Groceries and convenience · County · Rhode Island
Grocery and convenience stores in Providence County, RI
How Providence 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 63 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #662 of 2,402 scored counties
#3 of 5 scored counties in Rhode Island
- Listings
- 497
- 166 chain locations (33%)
- Official establishments
- 234
- +12.5% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $1.7B
- On groceries · $6,702 a household
- Spending per listing
- $3.5M
- 3% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 19.2
- 3% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 678,179
- +2.8% since 2020
See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in Providence 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 Providence County. 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 Providence County comes to about $1.7B a year: $6,702 per household, 6% above the U.S. average. Spread across 497 grocery and convenience stores, that is $3.5M per store, 3% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M.
There are 497 grocery and convenience stores on map listings in Providence County as of September 2026. Of those, 166 are chain locations, or 33%, against 42% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 19.2, 3% above the U.S. rate of 18.7.
In 2023, official counts showed 234 businesses with payroll in Providence County classed as grocery and convenience stores, up 12.5% from 2019. That is one for every 1,108 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Another 162 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 18 SBA-backed loans worth $7.5M have gone to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in Providence County.
Population estimates show Providence County grew 2.8% from 2020 to 2025, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). Providence County scores 63 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores, ranking #662 of 2,402 scored counties and #3 of 5 scored counties in Rhode Island.
How Providence 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.
| Measure | Providence County | Rhode Island | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 19.2 | 18.5 | 18.7 |
| Spending per listing | $3.5M | $3.8M | $3.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,108 | 1,258 | 1,293 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +12.5% | +12.1% | +7.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.8% | +1.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $6,702 | $6,948 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $78,787 | $87,796 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 63 | 61 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 208 → 234+12.5% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 6,299
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $184.7M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 162Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 497166 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 513The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 18
- Amount
- $7.5M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in Providence 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 Providence County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 678,179+2.8% since 2020
- Households
- 259,210
- Median age
- 39.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 57%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.6
- Land area
- 410 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 1,624
- Median household income
- $78,787+33.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $103,369
- Median home value
- $373,600
- Jobs located here
- 293,972
- Daytime population
- 648,043Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Providence 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 Providence County. 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 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 Providence County marked.
Top counties in Rhode Island
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Kent County, RI | 82 | 103 | 14.1 | $5M | +1.8% | #144 of 2,402 |
| 2Bristol County, RI | 78 | 28 | 13.9 | $5.4M | −1.5% | #215 of 2,402 |
| 3Providence County, RI | 63 | 497 | 19.2 | $3.5M | +2.8% | #662 of 2,402 |
| 4Washington County, RI | 62 | 110 | 20.9 | $3.6M | 0.0% | #706 of 2,402 |
| 5Newport County, RI | 54 | 77 | 20.9 | $3.5M | −2.9% | #1,014 of 2,402 |
Other business types in Providence County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores63
- Grocery stores57
- Convenience stores68
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 Providence County, RI?
As of September 2026, map listings count 497 grocery and convenience stores in Providence County. 166 of them (33%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 234 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023, up 12.5% from 2019. Official counts list 162 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Providence County, RI spend on groceries?
About $1.7B a year, or $6,702 per household. That is 6% above the U.S. average (an index of 106, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 497 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $3.5M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 259,210 households in Providence County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Providence County, RI compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?
Providence County has 19.2 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 3% above the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $3.5M, 3% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, Providence County would have about 513, against 497 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,108 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. The official count rose 12.5% from 2019 to 2023, against +7.2% for the U.S.
How fast is Providence County, RI growing?
Population estimates put Providence County at 678,179 people in 2025, up 2.8% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 259,210 households. The median household income in Providence County is $78,787 a year, 2% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 33.6% 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. Providence County scores 63 for grocery and convenience stores (upper middle), #662 of 2,402 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Providence 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 Providence County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Providence 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 Providence 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.