Groceries and convenience · County · Alabama
Grocery and convenience stores in Shelby County, AL
The grocery and convenience stores in Shelby County, AL, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 79 out of 100: High
Ranked #202 of 2,402 scored counties
#4 of 64 scored counties in Alabama
- Listings
- 135
- 76 chain locations (56%)
- Official establishments
- 56
- +30.2% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $574.9M
- On groceries · $6,619 a household
- Spending per listing
- $4.3M
- 26% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 15.5
- 17% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 238,552
- +6.5% since 2020
See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in Shelby County
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 Shelby County. 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
Shelby County scores 79 (high) on the Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores, ranking #202 of 2,402 scored counties and #4 of 64 scored counties in Alabama. That puts it in the top 10% of counties for grocery and convenience stores.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 135 grocery and convenience stores in Shelby County. Chain locations make up 56% of them, against 42% across the U.S. That comes to 15.5 for every 10,000 households, 17% below the U.S. rate of 18.7.
Households in Shelby County spend about $574.9M a year on groceries, or $6,619 per household, 5% above the U.S. average. Spread across 135 grocery and convenience stores, that is $4.3M per store, 26% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M.
Official counts show 56 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in Shelby County in 2023, up 30.2% from 2019. That is one for every 1,551 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $608K have gone to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in Shelby County. Population estimates put the population change in Shelby County from 2020 to 2025 at +6.5%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Shelby County 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 | Shelby County | Alabama | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 15.5 | 21.3 | 18.7 |
| Spending per listing | $4.3M | $2.7M | $3.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,551 | 1,657 | 1,293 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +30.2% | +23.1% | +7.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +6.5% | +3.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $6,619 | $5,771 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $97,961 | $63,999 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 79 | 36 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 43 → 56+30.2% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 2,345
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $59.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 51Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 13576 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 170The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $608K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in Shelby 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 Shelby County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 238,552+6.5% since 2020
- Households
- 86,866
- Median age
- 41.0
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 81%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 785 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 293
- Median household income
- $97,961+25.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $128,135
- Median home value
- $326,100
- Jobs located here
- 95,355
- Daytime population
- 222,801Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Shelby 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 grocery and convenience stores on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of Shelby County. 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 counties in Alabama for grocery and convenience stores, numbered among those based in Alabama, with Shelby County marked.
Top counties in Alabama
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Madison County, AL | 88 | 246 | 14.9 | $4.3M | +11.0% | #67 of 2,402 |
| 2Limestone County, AL | 88 | 66 | 16.1 | $3.9M | +18.0% | #69 of 2,402 |
| 3Autauga County, AL | 82 | 35 | 15.3 | $3.9M | +5.1% | #150 of 2,402 |
| 4Shelby County, AL | 79 | 135 | 15.5 | $4.3M | +6.5% | #202 of 2,402 |
| 5Baldwin County, AL | 76 | 195 | 19.8 | $3.1M | +14.8% | #280 of 2,402 |
| 6Lee County, AL | 73 | 116 | 16.7 | $3.5M | +8.6% | #367 of 2,402 |
| 7Lawrence County, AL | 68 | 24 | 17.6 | $3.2M | +2.3% | #509 of 2,402 |
| 8St. Clair County, AL | 68 | 65 | 18.5 | $3.2M | +7.1% | #511 of 2,402 |
| 9Elmore County, AL | 65 | 76 | 23.1 | $2.6M | +4.2% | #611 of 2,402 |
| 10Coffee County, AL | 63 | 45 | 21.4 | $2.7M | +6.3% | #688 of 2,402 |
Other business types in Shelby County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores79
- Grocery stores79
- Convenience stores79
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 Shelby County, AL?
There are 135 grocery and convenience stores on map listings in Shelby County as of September 2026. 76 of them (56%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 56 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023, up 30.2% from 2019. Official counts also show 51 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Shelby County, AL spend on groceries?
About $574.9M a year, or $6,619 per household. That is 5% above the U.S. average (an index of 105, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 135 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $4.3M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 86,866 households in Shelby County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Shelby County, AL compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?
Shelby County has 15.5 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 17% below the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $4.3M, 26% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the national ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, Shelby County would have about 170, against 135 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,551 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. The official count rose 30.2% from 2019 to 2023, against +7.2% for the U.S.
How fast is Shelby County, AL growing?
Population estimates put Shelby County at 238,552 people in 2025, up 6.5% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 86,866 households. Median household income in Shelby County is $97,961, 21% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 25.9%, 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. Shelby County scores 79 for grocery and convenience stores (high), #202 of 2,402 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Shelby County. 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 Shelby County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Shelby 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 Shelby 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.