Groundwork

Groceries and convenience · County · New York

Grocery and convenience stores in Ulster County, NY

How Ulster County, NY 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 57 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #897 of 2,402 scored counties
#24 of 61 scored counties in New York

Listings
153
67 chain locations (44%)
Official establishments
74
+15.6% since 2019
Household spending a year
$514.6M
On groceries · $6,928 a household
Spending per listing
$3.4M
In line with the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
20.6
10% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
183,330
+1.1% since 2020

See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in Ulster 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 Ulster 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 153 grocery and convenience stores in Ulster County. Chain locations make up 44% of them, against 42% across the U.S. That comes to 20.6 for every 10,000 households, 10% above the U.S. rate of 18.7.

Households in Ulster County spend about $514.6M a year on groceries, or $6,928 per household, 10% above the U.S. average. That works out to $3.4M per store, in line with the U.S. figure of $3.4M.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in Ulster County was 74 in 2023, up 15.6% from 2019. That is one for every 1,004 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Another 24 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $90K have gone to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in Ulster County.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Ulster County grew 1.1%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores in Ulster County is 57 (upper middle), #897 of 2,402 scored counties and #24 of 61 scored counties in New York.

How Ulster County compares

The same measures for New York 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 Ulster County, NY compared with New York and the U.S.
MeasureUlster CountyNew YorkU.S.
Listings per 10k households20.620.418.7
Spending per listing$3.4M$3.4M$3.4M
Households per official establishment1,0046121,293
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+15.6%+1.8%+7.2%
Population growth, 2020–2025+1.1%−0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on groceries$6,928$6,985$6,319
Median household income$86,271$85,974$80,734
Groundwork market score5739

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
64 → 74+15.6% over the period
Employees, 2023
2,225
Annual payroll, 2023
$67.1M
One-person businesses, 2023
24Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
15367 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
152The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
2
Amount
$90K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in Ulster 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 Ulster County

Population, 2025 estimate
183,330+1.1% since 2020
Households
74,278
Median age
45.2
Homes lived in by their owners
70%
Vehicles per household
1.7
Land area
1,124 sq. mi.
People per square mile
162
Median household income
$86,271+34.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$117,353
Median home value
$352,500
Jobs located here
57,240
Daytime population
161,256Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Ulster 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 Ulster 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 New York

Every New York market ranked →

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

Top counties in New York

Counties in New York ranked for grocery and convenience stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Ontario County, NY817615.7$4.3M+0.6%#163 of 2,402
2Saratoga County, NY8118418.1$4.1M+2.3%#168 of 2,402
3Wayne County, NY707218.7$3.5M+0.1%#443 of 2,402
4Putnam County, NY685214.6$5.3M+1.4%#486 of 2,402
5Rockland County, NY6818117.4$4.3M+5.9%#490 of 2,402
6Orange County, NY6525918.7$3.8M+4.2%#586 of 2,402
7Tioga County, NY653718.2$3.6M−1.9%#588 of 2,402
8Dutchess County, NY6418215.7$4.7M+1.5%#618 of 2,402
9Genesee County, NY644618.5$3.5M+0.2%#633 of 2,402
10Westchester County, NY6361716.5$4.7M+1.4%#649 of 2,402
24Ulster County, NY5715320.6$3.4M+1.1%#897 of 2,402

Other business types in Ulster County

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

Questions

How many grocery and convenience stores are in Ulster County, NY?

There are 153 grocery and convenience stores on map listings in Ulster County as of September 2026. 67 of them (44%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 74 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023, up 15.6% from 2019. Official counts list 24 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Ulster County, NY spend on groceries?

About $514.6M a year, or $6,928 per household. That is 10% above the U.S. average (an index of 110, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 153 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $3.4M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 74,278 households in Ulster County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Ulster County has 20.6 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 10% above the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $3.4M, in line with the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the national ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, Ulster County would have about 152, against 153 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,004 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. The official count rose 15.6% from 2019 to 2023, against +7.2% for the U.S.

How fast is Ulster County, NY growing?

Population estimates put Ulster County at 183,330 people in 2025, up 1.1% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 74,278 households. Median household income in Ulster County is $86,271, 7% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 34.2%, 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. Ulster County scores 57 for grocery and convenience stores (upper middle), #897 of 2,402 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Ulster 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 Ulster 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.