Groceries and convenience · Metro area · Pennsylvania
Grocery and convenience stores in the State College, PA metro area
The grocery and convenience stores in the State College, PA metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 67 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #75 of 387 scored metro areas
#4 of 16 scored metro areas based in Pennsylvania
- Listings
- 98
- 44 chain locations (45%)
- Official establishments
- 29
- +3.6% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $391M
- On groceries · $6,625 a household
- Spending per listing
- $4M
- 18% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 16.6
- 11% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 157,393
- −0.4% since 2020
See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in the State College 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 State College 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
Map listings as of September 2026 show 98 grocery and convenience stores in the State College metro area. Of those, 44 are chain locations, or 45%, against 42% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 16.6, 11% below the U.S. rate of 18.7.
At $6,625 per household (5% above the U.S. average), households in the State College metro area spend about $391M a year on groceries. That is about $4M of household spending for each store on map listings, 18% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M.
Official counts show 29 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in the State College metro area in 2023, up 3.6% from 2019. That is one for every 2,035 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Another 20 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the State College metro area declined 0.4%, against +3.1% for the U.S. For grocery and convenience stores, the State College metro area has a Groundwork market score of 67 (upper middle): #75 of 387 scored metro areas and #4 of 16 scored metro areas based in Pennsylvania. That puts it in the top quarter of metro areas.
How the State College 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 | State College metro area | Pennsylvania | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 16.6 | 19.0 | 18.7 |
| Spending per listing | $4M | $3.6M | $3.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 2,035 | 1,300 | 1,293 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +3.6% | +7.0% | +7.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −0.4% | +0.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $6,625 | $6,738 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $74,291 | $77,971 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 67 | 52 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 29+3.6% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,645
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $39M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 20Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 9844 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 115The 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 State College 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 State College metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 157,393−0.4% since 2020
- Households
- 59,013
- Median age
- 38.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 62%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 1,107 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 143
- Median household income
- $74,291+23.0% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $100,987
- Median home value
- $323,500
- Jobs located here
- 66,922
- Daytime population
- 170,905Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the State College 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 State College 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 State College 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 |
Other business types in the State College 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 stores67
- Grocery stores66
- Convenience stores66
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 State College, PA metro area?
There are 98 grocery and convenience stores on map listings in the State College metro area as of September 2026. 44 of them (45%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 29 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023, up 3.6% from 2019. Official counts list 20 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the State College, PA metro area spend on groceries?
About $391M a year, or $6,625 per household. That is 5% above the U.S. average (an index of 105, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 98 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $4M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 59,013 households in the State College metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the State College, PA metro area compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?
The State College metro area has 16.6 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 11% below the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $4M, 18% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the national ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, the State College metro area would have about 115, against 98 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,035 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 the State College, PA metro area growing?
Population estimates put the State College metro area at 157,393 people in 2025, down 0.4% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 59,013 households. Median household income in the State College metro area is $74,291, 8% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 23.0%, 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 State College metro area scores 67 for grocery and convenience stores (upper middle), #75 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 State College 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 State College metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the State College 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 State College 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.