Groceries and convenience · Metro area · Alabama
Grocery and convenience stores in the Auburn-Opelika, AL metro area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for grocery and convenience stores in the Auburn-Opelika, AL metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 56 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #161 of 387 scored metro areas
#3 of 12 scored metro areas based in Alabama
- Listings
- 132
- 53 chain locations (40%)
- Official establishments
- 39
- +5.4% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $439.4M
- On groceries · $5,731 a household
- Spending per listing
- $3.3M
- 2% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 17.2
- 8% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 208,013
- +7.1% since 2020
See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in the Auburn-Opelika metro area
The site report maps the grocery and 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 the Auburn-Opelika 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 132 grocery and convenience stores in the Auburn-Opelika metro area. 53 of them (40%) are chain locations, against 42% across the U.S. That comes to 17.2 for every 10,000 households, 8% below the U.S. rate of 18.7.
Household spending on groceries in the Auburn-Opelika metro area comes to about $439.4M a year: $5,731 per household, 9% below the U.S. average. Spread across 132 grocery and convenience stores, that is $3.3M per store, 2% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M.
Official counts show 39 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in the Auburn-Opelika metro area in 2023, up 5.4% from 2019. That is one for every 1,966 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Official counts list 31 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $250K has gone to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in the Auburn-Opelika metro area.
Population estimates show the Auburn-Opelika metro area grew 7.1% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores in the Auburn-Opelika metro area is 56 (upper middle), #161 of 387 scored metro areas and #3 of 12 scored metro areas based in Alabama.
How the Auburn-Opelika metro area compares
The same measures for Alabama and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all groceries by the grocery and 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.
| Measure | Auburn-Opelika metro area | Alabama | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 17.2 | 21.3 | 18.7 |
| Spending per listing | $3.3M | $2.7M | $3.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,966 | 1,657 | 1,293 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +5.4% | +23.1% | +7.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +7.1% | +3.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $5,731 | $5,771 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $63,649 | $63,999 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 56 | 36 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 39+5.4% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,534
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $41.2M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 31Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 13253 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 130The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $250K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in the Auburn-Opelika 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 Auburn-Opelika metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 208,013+7.1% since 2020
- Households
- 76,673
- Median age
- 37.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 66%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 1,216 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 164
- Median household income
- $63,649
- Average household income
- $87,657
- Median home value
- $247,500
- Jobs located here
- 69,655
- Daytime population
- 195,094Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Auburn-Opelika 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 grocery and convenience stores on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Auburn-Opelika metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardGrocery and convenience stores across Alabama
Every Alabama market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Alabama for grocery and convenience stores, numbered among those based in Alabama, with the Auburn-Opelika metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Alabama
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Huntsville, AL | 85 | 312 | 15.1 | $4.2M | +12.5% | #10 of 387 |
| 2Daphne-Fairhope-Foley, AL | 65 | 195 | 19.8 | $3.1M | +14.8% | #96 of 387 |
| 3Auburn-Opelika, AL | 56 | 132 | 17.2 | $3.3M | +7.1% | #161 of 387 |
| 4Birmingham, AL | 44 | 871 | 18.7 | $3.2M | +1.4% | #239 of 387 |
| 5Decatur, AL | 41 | 125 | 19.9 | $2.9M | +2.5% | #261 of 387 |
| 6Tuscaloosa, AL | 39 | 213 | 20.2 | $2.8M | +2.9% | #273 of 387 |
| 7Montgomery, AL | 38 | 304 | 20.1 | $2.9M | +0.9% | #282 of 387 |
| 8Florence-Muscle Shoals, AL | 38 | 149 | 23.4 | $2.4M | +3.5% | #284 of 387 |
| 9Dothan, AL | 25 | 158 | 25.9 | $2.1M | +3.4% | #345 of 387 |
| 10Gadsden, AL | 25 | 103 | 26.1 | $2.1M | +0.4% | #347 of 387 |
Other business types in the Auburn-Opelika metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores56
- Grocery stores60
- Convenience stores50
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many grocery and convenience stores are in the Auburn-Opelika, AL metro area?
There are 132 grocery and convenience stores on map listings in the Auburn-Opelika metro area as of September 2026. 53 of them (40%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 39 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023, up 5.4% from 2019. Official counts also show 31 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Auburn-Opelika, AL metro area spend on groceries?
About $439.4M a year, or $5,731 per household. That is 9% below the U.S. average (an index of 91, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 132 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $3.3M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 76,673 households in the Auburn-Opelika metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Auburn-Opelika, AL metro area compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?
The Auburn-Opelika metro area has 17.2 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 8% below the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $3.3M, 2% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the national ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, the Auburn-Opelika metro area would have about 130, against 132 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,966 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. The official count rose 5.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +7.2% for the U.S.
How fast is the Auburn-Opelika, AL metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Auburn-Opelika metro area at 208,013 people in 2025, up 7.1% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 76,673 households. Median household income in the Auburn-Opelika metro area is $63,649, 21% 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 Auburn-Opelika metro area scores 56 for grocery and convenience stores (upper middle), #161 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 Auburn-Opelika metro area. It maps the grocery and 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 grocery and convenience stores · All 56 business types in the Auburn-Opelika metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Auburn-Opelika 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 Auburn-Opelika 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.