Groceries and convenience · County · North Carolina
Grocery and convenience stores in Gaston County, NC
How Gaston County, NC 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 66 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #567 of 2,402 scored counties
#21 of 96 scored counties in North Carolina
- Listings
- 170
- 74 chain locations (44%)
- Official establishments
- 57
- +3.6% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $545.8M
- On groceries · $5,832 a household
- Spending per listing
- $3.2M
- 5% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 18.2
- 3% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 246,558
- +7.8% since 2020
See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in Gaston 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 Gaston 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
Map listings as of September 2026 show 170 grocery and convenience stores in Gaston County. Of those, 74 are chain locations, or 44%, against 42% across the U.S. That is 18.2 per 10,000 households, 3% below the U.S. rate of 18.7.
Household spending on groceries in Gaston County comes to about $545.8M a year: $5,832 per household, 8% below the U.S. average. That works out to $3.2M per store, 5% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M.
In 2023, official counts showed 57 businesses with payroll in Gaston County classed as grocery and convenience stores, up 3.6% from 2019. That is one for every 1,642 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Another 44 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $125K has gone to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in Gaston County.
Population estimates show Gaston County grew 7.8% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores in Gaston County is 66 (upper middle), #567 of 2,402 scored counties and #21 of 96 scored counties in North Carolina. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.
How Gaston County compares
The same measures for North Carolina 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 | Gaston County | North Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 18.2 | 20.2 | 18.7 |
| Spending per listing | $3.2M | $3M | $3.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,642 | 1,469 | 1,293 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +3.6% | +8.2% | +7.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +7.8% | +7.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $5,832 | $6,016 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $67,478 | $72,388 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 66 | 49 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 55 → 57+3.6% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 2,156
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $51.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 44Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 17074 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 161The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $125K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in Gaston 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 Gaston County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 246,558+7.8% since 2020
- Households
- 93,576
- Median age
- 40.0
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 67%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 356 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 660
- Median household income
- $67,478+27.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $91,074
- Median home value
- $266,000
- Jobs located here
- 82,464
- Daytime population
- 195,265Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Gaston 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 Gaston 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 North Carolina
Every North Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in North Carolina for grocery and convenience stores, numbered among those based in North Carolina, with Gaston County marked.
Top counties in North Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Camden County, NC | 87 | 6 | 15.0 | $4.2M | +8.8% | #81 of 2,402 |
| 2Orange County, NC | 83 | 90 | 15.7 | $4.2M | +6.1% | #132 of 2,402 |
| 3Wake County, NC | 82 | 703 | 15.3 | $4.4M | +11.2% | #145 of 2,402 |
| 4Cabarrus County, NC | 82 | 135 | 16.0 | $4M | +9.9% | #149 of 2,402 |
| 5Union County, NC | 82 | 145 | 17.2 | $3.9M | +11.7% | #151 of 2,402 |
| 6Johnston County, NC | 81 | 147 | 17.2 | $3.6M | +17.9% | #172 of 2,402 |
| 7Lincoln County, NC | 80 | 67 | 18.2 | $3.4M | +13.2% | #191 of 2,402 |
| 8Durham County, NC | 79 | 226 | 15.9 | $4M | +7.7% | #205 of 2,402 |
| 9Davie County, NC | 78 | 30 | 17.4 | $3.5M | +6.9% | #230 of 2,402 |
| 10Hoke County, NC | 77 | 27 | 14.0 | $4.1M | +9.0% | #243 of 2,402 |
| 21Gaston County, NC | 66 | 170 | 18.2 | $3.2M | +7.8% | #567 of 2,402 |
Other business types in Gaston County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores66
- Grocery stores64
- Convenience stores63
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 Gaston County, NC?
There are 170 grocery and convenience stores on map listings in Gaston County as of September 2026. 74 of them (44%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 57 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023, up 3.6% from 2019. Official counts list 44 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Gaston County, NC spend on groceries?
About $545.8M a year, or $5,832 per household. That is 8% below the U.S. average (an index of 92, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 170 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $3.2M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 93,576 households in Gaston County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Gaston County, NC compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?
Gaston County has 18.2 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 3% below the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $3.2M, 5% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the national ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, Gaston County would have about 161, against 170 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,642 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. The official count rose 3.6% from 2019 to 2023, against +7.2% for the U.S.
How fast is Gaston County, NC growing?
Population estimates put Gaston County at 246,558 people in 2025, up 7.8% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 93,576 households. Median household income in Gaston County is $67,478, 16% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 27.7%, 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. Gaston County scores 66 for grocery and convenience stores (upper middle), #567 of 2,402 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Gaston 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 Gaston County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Gaston 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 Gaston 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.