Groceries and convenience · Metro area · Kansas
Grocery and convenience stores in the Lawrence, KS metro area
How the Lawrence, KS metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 75 out of 100: High
Ranked #30 of 387 scored metro areas
#1 of 4 scored metro areas based in Kansas
- Listings
- 59
- 28 chain locations (47%)
- Official establishments
- 20
- −4.8% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $302.5M
- On groceries · $6,001 a household
- Spending per listing
- $5.1M
- 51% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 11.7
- 37% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 120,920
- +1.8% since 2020
See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in the Lawrence 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 Lawrence 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
The Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores in the Lawrence metro area is 75 (high), #30 of 387 scored metro areas and #1 of 4 scored metro areas based in Kansas. That puts it in the top 10% of metro areas for grocery and convenience stores.
Households in the Lawrence metro area spend about $302.5M a year on groceries, or $6,001 per household, 5% below the U.S. average. That is about $5.1M of household spending for each store on map listings, 51% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M.
The Lawrence metro area has 59 grocery and convenience stores on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 28 are chain locations, or 47%, against 42% across the U.S. That is 11.7 per 10,000 households, 37% below the U.S. rate of 18.7.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in the Lawrence metro area was 20 in 2023, down 4.8% from 2019. That is one for every 2,520 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Population estimates show the Lawrence metro area grew 1.8% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Lawrence metro area compares
The same measures for Kansas 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 | Lawrence metro area | Kansas | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 11.7 | 16.9 | 18.7 |
| Spending per listing | $5.1M | $3.6M | $3.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 2,520 | 2,035 | 1,293 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −4.8% | +5.9% | +7.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.8% | +1.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $6,001 | $6,053 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $69,746 | $74,275 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 75 | 58 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 20−4.8% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,378
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $32.2M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 12Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 5928 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 89The 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 Lawrence 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 Lawrence metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 120,920+1.8% since 2020
- Households
- 50,406
- Median age
- 35.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 50%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 456 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 264
- Median household income
- $69,746+17.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $96,109
- Median home value
- $309,400
- Jobs located here
- 51,342
- Daytime population
- 115,968Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Lawrence 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 Lawrence 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 Kansas
Every Kansas market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Kansas for grocery and convenience stores, numbered among those based in Kansas (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Lawrence metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Kansas
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kansas City, MO-KS | 80 | 1,235 | 13.8 | $4.6M | +3.4% | #19 of 387 |
| 1Lawrence, KS | 75 | 59 | 11.7 | $5.1M | +1.8% | #30 of 387 |
| 2Wichita, KS | 72 | 346 | 13.6 | $4.4M | +2.4% | #48 of 387 |
| 3Topeka, KS | 69 | 123 | 12.7 | $4.6M | +0.1% | #60 of 387 |
| 4Manhattan, KS | 54 | 79 | 15.4 | $3.7M | +1.4% | #174 of 387 |
| Joplin, MO-KS | 40 | 178 | 22.4 | $2.5M | +3.9% | #265 of 387 |
| St. Joseph, MO-KS | 28 | 102 | 21.8 | $2.6M | −2.0% | #333 of 387 |
Other business types in the Lawrence 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 stores75
- Grocery stores60
- Convenience stores70
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 Lawrence, KS metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 59 grocery and convenience stores in the Lawrence metro area. 28 of them (47%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 20 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023, down 4.8% from 2019. Official counts list 12 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Lawrence, KS metro area spend on groceries?
About $302.5M a year, or $6,001 per household. That is 5% below the U.S. average (an index of 95, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 59 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $5.1M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 50,406 households in the Lawrence metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Lawrence, KS metro area compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?
The Lawrence metro area has 11.7 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 37% below the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $5.1M, 51% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, the Lawrence metro area would have about 89, against 59 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,520 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. The official count fell 4.8% from 2019 to 2023, against +7.2% for the U.S.
How fast is the Lawrence, KS metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Lawrence metro area at 120,920 people in 2025, up 1.8% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 50,406 households. The median household income in the Lawrence metro area is $69,746 a year, 14% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 17.4% 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. The Lawrence metro area scores 75 for grocery and convenience stores (high), #30 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 Lawrence 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 Lawrence metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Lawrence 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 Lawrence 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.