Groceries and convenience · County · Arizona
Grocery and convenience stores in Santa Cruz County, AZ
The grocery and convenience stores in Santa Cruz County, AZ, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 33 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,881 of 2,402 scored counties
#13 of 14 scored counties in Arizona
- Listings
- 86
- 10 chain locations (12%)
- Official establishments
- 10
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $90.9M
- On groceries · $5,356 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.1M
- 69% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 50.7
- 2.7 times the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 50,020
- +4.8% since 2020
See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in Santa Cruz 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 Santa Cruz 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
The Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores in Santa Cruz County is 33 (lower middle), #1,881 of 2,402 scored counties and #13 of 14 scored counties in Arizona. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
At $5,356 per household (15% below the U.S. average), households in Santa Cruz County spend about $90.9M a year on groceries. Spread across 86 grocery and convenience stores, that is $1.1M per store, 69% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M.
Santa Cruz County has 86 grocery and convenience stores on map listings as of September 2026. 10 of them (12%) are chain locations, against 42% across the U.S. That comes to 50.7 for every 10,000 households, 2.7 times the U.S. rate of 18.7.
In 2023, official counts showed 10 businesses with payroll in Santa Cruz County classed as grocery and convenience stores. That is one for every 1,697 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Population estimates put the population change in Santa Cruz County from 2020 to 2025 at +4.8%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Santa Cruz County compares
The same measures for Arizona 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 | Santa Cruz County | Arizona | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 50.7 | 13.4 | 18.7 |
| Spending per listing | $1.1M | $4.5M | $3.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,697 | 2,464 | 1,293 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +2.3% | +7.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +4.8% | +6.1% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $5,356 | $6,084 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $55,217 | $79,964 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 33 | 86 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 8 → 10
- Employees, 2023
- 291
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $10M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 25Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 8610 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 27The 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 grocery and convenience stores in Santa Cruz 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 Santa Cruz County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 50,020+4.8% since 2020
- Households
- 16,966
- Median age
- 38.7
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 69%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 1,236 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 40
- Median household income
- $55,217+33.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $71,913
- Median home value
- $233,000
- Jobs located here
- 12,313
- Daytime population
- 42,829Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Santa Cruz 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 Santa Cruz 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 Arizona
Every Arizona market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Arizona for grocery and convenience stores, numbered among those based in Arizona, with Santa Cruz County marked.
Top counties in Arizona
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Pinal County, AZ | 92 | 170 | 10.5 | $5.7M | +25.4% | #31 of 2,402 |
| 2Maricopa County, AZ | 87 | 2,214 | 12.8 | $4.9M | +5.5% | #74 of 2,402 |
| 3Yavapai County, AZ | 81 | 157 | 14.1 | $4.1M | +6.5% | #167 of 2,402 |
| 4Pima County, AZ | 79 | 534 | 12.2 | $4.8M | +2.8% | #198 of 2,402 |
| 5Mohave County, AZ | 74 | 138 | 13.5 | $4M | +6.5% | #320 of 2,402 |
| 6Yuma County, AZ | 71 | 126 | 15.9 | $3.5M | +9.2% | #417 of 2,402 |
| 7Gila County, AZ | 60 | 41 | 17.3 | $3.2M | +0.9% | #802 of 2,402 |
| 8Cochise County, AZ | 59 | 83 | 16.3 | $3.4M | +0.6% | #828 of 2,402 |
| 9Graham County, AZ | 58 | 21 | 16.5 | $3.4M | +4.0% | #863 of 2,402 |
| 10Coconino County, AZ | 56 | 104 | 18.9 | $3.1M | −0.6% | #933 of 2,402 |
| 13Santa Cruz County, AZ | 33 | 86 | 50.7 | $1.1M | +4.8% | #1,881 of 2,402 |
Other business types in Santa Cruz County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores33
- Grocery stores28
- Convenience stores61
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 Santa Cruz County, AZ?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 86 grocery and convenience stores in Santa Cruz County. 10 of them (12%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 10 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023. Official counts also show 25 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Santa Cruz County, AZ spend on groceries?
About $90.9M a year, or $5,356 per household. That is 15% below the U.S. average (an index of 85, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 86 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $1.1M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 16,966 households in Santa Cruz County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Santa Cruz County, AZ compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?
Santa Cruz County has 50.7 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 2.7 times the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $1.1M, 69% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, Santa Cruz County would have about 27, against 86 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,697 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S.
How fast is Santa Cruz County, AZ growing?
Population estimates put Santa Cruz County at 50,020 people in 2025, up 4.8% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 16,966 households. The median household income in Santa Cruz County is $55,217 a year, 32% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 33.8% 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. Santa Cruz County scores 33 for grocery and convenience stores (lower middle), #1,881 of 2,402 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Santa Cruz 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 Santa Cruz County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Santa Cruz 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 Santa Cruz 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.