Groundwork

Market rankings · New Jersey

Grocery and convenience stores in New Jersey

Every metro area, small-town market and county in New Jersey, ranked by the Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores, with competitor counts and household spending for each.

Listings
6,727
2,691 chain locations (40%)
Official establishments
3,872
+0.2% since 2019
Household spending a year
$25.9B
On groceries
Listings per 10k households
19.2
3% above the U.S.
Spending per listing
$3.9M
14% above the U.S.
Rank among states
#15 of 51
Market score 60 · Upper middle

A site report maps the grocery and convenience stores on map listings around any address in New Jersey by name and distance, and the spending within reach.

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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

There are 6,727 grocery and convenience stores on map listings in New Jersey as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 40% of them, against 42% across the U.S. That is 19.2 per 10,000 households, 3% above the U.S. rate of 18.7.

At $7,393 per household (17% above the U.S. average), households in New Jersey spend about $25.9B a year on groceries. That works out to $3.9M per store, 14% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in New Jersey was 3,872 in 2023, up 0.2% from 2019. That is one for every 906 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Across the U.S., the count rose 7.2% over the same years. Since fiscal 2022, 111 SBA-backed loans worth $51.9M have gone to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in New Jersey.

Among the 50 states and DC, New Jersey ranks #15 for grocery and convenience stores, with a Groundwork market score of 60 (upper middle). Of the 6 scored metro areas in or partly in New Jersey, the Trenton-Princeton metro area scores highest (61). Among 21 scored counties, Sussex County scores highest (76).

Every market in New Jersey for grocery and convenience stores

Download the ranking (CSV)

Numbered by Groundwork market score among the markets based in New Jersey, highest first; the U.S. rank compares each market with every other of its kind. A metro area that crosses a state line is listed in each state it reaches, and numbered only in the state its page is under. How the score works.

Metro areas

Metro areas reaching New Jersey, ranked for grocery and convenience stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Trenton-Princeton, NJ6126718.5$4M+3.3%#121 of 387
Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ6165119.2$3.6M+3.0%#122 of 387
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD554,55918.5$3.8M+1.4%#167 of 387
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ4914,60619.8$3.7M+0.6%#206 of 387
2Atlantic City-Hammonton, NJ3934922.6$3M+0.8%#271 of 387
3Vineland, NJ2915128.1$2.3M+2.2%#328 of 387

Counties

Counties in New Jersey, ranked for grocery and convenience stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Sussex County, NJ769215.9$4.8M+2.9%#260 of 2,402
2Somerset County, NJ7520115.4$5.3M+3.5%#284 of 2,402
3Morris County, NJ7332917.0$4.8M+3.2%#344 of 2,402
4Burlington County, NJ7330016.9$4.4M+4.3%#347 of 2,402
5Ocean County, NJ7342617.5$4M+5.6%#353 of 2,402
6Hunterdon County, NJ7110320.3$4M+2.3%#410 of 2,402
7Warren County, NJ718518.7$3.8M+3.2%#413 of 2,402
8Gloucester County, NJ6920518.2$4.1M+3.3%#461 of 2,402
9Bergen County, NJ6666418.7$4.2M+2.4%#552 of 2,402
10Mercer County, NJ6526718.5$4M+3.3%#583 of 2,402
11Middlesex County, NJ6458519.0$4M+2.6%#620 of 2,402
12Union County, NJ6441920.6$3.6M+5.0%#625 of 2,402
13Hudson County, NJ6351417.2$4.2M+1.8%#650 of 2,402
14Monmouth County, NJ6250820.2$3.9M+1.4%#700 of 2,402
15Essex County, NJ6261719.3$3.6M+4.2%#704 of 2,402
16Salem County, NJ614518.1$3.7M+2.3%#751 of 2,402
17Camden County, NJ6039019.3$3.6M+2.4%#791 of 2,402
18Atlantic County, NJ5224622.5$3M+1.6%#1,115 of 2,402
19Cape May County, NJ4710322.9$3.1M−1.7%#1,312 of 2,402
20Passaic County, NJ4647726.7$2.6M+1.6%#1,361 of 2,402
21Cumberland County, NJ4315128.1$2.3M+2.2%#1,486 of 2,402

Questions

How many grocery and convenience stores are in New Jersey?

As of September 2026, map listings count 6,727 grocery and convenience stores in New Jersey. 2,691 of them (40%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 3,872 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023, up 0.2% from 2019. Official counts also show 3,214 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in New Jersey spend on groceries?

About $25.9B a year, or $7,393 per household. That is 17% above the U.S. average (an index of 117, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 6,727 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $3.9M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 3,507,701 households in New Jersey and national spending patterns by income.

How does New Jersey compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?

New Jersey has 19.2 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 3% above the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $3.9M, 14% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, New Jersey would have about 7,654, against 6,727 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 906 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. The official count rose 0.2% from 2019 to 2023, against +7.2% for the U.S.

Which market in New Jersey has the highest market score for grocery and convenience stores?

Among 6 scored metro areas in or partly in New Jersey, the Trenton-Princeton metro area scores highest, at 61 (upper middle). Among 21 scored counties in New Jersey, Sussex County scores highest, at 76 (high). Scores compare each market with others of its kind across the U.S.

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. New Jersey scores 60 for grocery and convenience stores (upper middle), #15 of the 50 states and DC.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in New Jersey. 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.

Grocery and convenience stores in other states

All 51 states

Top markets for grocery and convenience stores across the U.S. · All business types in New Jersey

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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.