Groceries and convenience · County · North Carolina
Grocery and convenience stores in Wake County, NC
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for grocery and convenience stores in Wake County, NC, set against other counties and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 82 out of 100: High
Ranked #145 of 2,402 scored counties
#3 of 96 scored counties in North Carolina
- Listings
- 703
- 366 chain locations (52%)
- Official establishments
- 309
- +15.7% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $3.1B
- On groceries · $6,797 a household
- Spending per listing
- $4.4M
- 31% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 15.3
- 18% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 1,257,235
- +11.2% since 2020
See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in Wake 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 Wake 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
For grocery and convenience stores, Wake County has a Groundwork market score of 82 (high): #145 of 2,402 scored counties and #3 of 96 scored counties in North Carolina. That puts it in the top 10% of counties for grocery and convenience stores.
As of September 2026, map listings count 703 grocery and convenience stores in Wake County. 366 of them (52%) are chain locations, against 42% across the U.S. That is 15.3 per 10,000 households, 18% below the U.S. rate of 18.7.
Household spending on groceries in Wake County comes to about $3.1B a year: $6,797 per household, 8% above the U.S. average. Spread across 703 grocery and convenience stores, that is $4.4M per store, 31% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M.
In 2023, official counts showed 309 businesses with payroll in Wake County classed as grocery and convenience stores, up 15.7% from 2019. That is one for every 1,489 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 7 SBA-backed loans worth $5.3M have gone to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in Wake County. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Wake County grew 11.2%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Wake 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 | Wake County | North Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 15.3 | 20.2 | 18.7 |
| Spending per listing | $4.4M | $3M | $3.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,489 | 1,469 | 1,293 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +15.7% | +8.2% | +7.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +11.2% | +7.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $6,797 | $6,016 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $105,768 | $72,388 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 82 | 49 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 267 → 309+15.7% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 13,750
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $370.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 237Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 703366 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 923The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 7
- Amount
- $5.3M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in Wake 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 Wake County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 1,257,235+11.2% since 2020
- Households
- 460,175
- Median age
- 38.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 64%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 835 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 1,412
- Median household income
- $105,768+31.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $139,587
- Median home value
- $461,300
- Jobs located here
- 687,531
- Daytime population
- 1,293,967Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Wake 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 Wake 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 Wake 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 |
Other business types in Wake County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores82
- Grocery stores70
- Convenience stores90
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 Wake County, NC?
Wake County has 703 grocery and convenience stores on map listings as of September 2026. 366 of them (52%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 309 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023, up 15.7% from 2019. Another 237 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in Wake County, NC spend on groceries?
About $3.1B a year, or $6,797 per household. That is 8% above the U.S. average (an index of 108, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 703 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $4.4M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 460,175 households in Wake County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Wake County, NC compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?
Wake County has 15.3 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 18% below the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $4.4M, 31% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the national ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, Wake County would have about 923, against 703 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,489 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. The official count rose 15.7% from 2019 to 2023, against +7.2% for the U.S.
How fast is Wake County, NC growing?
Population estimates put Wake County at 1,257,235 people in 2025, up 11.2% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 460,175 households. Median household income in Wake County is $105,768, 31% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 31.2%, 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. Wake County scores 82 for grocery and convenience stores (high), #145 of 2,402 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Wake 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 Wake County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Wake 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 Wake 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.