Groceries and convenience · Metro area · Pennsylvania
Grocery and convenience stores in the Erie, PA metro area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for grocery and convenience stores in the Erie, PA metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 50 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #199 of 387 scored metro areas
#12 of 16 scored metro areas based in Pennsylvania
- Listings
- 203
- 104 chain locations (51%)
- Official establishments
- 65
- +12.1% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $694.6M
- On groceries · $6,281 a household
- Spending per listing
- $3.4M
- In line with the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 18.4
- 2% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 265,832
- −1.8% since 2020
See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in the Erie metro 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 Erie metro 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
Household spending on groceries in the Erie metro area comes to about $694.6M a year: $6,281 per household, in line with the U.S. average. Spread across 203 grocery and convenience stores, that is $3.4M per store, in line with the U.S. figure of $3.4M.
The Erie metro area has 203 grocery and convenience stores on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 104 are chain locations, or 51%, against 42% across the U.S. That comes to 18.4 for every 10,000 households, 2% below the U.S. rate of 18.7.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in the Erie metro area was 65 in 2023, up 12.1% from 2019. That is one for every 1,701 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Official counts list 49 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $50K has gone to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in the Erie metro area.
Population estimates put the population change in the Erie metro area from 2020 to 2025 at −1.8%, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Erie metro area scores 50 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores, ranking #199 of 387 scored metro areas and #12 of 16 scored metro areas based in Pennsylvania.
How the Erie metro area compares
The same measures for Pennsylvania 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 | Erie metro area | Pennsylvania | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 18.4 | 19.0 | 18.7 |
| Spending per listing | $3.4M | $3.6M | $3.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,701 | 1,300 | 1,293 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +12.1% | +7.0% | +7.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −1.8% | +0.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $6,281 | $6,738 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $63,354 | $77,971 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 50 | 52 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 65+12.1% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 2,292
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $54.7M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 49Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 203104 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 205The 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 Erie metro 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 Erie metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 265,832−1.8% since 2020
- Households
- 110,587
- Median age
- 41.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 68%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.6
- Land area
- 799 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 337
- Median household income
- $63,354+23.0% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $85,573
- Median home value
- $177,000
- Jobs located here
- 120,819
- Daytime population
- 270,477Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Erie metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 Erie metro 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 Pennsylvania
Every Pennsylvania market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Pennsylvania for grocery and convenience stores, numbered among those based in Pennsylvania, with the Erie metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Pennsylvania
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Gettysburg, PA | 77 | 74 | 18.1 | $3.8M | +3.6% | #25 of 387 |
| 2York-Hanover, PA | 76 | 324 | 17.8 | $3.8M | +3.6% | #28 of 387 |
| 3Chambersburg, PA | 71 | 110 | 17.3 | $3.8M | +3.0% | #54 of 387 |
| 4State College, PA | 67 | 98 | 16.6 | $4M | −0.4% | #75 of 387 |
| 5Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA | 67 | 462 | 18.8 | $3.6M | +4.2% | #77 of 387 |
| 6Pittsburgh, PA | 62 | 1,755 | 16.5 | $4M | −1.3% | #114 of 387 |
| 7Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ | 61 | 651 | 19.2 | $3.6M | +3.0% | #122 of 387 |
| 8Lancaster, PA | 58 | 428 | 20.1 | $3.5M | +1.9% | #143 of 387 |
| 9Reading, PA | 58 | 343 | 21.0 | $3.2M | +2.7% | #145 of 387 |
| 10Lebanon, PA | 57 | 101 | 17.8 | $3.7M | +2.2% | #150 of 387 |
| 12Erie, PA | 50 | 203 | 18.4 | $3.4M | −1.8% | #199 of 387 |
Other business types in the Erie metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores50
- Grocery stores43
- Convenience stores48
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 Erie, PA metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 203 grocery and convenience stores in the Erie metro area. 104 of them (51%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 65 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023, up 12.1% from 2019. Official counts also show 49 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Erie, PA metro area spend on groceries?
About $694.6M a year, or $6,281 per household. That is in line with the U.S. average (an index of 99, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 203 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $3.4M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 110,587 households in the Erie metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Erie, PA metro area compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?
The Erie metro area has 18.4 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 2% below 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 U.S. ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, the Erie metro area would have about 205, against 203 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,701 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. The official count rose 12.1% from 2019 to 2023, against +7.2% for the U.S.
How fast is the Erie, PA metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Erie metro area at 265,832 people in 2025, down 1.8% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 110,587 households. The median household income in the Erie metro area is $63,354 a year, 22% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 23.0% 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. 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 Erie metro area scores 50 for grocery and convenience stores (upper middle), #199 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Erie metro 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 Erie metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Erie metro 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 Erie metro 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.