Groceries and convenience · County · Maryland
Grocery and convenience stores in Carroll County, MD
The grocery and convenience stores in Carroll County, MD, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 74 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #313 of 2,402 scored counties
#5 of 24 scored counties in Maryland
- Listings
- 96
- 52 chain locations (54%)
- Official establishments
- 46
- +24.3% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $451.3M
- On groceries · $7,020 a household
- Spending per listing
- $4.7M
- 39% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 14.9
- 20% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 176,677
- +2.2% since 2020
See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in Carroll County
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 Carroll County. 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
Map listings as of September 2026 show 96 grocery and convenience stores in Carroll County. Chain locations make up 54% of them, against 42% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 14.9, 20% below the U.S. rate of 18.7.
At $7,020 per household (11% above the U.S. average), households in Carroll County spend about $451.3M a year on groceries. That is about $4.7M of household spending for each store on map listings, 39% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M.
Official counts show 46 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in Carroll County in 2023, up 24.3% from 2019. That is one for every 1,398 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Another 26 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $100K has gone to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in Carroll County.
Population estimates show Carroll County grew 2.2% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores in Carroll County is 74 (upper middle), #313 of 2,402 scored counties and #5 of 24 scored counties in Maryland. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.
How Carroll County compares
The same measures for Maryland 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 | Carroll County | Maryland | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 14.9 | 16.2 | 18.7 |
| Spending per listing | $4.7M | $4.2M | $3.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,398 | 1,129 | 1,293 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +24.3% | +6.6% | +7.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.2% | +1.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $7,020 | $6,737 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $118,211 | $103,678 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 74 | 61 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 37 → 46+24.3% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,836
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $49.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 26Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 9652 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 133The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $100K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in Carroll County, 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 Carroll County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 176,677+2.2% since 2020
- Households
- 64,285
- Median age
- 42.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 84%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 448 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 392
- Median household income
- $118,211+22.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $142,587
- Median home value
- $434,000
- Jobs located here
- 57,897
- Daytime population
- 147,678Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Carroll County?
These figures cover the whole county. 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 Carroll County. 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 Maryland
Every Maryland market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Maryland for grocery and convenience stores, numbered among those based in Maryland, with Carroll County marked.
Top counties in Maryland
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Frederick County, MD | 86 | 168 | 16.1 | $4.4M | +11.0% | #92 of 2,402 |
| 2Queen Anne’s County, MD | 83 | 42 | 21.1 | $3.3M | +8.8% | #141 of 2,402 |
| 3Howard County, MD | 77 | 159 | 13.1 | $5.8M | +1.9% | #235 of 2,402 |
| 4St. Mary’s County, MD | 77 | 78 | 18.4 | $3.8M | +2.4% | #249 of 2,402 |
| 5Carroll County, MD | 74 | 96 | 14.9 | $4.7M | +2.2% | #313 of 2,402 |
| 6Charles County, MD | 74 | 111 | 18.2 | $3.9M | +5.9% | #321 of 2,402 |
| 7Harford County, MD | 73 | 166 | 16.3 | $4.2M | +2.0% | #350 of 2,402 |
| 8Montgomery County, MD | 72 | 449 | 11.5 | $6.3M | +1.3% | #375 of 2,402 |
| 9Calvert County, MD | 72 | 56 | 16.7 | $4.4M | +1.7% | #382 of 2,402 |
| 10Anne Arundel County, MD | 71 | 313 | 13.9 | $5.1M | +1.7% | #403 of 2,402 |
Other business types in Carroll County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores74
- Grocery stores70
- Convenience stores79
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 Carroll County, MD?
There are 96 grocery and convenience stores on map listings in Carroll County as of September 2026. 52 of them (54%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 46 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023, up 24.3% from 2019. Official counts list 26 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Carroll County, MD spend on groceries?
About $451.3M a year, or $7,020 per household. That is 11% above the U.S. average (an index of 111, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 96 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $4.7M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 64,285 households in Carroll County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Carroll County, MD compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?
Carroll County has 14.9 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 20% below the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $4.7M, 39% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the national ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, Carroll County would have about 133, against 96 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,398 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. The official count rose 24.3% from 2019 to 2023, against +7.2% for the U.S.
How fast is Carroll County, MD growing?
Population estimates put Carroll County at 176,677 people in 2025, up 2.2% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 64,285 households. Median household income in Carroll County is $118,211, 46% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 22.2%, 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. Carroll County scores 74 for grocery and convenience stores (upper middle), #313 of 2,402 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Carroll County. 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 Carroll County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Carroll County?
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 Carroll County. 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.