Groceries and convenience · Metro area · Illinois
Grocery and convenience stores in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area
The grocery and convenience stores in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 62 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #111 of 387 scored metro areas
#2 of 8 scored metro areas based in Illinois
- Listings
- 5,121
- 1,963 chain locations (38%)
- Official establishments
- 2,719
- +5.6% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $23.6B
- On groceries · $6,464 a household
- Spending per listing
- $4.6M
- 36% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 14.1
- 25% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 9,434,123
- 0.0% since 2020
See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 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
Household spending on groceries in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area comes to about $23.6B a year: $6,464 per household, 2% above the U.S. average. That works out to $4.6M per store, 36% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M.
There are 5,121 grocery and convenience stores on map listings in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area as of September 2026. 1,963 of them (38%) are chain locations, against 42% across the U.S. That is 14.1 per 10,000 households, 25% below the U.S. rate of 18.7.
Official counts show 2,719 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area in 2023, up 5.6% from 2019. That is one for every 1,340 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Official counts list 1,862 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 101 SBA-backed loans worth $72.3M have gone to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area.
Population estimates put the population change in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area from 2020 to 2025 at 0.0%, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area scores 62 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores, ranking #111 of 387 scored metro areas and #2 of 8 scored metro areas based in Illinois.
How the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area compares
The same measures for Illinois 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 | Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area | Illinois | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 14.1 | 15.0 | 18.7 |
| Spending per listing | $4.6M | $4.2M | $3.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,340 | 1,442 | 1,293 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +5.6% | +4.8% | +7.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | 0.0% | −0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $6,464 | $6,290 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $90,887 | $83,390 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 62 | 60 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 2,719+5.6% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 80,400
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $2.7B
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 1,862Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 5,1211,963 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 6,952The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 101
- Amount
- $72.3M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 9,434,1230.0% since 2020
- Households
- 3,643,783
- Median age
- 39.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 66%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.6
- Land area
- 6,923 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 1,354
- Median household income
- $90,887
- Average household income
- $125,950
- Median home value
- $323,000
- Jobs located here
- 4,599,202
- Daytime population
- 9,509,530Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 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 Illinois
Every Illinois market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Illinois for grocery and convenience stores, numbered among those based in Illinois (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Illinois
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Bloomington, IL | 64 | 103 | 14.7 | $4.2M | +0.1% | #97 of 387 |
| 2Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN | 62 | 5,121 | 14.1 | $4.6M | 0.0% | #111 of 387 |
| St. Louis, MO-IL | 62 | 1,871 | 16.1 | $3.9M | −0.2% | #117 of 387 |
| 3Springfield, IL | 60 | 130 | 14.4 | $4.2M | −1.2% | #123 of 387 |
| 4Peoria, IL | 58 | 223 | 14.5 | $4.1M | −1.3% | #138 of 387 |
| 5Champaign-Urbana, IL | 56 | 155 | 15.8 | $3.7M | +1.5% | #157 of 387 |
| 6Rockford, IL | 51 | 201 | 14.8 | $3.9M | −0.3% | #192 of 387 |
| Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL | 49 | 274 | 16.9 | $3.5M | −0.9% | #207 of 387 |
| Cape Girardeau, MO-IL | 43 | 71 | 18.5 | $3.1M | +1.7% | #245 of 387 |
| 7Kankakee, IL | 39 | 80 | 19.5 | $3.1M | −1.7% | #270 of 387 |
Other business types in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 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 stores62
- Grocery stores45
- Convenience stores72
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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 5,121 grocery and convenience stores in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area. 1,963 of them (38%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 2,719 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023, up 5.6% from 2019. Official counts also show 1,862 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area spend on groceries?
About $23.6B a year, or $6,464 per household. That is 2% above the U.S. average (an index of 102, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 5,121 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $4.6M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 3,643,783 households in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?
The Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area has 14.1 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 25% below the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $4.6M, 36% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area would have about 6,952, against 5,121 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,340 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. The official count rose 5.6% from 2019 to 2023, against +7.2% for the U.S.
How fast is the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area at 9,434,123 people in 2025, unchanged since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 3,643,783 households. The median household income in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area is $90,887 a year, 13% above 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area scores 62 for grocery and convenience stores (upper middle), #111 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 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.