Groundwork

Groceries and convenience · Small-town market · Iowa

Grocery and convenience stores in the Fort Madison, IA area

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for grocery and convenience stores in the Fort Madison, IA area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 62 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #155 of 538 scored small-town markets
#5 of 15 scored small-town markets based in Iowa

Listings
23
10 chain locations (43%)
Official establishments
6
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$80.6M
On groceries · $5,628 a household
Spending per listing
$3.5M
3% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
16.1
14% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
32,306
−3.6% since 2020

See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in the Fort Madison 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 Fort Madison area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey 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 Fort Madison area comes to about $80.6M a year: $5,628 per household, 11% below the U.S. average. That is about $3.5M of household spending for each store on map listings, 3% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M.

The Fort Madison area has 23 grocery and convenience stores on map listings as of September 2026. 10 of them (43%) are chain locations, against 42% across the U.S. That comes to 16.1 for every 10,000 households, 14% below the U.S. rate of 18.7.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in the Fort Madison area was 6 in 2023. That is one for every 2,387 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Another 7 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

Population estimates put the population change in the Fort Madison area from 2020 to 2025 at −3.6%, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores in the Fort Madison area is 62 (upper middle), #155 of 538 scored small-town markets and #5 of 15 scored small-town markets based in Iowa.

How the Fort Madison area compares

The same measures for Iowa 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.

Grocery and convenience stores in Fort Madison, IA area compared with Iowa and the U.S.
MeasureFort Madison areaIowaU.S.
Listings per 10k households16.118.718.7
Spending per listing$3.5M$3.2M$3.4M
Households per official establishment2,3871,8101,293
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+5.2%+7.2%
Population growth, 2020–2025−3.6%+1.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on groceries$5,628$6,036$6,319
Median household income$62,382$75,059$80,734
Groundwork market score6250

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
6
Employees, 2023
506
Annual payroll, 2023
$9.6M
One-person businesses, 2023
7Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
2310 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
24The 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 Fort Madison 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 Fort Madison area

Population, 2025 estimate
32,306−3.6% since 2020
Households
14,323
Median age
42.9
Homes lived in by their owners
76%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
518 sq. mi.
People per square mile
64
Median household income
$62,382
Average household income
$79,169
Median home value
$141,400
Jobs located here
13,626
Daytime population
31,700Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Fort Madison 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 Fort Madison area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Grocery and convenience stores across Iowa

Every Iowa market ranked →

The highest-scoring small-town markets in Iowa for grocery and convenience stores, numbered among those based in Iowa, with the Fort Madison area marked.

Top small-town markets in Iowa

Small-town markets in Iowa ranked for grocery and convenience stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Pella, IA792619.5$3.1M+2.3%#22 of 538
2Le Mars, IA782019.4$3.2M0.0%#27 of 538
3Ottumwa, IA682316.4$3.5M−0.3%#98 of 538
4Spirit Lake, IA672022.6$2.7M+1.7%#111 of 538
5Fort Madison, IA622316.1$3.5M−3.6%#155 of 538
6Muscatine, IA613218.4$3.2M−3.0%#165 of 538
7Fort Dodge, IA613120.2$2.8M−0.4%#169 of 538
8Clinton, IA593316.9$3.5M−0.9%#184 of 538
9Burlington, IA-IL582512.6$4.5M−2.5%#193 of 538
10Oskaloosa, IA572022.9$2.5M−1.2%#219 of 538

Other business types in the Fort Madison area

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many grocery and convenience stores are in the Fort Madison, IA area?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 23 grocery and convenience stores in the Fort Madison area. 10 of them (43%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 6 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023. Official counts list 7 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in the Fort Madison, IA area spend on groceries?

About $80.6M a year, or $5,628 per household. That is 11% below the U.S. average (an index of 89, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 23 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $3.5M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 14,323 households in the Fort Madison area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Fort Madison, IA area compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?

The Fort Madison area has 16.1 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 14% below the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $3.5M, 3% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, the Fort Madison area would have about 24, against 23 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,387 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S.

How fast is the Fort Madison, IA area growing?

Population estimates put the Fort Madison area at 32,306 people in 2025, down 3.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 14,323 households. The median household income in the Fort Madison area is $62,382 a year, 23% below 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. 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 Fort Madison area scores 62 for grocery and convenience stores (upper middle), #155 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 Fort Madison 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 Fort Madison area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Fort Madison 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 Fort Madison 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.