Groundwork

Groceries and convenience · County · Michigan

Grocery and convenience stores in Isabella County, MI

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for grocery and convenience stores in Isabella County, MI, set against other counties and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 37 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,706 of 2,402 scored counties
#48 of 75 scored counties in Michigan

Listings
54
19 chain locations (35%)
Official establishments
18
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$136.6M
On groceries · $5,482 a household
Spending per listing
$2.5M
25% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
21.7
16% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
64,691
+0.3% since 2020

See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in Isabella 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 Isabella County. 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

Map listings as of September 2026 show 54 grocery and convenience stores in Isabella County. Of those, 19 are chain locations, or 35%, against 42% across the U.S. That comes to 21.7 for every 10,000 households, 16% above the U.S. rate of 18.7.

Household spending on groceries in Isabella County comes to about $136.6M a year: $5,482 per household, 13% below the U.S. average. Spread across 54 grocery and convenience stores, that is $2.5M per store, 25% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in Isabella County was 18 in 2023. That is one for every 1,384 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Official counts also show 4 one-person businesses without payroll.

Population estimates put the population change in Isabella County from 2020 to 2025 at +0.3%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). Isabella County scores 37 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores, ranking #1,706 of 2,402 scored counties and #48 of 75 scored counties in Michigan.

How Isabella County compares

The same measures for Michigan 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 Isabella County, MI compared with Michigan and the U.S.
MeasureIsabella CountyMichiganU.S.
Listings per 10k households21.717.318.7
Spending per listing$2.5M$3.5M$3.4M
Households per official establishment1,3841,6131,293
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+0.2%+7.2%
Population growth, 2020–2025+0.3%+0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on groceries$5,482$6,009$6,319
Median household income$55,237$72,875$80,734
Groundwork market score3747

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
18 → 18
Employees, 2023
243
Annual payroll, 2023
$5.5M
One-person businesses, 2023
4Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
5419 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
40The 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 Isabella 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 Isabella County

Population, 2025 estimate
64,691+0.3% since 2020
Households
24,914
Median age
35.1
Homes lived in by their owners
62%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
573 sq. mi.
People per square mile
113
Median household income
$55,237+22.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$74,389
Median home value
$170,400
Jobs located here
26,182
Daytime population
67,374Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Isabella 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 Isabella County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Grocery and convenience stores across Michigan

Every Michigan market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Michigan for grocery and convenience stores, numbered among those based in Michigan, with Isabella County marked.

Top counties in Michigan

Counties in Michigan ranked for grocery and convenience stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Livingston County, MI87759.8$6.9M+1.7%#72 of 2,402
2Ottawa County, MI8316815.1$4.3M+3.9%#130 of 2,402
3Clinton County, MI784815.2$4.2M+1.6%#220 of 2,402
4Oakland County, MI7766312.5$5.3M+1.2%#236 of 2,402
5Monroe County, MI777912.5$4.9M+0.7%#238 of 2,402
6Macomb County, MI7443112.0$5.1M+0.7%#310 of 2,402
7Washtenaw County, MI7318012.0$5.4M−0.4%#341 of 2,402
8Kent County, MI7342016.4$3.8M+2.5%#357 of 2,402
9Eaton County, MI726714.7$4.1M+0.4%#386 of 2,402
10Barry County, MI704317.6$3.5M+2.2%#444 of 2,402
48Isabella County, MI375421.7$2.5M+0.3%#1,706 of 2,402

Other business types in Isabella County

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

Questions

How many grocery and convenience stores are in Isabella County, MI?

There are 54 grocery and convenience stores on map listings in Isabella County as of September 2026. 19 of them (35%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 18 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023. Another 4 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

How much do households in Isabella County, MI spend on groceries?

About $136.6M a year, or $5,482 per household. That is 13% below the U.S. average (an index of 87, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 54 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $2.5M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 24,914 households in Isabella County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Isabella County, MI compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?

Isabella County has 21.7 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 16% above the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $2.5M, 25% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the national ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, Isabella County would have about 40, against 54 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,384 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S.

How fast is Isabella County, MI growing?

Population estimates put Isabella County at 64,691 people in 2025, up 0.3% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 24,914 households. Median household income in Isabella County is $55,237, 32% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 22.4%, 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. Isabella County scores 37 for grocery and convenience stores (lower middle), #1,706 of 2,402 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Isabella 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 Isabella County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Isabella 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 Isabella 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.