Groundwork

Groceries and convenience · County · Pennsylvania

Grocery and convenience stores in York County, PA

How York County, PA compares with other counties and the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 81 out of 100: High

Ranked #169 of 2,402 scored counties
#4 of 64 scored counties in Pennsylvania

Listings
324
160 chain locations (49%)
Official establishments
86
+7.5% since 2019
Household spending a year
$1.2B
On groceries · $6,843 a household
Spending per listing
$3.8M
13% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
17.8
5% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
473,197
+3.6% since 2020

See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in York 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 York County. 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

York County scores 81 (high) on the Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores, ranking #169 of 2,402 scored counties and #4 of 64 scored counties in Pennsylvania. That puts it in the top 10% of counties for grocery and convenience stores.

Household spending on groceries in York County comes to about $1.2B a year: $6,843 per household, 8% above the U.S. average. That works out to $3.8M per store, 13% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M.

York County has 324 grocery and convenience stores on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 160 are chain locations, or 49%, against 42% across the U.S. That comes to 17.8 for every 10,000 households, 5% below the U.S. rate of 18.7.

In 2023, official counts showed 86 businesses with payroll in York County classed as grocery and convenience stores, up 7.5% from 2019. That is one for every 2,111 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $350K have gone to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in York County. Population estimates put the population change in York County from 2020 to 2025 at +3.6%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How York County 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.

Grocery and convenience stores in York County, PA compared with Pennsylvania and the U.S.
MeasureYork CountyPennsylvaniaU.S.
Listings per 10k households17.819.018.7
Spending per listing$3.8M$3.6M$3.4M
Households per official establishment2,1111,3001,293
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+7.5%+7.0%+7.2%
Population growth, 2020–2025+3.6%+0.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on groceries$6,843$6,738$6,319
Median household income$84,829$77,971$80,734
Groundwork market score8152

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
80 → 86+7.5% over the period
Employees, 2023
4,740
Annual payroll, 2023
$99.5M
One-person businesses, 2023
87Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
324160 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
367The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
2
Amount
$350K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in York 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 York County

Population, 2025 estimate
473,197+3.6% since 2020
Households
181,583
Median age
42.2
Homes lived in by their owners
76%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
904 sq. mi.
People per square mile
512
Median household income
$84,829+27.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$104,143
Median home value
$248,600
Jobs located here
187,332
Daytime population
423,675Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in York 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 York County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Grocery and convenience stores across Pennsylvania

Every Pennsylvania market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Pennsylvania for grocery and convenience stores, numbered among those based in Pennsylvania, with York County marked.

Top counties in Pennsylvania

Counties in Pennsylvania ranked for grocery and convenience stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Chester County, PA8632716.0$4.9M+4.2%#88 of 2,402
2Cumberland County, PA8219318.1$3.9M+6.5%#152 of 2,402
3Adams County, PA827418.1$3.8M+3.6%#153 of 2,402
4York County, PA8132417.8$3.8M+3.6%#169 of 2,402
5Butler County, PA8015719.4$3.6M+3.2%#189 of 2,402
6Pike County, PA794819.8$3.4M+7.2%#212 of 2,402
7Washington County, PA7714816.7$4M+0.7%#245 of 2,402
8Franklin County, PA7711017.3$3.8M+3.0%#248 of 2,402
9Westmoreland County, PA7622814.7$4.5M−1.4%#263 of 2,402
10Fulton County, PA75711.0$5.7M−0.6%#283 of 2,402

Other business types in York County

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

Questions

How many grocery and convenience stores are in York County, PA?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 324 grocery and convenience stores in York County. 160 of them (49%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 86 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023, up 7.5% from 2019. Official counts also show 87 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in York County, PA spend on groceries?

About $1.2B a year, or $6,843 per household. That is 8% above the U.S. average (an index of 108, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 324 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $3.8M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 181,583 households in York County and national spending patterns by income.

How does York County, PA compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?

York County has 17.8 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 5% below the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $3.8M, 13% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, York County would have about 367, against 324 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,111 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. The official count rose 7.5% from 2019 to 2023, against +7.2% for the U.S.

How fast is York County, PA growing?

Population estimates put York County at 473,197 people in 2025, up 3.6% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 181,583 households. The median household income in York County is $84,829 a year, 5% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 27.6% 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. York County scores 81 for grocery and convenience stores (high), #169 of 2,402 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in York 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 York County

Screening a site or an acquisition in York 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 York 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.