Groceries and convenience · Small-town market · Ohio
Grocery and convenience stores in the Salem, OH area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for grocery and convenience stores in the Salem, OH area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 34 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #422 of 538 scored small-town markets
#29 of 29 scored small-town markets based in Ohio
- Listings
- 95
- 32 chain locations (34%)
- Official establishments
- 31
- −6.1% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $229.6M
- On groceries · $5,539 a household
- Spending per listing
- $2.4M
- 29% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 22.9
- 22% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 99,377
- −2.2% since 2020
See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in the Salem 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 Salem 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 Salem area scores 34 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores, ranking #422 of 538 scored small-town markets and #29 of 29 scored small-town markets based in Ohio. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 95 grocery and convenience stores in the Salem area. Of those, 32 are chain locations, or 34%, against 42% across the U.S. That comes to 22.9 for every 10,000 households, 22% above the U.S. rate of 18.7.
At $5,539 per household (12% below the U.S. average), households in the Salem area spend about $229.6M a year on groceries. That is about $2.4M of household spending for each store on map listings, 29% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in the Salem area was 31 in 2023, down 6.1% from 2019. That is one for every 1,337 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $50K has gone to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in the Salem area. Population estimates show the Salem area declined 2.2% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How the Salem area compares
The same measures for Ohio 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 | Salem area | Ohio | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 22.9 | 17.1 | 18.7 |
| Spending per listing | $2.4M | $3.5M | $3.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,337 | 1,422 | 1,293 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −6.1% | +4.2% | +7.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −2.2% | +0.9% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $5,539 | $5,967 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $58,180 | $71,389 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 34 | 43 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 31−6.1% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 564
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $15M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 15Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 9532 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 68The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $50K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in the Salem 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 Salem area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 99,377−2.2% since 2020
- Households
- 41,459
- Median age
- 44.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 73%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 532 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 189
- Median household income
- $58,180+20.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $78,065
- Median home value
- $151,600
- Jobs located here
- 28,013
- Daytime population
- 85,744Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Salem 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 Salem 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 Ohio
Every Ohio market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Ohio for grocery and convenience stores, numbered among those based in Ohio, with the Salem area marked.
Top small-town markets in Ohio
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Mount Vernon, OH | 71 | 47 | 20.0 | $3M | +1.9% | #69 of 538 |
| 2Sidney, OH | 70 | 30 | 15.9 | $3.8M | −0.2% | #74 of 538 |
| 3Wapakoneta, OH | 69 | 37 | 19.5 | $3.1M | −1.2% | #89 of 538 |
| 4Van Wert, OH | 68 | 17 | 14.7 | $3.9M | +0.3% | #95 of 538 |
| 5Urbana, OH | 65 | 21 | 13.4 | $4.4M | +0.2% | #122 of 538 |
| 6Wilmington, OH | 64 | 32 | 19.1 | $3.1M | +0.6% | #130 of 538 |
| 7Defiance, OH | 64 | 30 | 19.6 | $3M | +0.1% | #131 of 538 |
| 8Bucyrus, OH | 63 | 29 | 16.1 | $3.5M | −0.3% | #140 of 538 |
| 9Greenville, OH | 63 | 38 | 17.8 | $3.2M | −0.7% | #144 of 538 |
| 10Chillicothe, OH | 62 | 55 | 18.5 | $3M | −0.8% | #156 of 538 |
| 29Salem, OH | 34 | 95 | 22.9 | $2.4M | −2.2% | #422 of 538 |
Other business types in the Salem area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores34
- Grocery stores33
- Convenience stores37
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 Salem, OH area?
There are 95 grocery and convenience stores on map listings in the Salem area as of September 2026. 32 of them (34%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 31 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023, down 6.1% from 2019. Official counts also show 15 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Salem, OH area spend on groceries?
About $229.6M a year, or $5,539 per household. That is 12% below the U.S. average (an index of 88, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 95 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $2.4M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 41,459 households in the Salem area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Salem, OH area compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?
The Salem area has 22.9 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 22% above the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $2.4M, 29% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the national ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, the Salem area would have about 68, against 95 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,337 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. The official count fell 6.1% from 2019 to 2023, against +7.2% for the U.S.
How fast is the Salem, OH area growing?
Population estimates put the Salem area at 99,377 people in 2025, down 2.2% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 41,459 households. Median household income in the Salem area is $58,180, 28% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 20.3%, 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 Salem area scores 34 for grocery and convenience stores (lower middle), #422 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 Salem 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 Salem area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Salem 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 Salem 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.