Groceries and convenience · Metro area · Michigan
Grocery and convenience stores in the Traverse City, MI metro area
How the Traverse City, MI 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 31 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #319 of 387 scored metro areas
#13 of 15 scored metro areas based in Michigan
- Listings
- 195
- 66 chain locations (34%)
- Official establishments
- 51
- −5.6% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $404M
- On groceries · $6,175 a household
- Spending per listing
- $2.1M
- 39% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 29.8
- 59% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 156,972
- +2.2% since 2020
See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in the Traverse City 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 Traverse City 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
For grocery and convenience stores, the Traverse City metro area has a Groundwork market score of 31 (lower middle): #319 of 387 scored metro areas and #13 of 15 scored metro areas based in Michigan. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
Households in the Traverse City metro area spend about $404M a year on groceries, or $6,175 per household, 2% below the U.S. average. Spread across 195 grocery and convenience stores, that is $2.1M per store, 39% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M.
There are 195 grocery and convenience stores on map listings in the Traverse City metro area as of September 2026. 66 of them (34%) are chain locations, against 42% across the U.S. That is 29.8 per 10,000 households, 59% above the U.S. rate of 18.7.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in the Traverse City metro area was 51 in 2023, down 5.6% from 2019. That is one for every 1,283 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $548K have gone to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in the Traverse City metro area. Population estimates show the Traverse City metro area grew 2.2% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Traverse City metro area 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.
| Measure | Traverse City metro area | Michigan | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 29.8 | 17.3 | 18.7 |
| Spending per listing | $2.1M | $3.5M | $3.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,283 | 1,613 | 1,293 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −5.6% | +0.2% | +7.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.2% | +0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $6,175 | $6,009 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $80,889 | $72,875 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 31 | 47 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 51−5.6% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,551
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $41.9M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 16Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 19566 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 119The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $548K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in the Traverse City 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 Traverse City metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 156,972+2.2% since 2020
- Households
- 65,429
- Median age
- 46.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 82%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 1,691 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 92
- Median household income
- $80,889+32.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $106,351
- Median home value
- $324,300
- Jobs located here
- 61,451
- Daytime population
- 155,130Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Traverse City 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 Traverse City 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 Michigan
Every Michigan market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Michigan for grocery and convenience stores, numbered among those based in Michigan (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Traverse City metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Michigan
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Monroe, MI | 73 | 79 | 12.5 | $4.9M | +0.7% | #39 of 387 |
| 2Ann Arbor, MI | 71 | 180 | 12.0 | $5.4M | −0.4% | #51 of 387 |
| 3Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI | 66 | 729 | 16.6 | $3.8M | +2.8% | #86 of 387 |
| 4Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI | 62 | 2,492 | 14.1 | $4.3M | +0.1% | #112 of 387 |
| 5Midland, MI | 60 | 54 | 15.4 | $4M | +0.3% | #126 of 387 |
| 6Kalamazoo-Portage, MI | 58 | 155 | 14.5 | $4.2M | +0.8% | #137 of 387 |
| South Bend-Mishawaka, IN-MI | 56 | 186 | 14.5 | $4M | +0.1% | #155 of 387 |
| 7Lansing-East Lansing, MI | 56 | 302 | 15.6 | $3.8M | +1.4% | #156 of 387 |
| 8Jackson, MI | 45 | 105 | 16.8 | $3.5M | −0.4% | #232 of 387 |
| 9Muskegon-Norton Shores, MI | 41 | 117 | 17.3 | $3.3M | +1.8% | #257 of 387 |
| 13Traverse City, MI | 31 | 195 | 29.8 | $2.1M | +2.2% | #319 of 387 |
Other business types in the Traverse City 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 stores31
- Grocery stores26
- Convenience stores49
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 Traverse City, MI metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 195 grocery and convenience stores in the Traverse City metro area. 66 of them (34%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 51 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023, down 5.6% from 2019. Official counts also show 16 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Traverse City, MI metro area spend on groceries?
About $404M a year, or $6,175 per household. That is 2% below the U.S. average (an index of 98, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 195 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $2.1M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 65,429 households in the Traverse City metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Traverse City, MI metro area compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?
The Traverse City metro area has 29.8 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 59% above the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $2.1M, 39% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, the Traverse City metro area would have about 119, against 195 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,283 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. The official count fell 5.6% from 2019 to 2023, against +7.2% for the U.S.
How fast is the Traverse City, MI metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Traverse City metro area at 156,972 people in 2025, up 2.2% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 65,429 households. The median household income in the Traverse City metro area is $80,889 a year, in line with the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 32.6% 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 Traverse City metro area scores 31 for grocery and convenience stores (lower middle), #319 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 Traverse City 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 Traverse City metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Traverse City 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 Traverse City 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.