Groceries and convenience · Small-town market · Illinois
Grocery and convenience stores in the Sterling, IL area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for grocery and convenience stores in the Sterling, IL area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 63 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #138 of 538 scored small-town markets
#7 of 20 scored small-town markets based in Illinois
- Listings
- 34
- 12 chain locations (35%)
- Official establishments
- 13
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $133.3M
- On groceries · $5,763 a household
- Spending per listing
- $3.9M
- 16% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 14.7
- 21% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 54,121
- −2.6% since 2020
See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in the Sterling 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 Sterling 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
As of September 2026, map listings count 34 grocery and convenience stores in the Sterling area. Of those, 12 are chain locations, or 35%, against 42% across the U.S. That is 14.7 per 10,000 households, 21% below the U.S. rate of 18.7.
Household spending on groceries in the Sterling area comes to about $133.3M a year: $5,763 per household, 9% below the U.S. average. Spread across 34 grocery and convenience stores, that is $3.9M per store, 16% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in the Sterling area was 13 in 2023. That is one for every 1,778 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Another 13 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
Population estimates show the Sterling area declined 2.6% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S. For grocery and convenience stores, the Sterling area has a Groundwork market score of 63 (upper middle): #138 of 538 scored small-town markets and #7 of 20 scored small-town markets based in Illinois.
How the Sterling 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 | Sterling area | Illinois | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 14.7 | 15.0 | 18.7 |
| Spending per listing | $3.9M | $4.2M | $3.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,778 | 1,442 | 1,293 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +4.8% | +7.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −2.6% | −0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $5,763 | $6,290 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $67,500 | $83,390 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 63 | 60 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 13
- Employees, 2023
- 294
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $7.1M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 13Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 3412 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 39The 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 Sterling 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 Sterling area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 54,121−2.6% since 2020
- Households
- 23,120
- Median age
- 43.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 77%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 684 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 80
- Median household income
- $67,500+24.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $86,592
- Median home value
- $127,100
- Jobs located here
- 20,819
- Daytime population
- 50,543Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Sterling 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 Sterling 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 small-town markets 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 Sterling area marked.
Top small-town markets in Illinois
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Marion-Herrin, IL | 80 | 37 | 12.8 | $4.5M | +0.2% | #18 of 538 |
| 2Jacksonville, IL | 72 | 20 | 13.2 | $4.4M | −3.1% | #52 of 538 |
| 3Charleston-Mattoon, IL | 70 | 26 | 12.5 | $4.4M | −1.0% | #72 of 538 |
| 4Lincoln, IL | 70 | 17 | 15.1 | $3.8M | −2.5% | #73 of 538 |
| 5Rochelle, IL | 68 | 37 | 17.8 | $3.4M | −0.7% | #99 of 538 |
| 6Dixon, IL | 66 | 21 | 15.7 | $3.8M | −3.4% | #114 of 538 |
| 7Sterling, IL | 63 | 34 | 14.7 | $3.9M | −2.6% | #138 of 538 |
| 8Mount Vernon, IL | 63 | 26 | 17.5 | $3.2M | −2.3% | #143 of 538 |
| Burlington, IA-IL | 58 | 25 | 12.6 | $4.5M | −2.5% | #193 of 538 |
| 9Canton, IL | 58 | 26 | 18.8 | $3M | −2.0% | #197 of 538 |
Other business types in the Sterling area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores63
- Grocery stores58
- Convenience stores73
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 Sterling, IL area?
The Sterling area has 34 grocery and convenience stores on map listings as of September 2026. 12 of them (35%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 13 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023. Official counts list 13 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Sterling, IL area spend on groceries?
About $133.3M a year, or $5,763 per household. That is 9% below the U.S. average (an index of 91, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 34 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $3.9M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 23,120 households in the Sterling area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Sterling, IL area compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?
The Sterling area has 14.7 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 21% below the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $3.9M, 16% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the national ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, the Sterling area would have about 39, against 34 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,778 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S.
How fast is the Sterling, IL area growing?
Population estimates put the Sterling area at 54,121 people in 2025, down 2.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 23,120 households. Median household income in the Sterling area is $67,500, 16% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 24.5%, 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 Sterling area scores 63 for grocery and convenience stores (upper middle), #138 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 Sterling 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 Sterling area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Sterling 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 Sterling 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.