Groceries and convenience · County · Montana
Grocery and convenience stores in Lake County, MT
How Lake County, MT compares with other counties and the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 47 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,332 of 2,402 scored counties
#10 of 21 scored counties in Montana
- Listings
- 29
- 7 chain locations (24%)
- Official establishments
- 10
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $71M
- On groceries · $5,644 a household
- Spending per listing
- $2.4M
- 28% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 23.1
- 24% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 33,392
- +6.9% since 2020
See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in Lake 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 Lake 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
As of September 2026, map listings count 29 grocery and convenience stores in Lake County. 7 of them (24%) are chain locations, against 42% across the U.S. That comes to 23.1 for every 10,000 households, 24% above the U.S. rate of 18.7.
Households in Lake County spend about $71M a year on groceries, or $5,644 per household, 11% below the U.S. average. That is about $2.4M of household spending for each store on map listings, 28% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M.
In 2023, official counts showed 10 businesses with payroll in Lake County classed as grocery and convenience stores. That is one for every 1,258 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $920K has gone to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in Lake County.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Lake County grew 6.9%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores in Lake County is 47 (lower middle), #1,332 of 2,402 scored counties and #10 of 21 scored counties in Montana.
How Lake County compares
The same measures for Montana 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 | Lake County | Montana | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 23.1 | 21.5 | 18.7 |
| Spending per listing | $2.4M | $2.7M | $3.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,258 | 1,593 | 1,293 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +5.1% | +7.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +6.9% | +5.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $5,644 | $5,881 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $63,360 | $72,509 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 47 | 39 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 8 → 10
- Employees, 2023
- 286
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $7.9M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 0Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 297 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 21The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $920K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in Lake 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 Lake County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 33,392+6.9% since 2020
- Households
- 12,576
- Median age
- 44.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 75%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.3
- Land area
- 1,491 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 22
- Median household income
- $63,360+29.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $90,243
- Median home value
- $421,800
- Jobs located here
- 9,693
- Daytime population
- 30,848Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Lake 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 Lake 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 Montana
Every Montana market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Montana for grocery and convenience stores, numbered among those based in Montana, with Lake County marked.
Top counties in Montana
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Missoula County, MT | 78 | 84 | 15.9 | $3.7M | +4.4% | #228 of 2,402 |
| 2Yellowstone County, MT | 77 | 127 | 18.2 | $3.3M | +4.5% | #256 of 2,402 |
| 3Lewis and Clark County, MT | 76 | 48 | 15.4 | $3.9M | +5.8% | #268 of 2,402 |
| 4Jefferson County, MT | 74 | 11 | 22.0 | $2.9M | +9.8% | #339 of 2,402 |
| 5Gallatin County, MT | 70 | 104 | 20.3 | $3.2M | +7.7% | #449 of 2,402 |
| 6Flathead County, MT | 68 | 89 | 20.1 | $2.9M | +10.1% | #515 of 2,402 |
| 7Cascade County, MT | 65 | 59 | 16.6 | $3.5M | +0.7% | #592 of 2,402 |
| 8Ravalli County, MT | 61 | 33 | 17.7 | $3.3M | +9.4% | #761 of 2,402 |
| 9Silver Bow County, MT | 54 | 31 | 20.1 | $2.7M | +2.6% | #1,037 of 2,402 |
| 10Lake County, MT | 47 | 29 | 23.1 | $2.4M | +6.9% | #1,332 of 2,402 |
Other business types in Lake County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores47
- Grocery stores40
- Convenience stores61
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 Lake County, MT?
Lake County has 29 grocery and convenience stores on map listings as of September 2026. 7 of them (24%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 10 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023.
How much do households in Lake County, MT spend on groceries?
About $71M a year, or $5,644 per household. That is 11% below the U.S. average (an index of 89, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 29 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $2.4M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 12,576 households in Lake County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Lake County, MT compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?
Lake County has 23.1 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 24% above the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $2.4M, 28% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the national ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, Lake County would have about 21, against 29 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,258 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S.
How fast is Lake County, MT growing?
Population estimates put Lake County at 33,392 people in 2025, up 6.9% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 12,576 households. Median household income in Lake County is $63,360, 22% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 29.8%, 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. Lake County scores 47 for grocery and convenience stores (lower middle), #1,332 of 2,402 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Lake 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 Lake County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Lake 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 Lake 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.