Groundwork

Groceries and convenience · County · Rhode Island

Grocery and convenience stores in Kent County, RI

How Kent County, RI 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 82 out of 100: High

Ranked #144 of 2,402 scored counties
#1 of 5 scored counties in Rhode Island

Listings
103
51 chain locations (50%)
Official establishments
35
+12.9% since 2019
Household spending a year
$516.4M
On groceries · $7,089 a household
Spending per listing
$5M
48% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
14.1
25% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
173,495
+1.8% since 2020

See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in Kent 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 Kent County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

The Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores in Kent County is 82 (high), #144 of 2,402 scored counties and #1 of 5 scored counties in Rhode Island. That puts it in the top 10% of counties for grocery and convenience stores.

Households in Kent County spend about $516.4M a year on groceries, or $7,089 per household, 12% above the U.S. average. That is about $5M of household spending for each store on map listings, 48% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M.

There are 103 grocery and convenience stores on map listings in Kent County as of September 2026. Of those, 51 are chain locations, or 50%, against 42% across the U.S. That comes to 14.1 for every 10,000 households, 25% below the U.S. rate of 18.7.

In 2023, official counts showed 35 businesses with payroll in Kent County classed as grocery and convenience stores, up 12.9% from 2019. That is one for every 2,081 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Kent County grew 1.8%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Kent County compares

The same measures for Rhode Island 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 Kent County, RI compared with Rhode Island and the U.S.
MeasureKent CountyRhode IslandU.S.
Listings per 10k households14.118.518.7
Spending per listing$5M$3.8M$3.4M
Households per official establishment2,0811,2581,293
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+12.9%+12.1%+7.2%
Population growth, 2020–2025+1.8%+1.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on groceries$7,089$6,948$6,319
Median household income$94,345$87,796$80,734
Groundwork market score8261

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
31 → 35+12.9% over the period
Employees, 2023
1,872
Annual payroll, 2023
$53.3M
One-person businesses, 2023
25Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
10351 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
152The 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 Kent 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 Kent County

Population, 2025 estimate
173,495+1.8% since 2020
Households
72,839
Median age
44.4
Homes lived in by their owners
73%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
169 sq. mi.
People per square mile
1,017
Median household income
$94,345+28.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$119,389
Median home value
$366,100
Jobs located here
79,114
Daytime population
158,826Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Kent 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 Kent 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 Rhode Island

Every Rhode Island market ranked →

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

Top counties in Rhode Island

Counties in Rhode Island ranked for grocery and convenience stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Kent County, RI8210314.1$5M+1.8%#144 of 2,402
2Bristol County, RI782813.9$5.4M−1.5%#215 of 2,402
3Providence County, RI6349719.2$3.5M+2.8%#662 of 2,402
4Washington County, RI6211020.9$3.6M0.0%#706 of 2,402
5Newport County, RI547720.9$3.5M−2.9%#1,014 of 2,402

Other business types in Kent County

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

Questions

How many grocery and convenience stores are in Kent County, RI?

As of September 2026, map listings count 103 grocery and convenience stores in Kent County. 51 of them (50%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 35 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023, up 12.9% from 2019. Official counts list 25 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Kent County, RI spend on groceries?

About $516.4M a year, or $7,089 per household. That is 12% above the U.S. average (an index of 112, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 103 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $5M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 72,839 households in Kent County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Kent County has 14.1 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 25% below the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $5M, 48% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, Kent County would have about 152, against 103 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,081 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. The official count rose 12.9% from 2019 to 2023, against +7.2% for the U.S.

How fast is Kent County, RI growing?

Population estimates put Kent County at 173,495 people in 2025, up 1.8% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 72,839 households. The median household income in Kent County is $94,345 a year, 17% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 28.3% 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. Kent County scores 82 for grocery and convenience stores (high), #144 of 2,402 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Kent 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 Kent 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.