Groceries and convenience · Small-town market · Georgia
Grocery and convenience stores in the Waycross, GA area
How the Waycross, GA area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 21 out of 100: Low
Ranked #490 of 538 scored small-town markets
#16 of 23 scored small-town markets based in Georgia
- Listings
- 77
- 52 chain locations (68%)
- Official establishments
- 26
- +13.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $109.8M
- On groceries · $5,341 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.4M
- 58% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 37.4
- Twice the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 57,670
- +3.0% since 2020
See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in the Waycross 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 Waycross 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
The Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores in the Waycross area is 21 (low), #490 of 538 scored small-town markets and #16 of 23 scored small-town markets based in Georgia. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.
As of September 2026, map listings count 77 grocery and convenience stores in the Waycross area. Of those, 52 are chain locations, or 68%, against 42% across the U.S. That is 37.4 per 10,000 households, twice the U.S. rate of 18.7.
Household spending on groceries in the Waycross area comes to about $109.8M a year: $5,341 per household, 15% below the U.S. average. Spread across 77 grocery and convenience stores, that is $1.4M per store, 58% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M.
Official counts show 26 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in the Waycross area in 2023, up 13.0% from 2019. That is one for every 791 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Population estimates put the population change in the Waycross area from 2020 to 2025 at +3.0%, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Waycross area compares
The same measures for Georgia 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 | Waycross area | Georgia | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 37.4 | 20.3 | 18.7 |
| Spending per listing | $1.4M | $3M | $3.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 791 | 1,111 | 1,293 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +13.0% | +14.0% | +7.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.0% | +5.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $5,341 | $6,137 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $51,821 | $77,353 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 21 | 44 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 26+13.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 397
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $12.3M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 11Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 7752 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 32The 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 the Waycross 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 Waycross area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 57,670+3.0% since 2020
- Households
- 20,562
- Median age
- 38.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 68%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 1,240 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 45
- Median household income
- $51,821+34.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $70,222
- Median home value
- $126,600
- Jobs located here
- 19,660
- Daytime population
- 54,001Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Waycross area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 Waycross 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 Georgia
Every Georgia market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Georgia for grocery and convenience stores, numbered among those based in Georgia, with the Waycross area marked.
Top small-town markets in Georgia
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Kingsland, GA | 72 | 48 | 22.1 | $2.7M | +9.5% | #62 of 538 |
| 2Jefferson, GA | 69 | 67 | 23.6 | $2.7M | +29.3% | #92 of 538 |
| 3Jesup, GA | 53 | 26 | 23.5 | $2.3M | +7.8% | #259 of 538 |
| 4Cornelia, GA | 43 | 52 | 31.0 | $1.9M | +9.3% | #360 of 538 |
| 5Calhoun, GA | 42 | 63 | 29.5 | $2M | +6.9% | #366 of 538 |
| 6Statesboro, GA | 40 | 95 | 27.2 | $2M | +8.0% | #384 of 538 |
| 7LaGrange, GA-AL | 37 | 95 | 23.6 | $2.3M | +3.0% | #403 of 538 |
| 8Toccoa, GA | 34 | 25 | 23.8 | $2.3M | +3.8% | #424 of 538 |
| 9Cedartown, GA | 33 | 45 | 28.3 | $2M | +6.0% | #433 of 538 |
| 10Thomasville, GA | 29 | 93 | 32.3 | $1.7M | +1.3% | #460 of 538 |
| 16Waycross, GA | 21 | 77 | 37.4 | $1.4M | +3.0% | #490 of 538 |
Other business types in the Waycross area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores21
- Grocery stores50
- Convenience stores19
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 Waycross, GA area?
The Waycross area has 77 grocery and convenience stores on map listings as of September 2026. 52 of them (68%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 26 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023, up 13.0% from 2019. Another 11 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Waycross, GA area spend on groceries?
About $109.8M a year, or $5,341 per household. That is 15% below the U.S. average (an index of 85, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 77 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $1.4M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 20,562 households in the Waycross area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Waycross, GA area compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?
The Waycross area has 37.4 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, twice the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $1.4M, 58% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the national ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, the Waycross area would have about 32, against 77 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 791 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. The official count rose 13.0% from 2019 to 2023, against +7.2% for the U.S.
How fast is the Waycross, GA area growing?
Population estimates put the Waycross area at 57,670 people in 2025, up 3.0% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 20,562 households. Median household income in the Waycross area is $51,821, 36% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 34.7%, 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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 Waycross area scores 21 for grocery and convenience stores (low), #490 of 538 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Waycross 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 Waycross area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Waycross 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 Waycross 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.