Groceries and convenience · County · South Carolina
Grocery and convenience stores in Charleston County, SC
How Charleston County, SC 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 61 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #770 of 2,402 scored counties
#12 of 44 scored counties in South Carolina
- Listings
- 402
- 196 chain locations (49%)
- Official establishments
- 149
- +8.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $1.2B
- On groceries · $6,433 a household
- Spending per listing
- $2.9M
- 15% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 22.5
- 20% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 436,200
- +6.4% since 2020
See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in Charleston 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 Charleston 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
Households in Charleston County spend about $1.2B a year on groceries, or $6,433 per household, 2% above the U.S. average. Spread across 402 grocery and convenience stores, that is $2.9M per store, 15% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M.
Charleston County has 402 grocery and convenience stores on map listings as of September 2026. 196 of them (49%) are chain locations, against 42% across the U.S. That is 22.5 per 10,000 households, 20% above the U.S. rate of 18.7.
In 2023, official counts showed 149 businesses with payroll in Charleston County classed as grocery and convenience stores, up 8.0% from 2019. That is one for every 1,201 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Official counts list 91 one-person businesses without payroll.
Population estimates show Charleston County grew 6.4% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores in Charleston County is 61 (upper middle), #770 of 2,402 scored counties and #12 of 44 scored counties in South Carolina.
How Charleston County compares
The same measures for South Carolina 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 | Charleston County | South Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 22.5 | 21.5 | 18.7 |
| Spending per listing | $2.9M | $2.7M | $3.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,201 | 1,330 | 1,293 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +8.0% | +20.2% | +7.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +6.4% | +8.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $6,433 | $5,910 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $88,494 | $69,324 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 61 | 40 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 138 → 149+8.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 5,159
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $156.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 91Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 402196 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 340The 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 Charleston 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 Charleston County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 436,200+6.4% since 2020
- Households
- 178,975
- Median age
- 40.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 64%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 918 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 458
- Median household income
- $88,494+38.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $131,674
- Median home value
- $489,100
- Jobs located here
- 279,531
- Daytime population
- 508,326Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Charleston 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 Charleston 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 South Carolina
Every South Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in South Carolina for grocery and convenience stores, numbered among those based in South Carolina, with Charleston County marked.
Top counties in South Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Edgefield County, SC | 77 | 14 | 14.3 | $4.1M | +16.1% | #244 of 2,402 |
| 2Berkeley County, SC | 75 | 170 | 18.1 | $3.4M | +18.7% | #301 of 2,402 |
| 3York County, SC | 74 | 195 | 17.1 | $3.8M | +8.1% | #325 of 2,402 |
| 4Greenville County, SC | 73 | 380 | 17.2 | $3.6M | +10.6% | #362 of 2,402 |
| 5Dorchester County, SC | 73 | 119 | 18.8 | $3.3M | +10.1% | #370 of 2,402 |
| 6Beaufort County, SC | 73 | 179 | 21.7 | $3M | +8.9% | #373 of 2,402 |
| 7Aiken County, SC | 68 | 138 | 19.7 | $3M | +7.3% | #514 of 2,402 |
| 8Kershaw County, SC | 66 | 46 | 17.1 | $3.4M | +11.6% | #564 of 2,402 |
| 9Richland County, SC | 64 | 278 | 16.6 | $3.5M | +4.6% | #630 of 2,402 |
| 10Pickens County, SC | 62 | 96 | 18.3 | $3.1M | +5.7% | #718 of 2,402 |
| 12Charleston County, SC | 61 | 402 | 22.5 | $2.9M | +6.4% | #770 of 2,402 |
Other business types in Charleston County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores61
- 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 Charleston County, SC?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 402 grocery and convenience stores in Charleston County. 196 of them (49%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 149 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023, up 8.0% from 2019. Official counts also show 91 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Charleston County, SC spend on groceries?
About $1.2B a year, or $6,433 per household. That is 2% above the U.S. average (an index of 102, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 402 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $2.9M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 178,975 households in Charleston County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Charleston County, SC compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?
Charleston County has 22.5 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 20% above the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $2.9M, 15% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, Charleston County would have about 340, against 402 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,201 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. The official count rose 8.0% from 2019 to 2023, against +7.2% for the U.S.
How fast is Charleston County, SC growing?
Population estimates put Charleston County at 436,200 people in 2025, up 6.4% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 178,975 households. The median household income in Charleston County is $88,494 a year, 10% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 38.2% 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. Charleston County scores 61 for grocery and convenience stores (upper middle), #770 of 2,402 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Charleston 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 Charleston County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Charleston 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 Charleston 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.