stations. Official counts show 50 businesses with payroll classed as gasoline stations in 2023, down 16.7% from 2019.

How much do households in the Wausau, WI metro area spend on gasoline and other fuels?

About $165.2M a year, or $2,855 per household. That is 10% above the U.S. average (an index of 110, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 61 gas stations on map listings, it comes to $2.7M per station. It is estimated from the incomes of the 57,866 households in the Wausau metro area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Wausau, WI metro area compare with the U.S. for gas stations?

The Wausau metro area has 10.5 gas stations per 10,000 households, 4% below the U.S. rate of 10.9. Spending per station is $2.7M, 14% above the U.S. figure of $2.4M. At the U.S. ratio of gas stations to household spending, the Wausau metro area would have about 69, against 61 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,157 households, against one for every 1,184 across the U.S. The official count fell 16.7% from 2019 to 2023, against −3.1% for the U.S.

How fast is the Wausau, WI metro area growing?

Population estimates put the Wausau metro area at 139,432 people in 2025, up 1.0% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 57,866 households. Median household income in the Wausau metro area is $77,884, 4% below the U.S. median of $80,734.

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 Wausau metro area scores 55 for gas stations (upper middle), #163 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 Wausau 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 Wausau metro area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Wausau 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 Wausau 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.