Groundwork

Groceries and convenience · Small-town market · North Carolina

Grocery and convenience stores in the Roanoke Rapids, NC area

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for grocery and convenience stores in the Roanoke Rapids, NC area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 13 out of 100: Low

Ranked #521 of 538 scored small-town markets
#23 of 23 scored small-town markets based in North Carolina

Listings
75
34 chain locations (45%)
Official establishments
28
−3.4% since 2019
Household spending a year
$148.1M
On groceries · $5,246 a household
Spending per listing
$2M
42% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
26.6
42% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
63,025
−4.3% since 2020

See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in the Roanoke Rapids 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 Roanoke Rapids area. 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

The Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores in the Roanoke Rapids area is 13 (low), #521 of 538 scored small-town markets and #23 of 23 scored small-town markets based in North Carolina. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.

At $5,246 per household (17% below the U.S. average), households in the Roanoke Rapids area spend about $148.1M a year on groceries. That is about $2M of household spending for each store on map listings, 42% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M.

The Roanoke Rapids area has 75 grocery and convenience stores on map listings as of September 2026. 34 of them (45%) are chain locations, against 42% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 26.6, 42% above the U.S. rate of 18.7.

Official counts show 28 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in the Roanoke Rapids area in 2023, down 3.4% from 2019. That is one for every 1,009 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Population estimates put the population change in the Roanoke Rapids area from 2020 to 2025 at −4.3%, against +3.1% for the U.S.

How the Roanoke Rapids area 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.

Grocery and convenience stores in Roanoke Rapids, NC area compared with North Carolina and the U.S.
MeasureRoanoke Rapids areaNorth CarolinaU.S.
Listings per 10k households26.620.218.7
Spending per listing$2M$3M$3.4M
Households per official establishment1,0091,4691,293
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−3.4%+8.2%+7.2%
Population growth, 2020–2025−4.3%+7.2%+3.1%
Spending per household on groceries$5,246$6,016$6,319
Median household income$47,104$72,388$80,734
Groundwork market score1349

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
28−3.4% over the period
Employees, 2023
467
Annual payroll, 2023
$8.3M
One-person businesses, 2023
32Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
7534 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
44The 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 Roanoke Rapids 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 Roanoke Rapids area

Population, 2025 estimate
63,025−4.3% since 2020
Households
28,240
Median age
45.1
Homes lived in by their owners
66%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
1,261 sq. mi.
People per square mile
51
Median household income
$47,104+30.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$65,240
Median home value
$108,600
Jobs located here
19,026
Daytime population
57,924Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Roanoke Rapids 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 Roanoke Rapids area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Grocery and convenience stores across North Carolina

Every North Carolina market ranked →

The highest-scoring small-town markets in North Carolina for grocery and convenience stores, numbered among those based in North Carolina, with the Roanoke Rapids area marked.

Top small-town markets in North Carolina

Small-town markets in North Carolina ranked for grocery and convenience stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Anderson Creek, NC769418.9$3.1M+12.3%#36 of 538
2Brevard, NC702517.1$3.4M+2.9%#78 of 538
3Elizabeth City, NC683320.9$2.7M+4.5%#103 of 538
4Marion, NC633418.2$3M+1.5%#148 of 538
5New Bern, NC599918.9$3M+3.6%#186 of 538
6Waynesville, NC586122.5$2.5M+1.9%#203 of 538
7Albemarle, NC576224.6$2.3M+9.8%#220 of 538
8Morehead City, NC548927.8$2.2M+4.1%#253 of 538
9Mount Airy, NC467625.4$2.1M+1.3%#323 of 538
10Forest City, NC436223.3$2.3M+2.1%#355 of 538
23Roanoke Rapids, NC137526.6$2M−4.3%#521 of 538

Other business types in the Roanoke Rapids area

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

Questions

How many grocery and convenience stores are in the Roanoke Rapids, NC area?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 75 grocery and convenience stores in the Roanoke Rapids area. 34 of them (45%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 28 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023, down 3.4% from 2019. Official counts also show 32 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in the Roanoke Rapids, NC area spend on groceries?

About $148.1M a year, or $5,246 per household. That is 17% below the U.S. average (an index of 83, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 75 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $2M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 28,240 households in the Roanoke Rapids area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Roanoke Rapids, NC area compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?

The Roanoke Rapids area has 26.6 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 42% above the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $2M, 42% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, the Roanoke Rapids area would have about 44, against 75 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,009 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. The official count fell 3.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +7.2% for the U.S.

How fast is the Roanoke Rapids, NC area growing?

Population estimates put the Roanoke Rapids area at 63,025 people in 2025, down 4.3% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 28,240 households. The median household income in the Roanoke Rapids area is $47,104 a year, 42% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 30.4% from the 2015–2019 survey, 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 Roanoke Rapids area scores 13 for grocery and convenience stores (low), #521 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 Roanoke Rapids 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 Roanoke Rapids area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Roanoke Rapids 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 Roanoke Rapids 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.