Groceries and convenience · County · California
Grocery and convenience stores in Humboldt County, CA
How Humboldt County, CA compares with other counties and the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 31 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,916 of 2,402 scored counties
#46 of 55 scored counties in California
- Listings
- 113
- 37 chain locations (33%)
- Official establishments
- 52
- 0.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $309.2M
- On groceries · $5,630 a household
- Spending per listing
- $2.7M
- 19% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 20.6
- 10% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 131,647
- −3.4% since 2020
See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in Humboldt 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 Humboldt 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
For grocery and convenience stores, Humboldt County has a Groundwork market score of 31 (lower middle): #1,916 of 2,402 scored counties and #46 of 55 scored counties in California. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
Households in Humboldt County spend about $309.2M a year on groceries, or $5,630 per household, 11% below the U.S. average. Spread across 113 grocery and convenience stores, that is $2.7M per store, 19% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M.
There are 113 grocery and convenience stores on map listings in Humboldt County as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 33% of them, against 42% across the U.S. That is 20.6 per 10,000 households, 10% above the U.S. rate of 18.7.
In 2023, official counts showed 52 businesses with payroll in Humboldt County classed as grocery and convenience stores, unchanged from 2019. That is one for every 1,056 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $2M have gone to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in Humboldt County. Population estimates put the population change in Humboldt County from 2020 to 2025 at −3.4%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How Humboldt County compares
The same measures for California 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 | Humboldt County | California | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 20.6 | 18.1 | 18.7 |
| Spending per listing | $2.7M | $3.6M | $3.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,056 | 1,214 | 1,293 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | 0.0% | +5.3% | +7.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −3.4% | −0.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $5,630 | $6,548 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $61,160 | $99,122 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 31 | 49 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 52 → 520.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,646
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $59M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 11Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 11337 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 91The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 4
- Amount
- $2M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in Humboldt 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 Humboldt County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 131,647−3.4% since 2020
- Households
- 54,922
- Median age
- 40.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 57%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 3,568 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 38
- Median household income
- $61,160+27.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $86,194
- Median home value
- $446,900
- Jobs located here
- 48,178
- Daytime population
- 133,286Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Humboldt 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 Humboldt 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 California
Every California market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in California for grocery and convenience stores, numbered among those based in California, with Humboldt County marked.
Top counties in California
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Placer County, CA | 85 | 220 | 13.9 | $4.9M | +8.9% | #99 of 2,402 |
| 2San Benito County, CA | 80 | 38 | 18.5 | $3.7M | +8.6% | #188 of 2,402 |
| 3El Dorado County, CA | 74 | 107 | 14.0 | $4.8M | +0.6% | #311 of 2,402 |
| 4Riverside County, CA | 73 | 1,248 | 16.1 | $4M | +5.0% | #354 of 2,402 |
| 5Contra Costa County, CA | 71 | 552 | 13.3 | $5.3M | +0.3% | #402 of 2,402 |
| 6Santa Clara County, CA | 70 | 924 | 14.0 | $5.4M | −0.9% | #427 of 2,402 |
| 7Orange County, CA | 66 | 1,680 | 15.5 | $4.4M | −1.1% | #550 of 2,402 |
| 8Solano County, CA | 66 | 255 | 16.2 | $4M | +0.6% | #555 of 2,402 |
| 9Amador County, CA | 66 | 28 | 17.4 | $3.5M | +3.2% | #560 of 2,402 |
| 10San Diego County, CA | 65 | 1,804 | 15.4 | $4.3M | −0.6% | #581 of 2,402 |
| 46Humboldt County, CA | 31 | 113 | 20.6 | $2.7M | −3.4% | #1,916 of 2,402 |
Other business types in Humboldt County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores31
- Grocery stores17
- Convenience stores62
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 Humboldt County, CA?
As of September 2026, map listings count 113 grocery and convenience stores in Humboldt County. 37 of them (33%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 52 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023, unchanged from 2019. Official counts also show 11 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Humboldt County, CA spend on groceries?
About $309.2M a year, or $5,630 per household. That is 11% below the U.S. average (an index of 89, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 113 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $2.7M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 54,922 households in Humboldt County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Humboldt County, CA compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?
Humboldt County has 20.6 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 10% above the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $2.7M, 19% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, Humboldt County would have about 91, against 113 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,056 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. The official count held level from 2019 to 2023, against +7.2% for the U.S.
How fast is Humboldt County, CA growing?
Population estimates put Humboldt County at 131,647 people in 2025, down 3.4% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 54,922 households. The median household income in Humboldt County is $61,160 a year, 24% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 27.3% 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. Humboldt County scores 31 for grocery and convenience stores (lower middle), #1,916 of 2,402 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Humboldt 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 Humboldt County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Humboldt 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 Humboldt 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.