Groceries and convenience · Small-town market · New Mexico
Grocery and convenience stores in the Ruidoso, NM area
The grocery and convenience stores in the Ruidoso, NM area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other small-town markets.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 32 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #446 of 538 scored small-town markets
#11 of 13 scored small-town markets based in New Mexico
- Listings
- 34
- 16 chain locations (47%)
- Official establishments
- 3
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $53.6M
- On groceries · $5,363 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.6M
- 53% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 34.0
- 82% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 19,844
- −2.3% since 2020
See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in the Ruidoso 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 Ruidoso 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
The Ruidoso area scores 32 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores, ranking #446 of 538 scored small-town markets and #11 of 13 scored small-town markets based in New Mexico. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.
As of September 2026, map listings count 34 grocery and convenience stores in the Ruidoso area. Chain locations make up 47% of them, against 42% across the U.S. That is 34.0 per 10,000 households, 82% above the U.S. rate of 18.7.
Households in the Ruidoso area spend about $53.6M a year on groceries, or $5,363 per household, 15% below the U.S. average. Spread across 34 grocery and convenience stores, that is $1.6M per store, 53% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M.
In 2023, official counts showed 3 businesses with payroll in the Ruidoso area classed as grocery and convenience stores. That is one for every 3,333 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Population estimates show the Ruidoso area declined 2.3% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How the Ruidoso area compares
The same measures for New Mexico 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 | Ruidoso area | New Mexico | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 34.0 | 16.2 | 18.7 |
| Spending per listing | $1.6M | $3.5M | $3.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 3,333 | 2,888 | 1,293 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +2.8% | +7.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −2.3% | +0.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $5,363 | $5,673 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $53,303 | $64,059 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 32 | 52 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 3
- Employees, 2023
- 121
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $3.7M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 0Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 3416 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 16The 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 the Ruidoso 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 Ruidoso area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 19,844−2.3% since 2020
- Households
- 10,000
- Median age
- 50.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 77%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 4,831 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 4
- Median household income
- $53,303+15.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $73,624
- Median home value
- $233,200
- Jobs located here
- 6,275
- Daytime population
- 19,834Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Ruidoso area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 Ruidoso 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 New Mexico
Every New Mexico market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in New Mexico for grocery and convenience stores, numbered among those based in New Mexico, with the Ruidoso area marked.
Top small-town markets in New Mexico
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Los Alamos, NM | 82 | 10 | 12.1 | $6.1M | 0.0% | #13 of 538 |
| 2Alamogordo, NM | 70 | 44 | 18.0 | $3M | +3.7% | #81 of 538 |
| 3Carlsbad-Artesia, NM | 70 | 51 | 21.6 | $2.7M | +0.3% | #83 of 538 |
| 4Española, NM | 67 | 18 | 11.5 | $4.8M | −1.0% | #105 of 538 |
| 5Silver City, NM | 59 | 14 | 12.4 | $4.2M | −3.4% | #183 of 538 |
| 6Taos, NM | 57 | 20 | 12.9 | $4.3M | +0.3% | #209 of 538 |
| 7Las Vegas, NM | 52 | 25 | 18.0 | $2.9M | −3.2% | #265 of 538 |
| 8Hobbs, NM | 44 | 82 | 33.2 | $1.7M | +0.2% | #349 of 538 |
| 9Clovis, NM | 37 | 68 | 26.1 | $2M | −3.3% | #407 of 538 |
| 10Roswell, NM | 36 | 57 | 24.0 | $2.2M | −2.7% | #412 of 538 |
| 11Ruidoso, NM | 32 | 34 | 34.0 | $1.6M | −2.3% | #446 of 538 |
Other business types in the Ruidoso area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores32
- Grocery stores42
- Convenience stores12
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 Ruidoso, NM area?
The Ruidoso area has 34 grocery and convenience stores on map listings as of September 2026. 16 of them (47%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 3 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023.
How much do households in the Ruidoso, NM area spend on groceries?
About $53.6M a year, or $5,363 per household. That is 15% below the U.S. average (an index of 85, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 34 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $1.6M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 10,000 households in the Ruidoso area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Ruidoso, NM area compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?
The Ruidoso area has 34.0 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 82% above the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $1.6M, 53% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the national ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, the Ruidoso area would have about 16, against 34 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 3,333 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S.
How fast is the Ruidoso, NM area growing?
Population estimates put the Ruidoso area at 19,844 people in 2025, down 2.3% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 10,000 households. Median household income in the Ruidoso area is $53,303, 34% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 15.3%, 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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 Ruidoso area scores 32 for grocery and convenience stores (lower middle), #446 of 538 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Ruidoso 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 Ruidoso area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Ruidoso 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 Ruidoso 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.