Groceries and convenience · County · South Carolina
Grocery and convenience stores in Lee County, SC
The grocery and convenience stores in Lee County, SC, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 3 out of 100: Very low
Ranked #2,396 of 2,402 scored counties
#43 of 44 scored counties in South Carolina
- Listings
- 22
- 8 chain locations (36%)
- Official establishments
- 12
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $31.8M
- On groceries · $4,999 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.4M
- 57% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 34.6
- 85% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 15,730
- −5.0% since 2020
See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in Lee 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 Lee 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
The Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores in Lee County is 3 (very low), #2,396 of 2,402 scored counties and #43 of 44 scored counties in South Carolina. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
As of September 2026, map listings count 22 grocery and convenience stores in Lee County. Chain locations make up 36% of them, against 42% across the U.S. That is 34.6 per 10,000 households, 85% above the U.S. rate of 18.7.
Households in Lee County spend about $31.8M a year on groceries, or $4,999 per household, 21% below the U.S. average. That works out to $1.4M per store, 57% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in Lee County was 12 in 2023. That is one for every 529 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Population estimates put the population change in Lee County from 2020 to 2025 at −5.0%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How Lee 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 | Lee County | South Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 34.6 | 21.5 | 18.7 |
| Spending per listing | $1.4M | $2.7M | $3.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 529 | 1,330 | 1,293 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +20.2% | +7.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −5.0% | +8.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $4,999 | $5,910 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $44,760 | $69,324 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 3 | 40 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 6 → 12
- Employees, 2023
- 131
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $2.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 0Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 228 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 9The 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 Lee 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 Lee County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 15,730−5.0% since 2020
- Households
- 6,351
- Median age
- 43.3
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 70%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 410 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 39
- Median household income
- $44,760+38.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $56,408
- Median home value
- $104,600
- Jobs located here
- 3,773
- Daytime population
- 12,067Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Lee 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 Lee 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 Lee 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 |
| 43Lee County, SC | 3 | 22 | 34.6 | $1.4M | −5.0% | #2,396 of 2,402 |
Other business types in Lee County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores3
- Grocery stores10
- Convenience stores3
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 Lee County, SC?
Lee County has 22 grocery and convenience stores on map listings as of September 2026. 8 of them (36%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 12 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023.
How much do households in Lee County, SC spend on groceries?
About $31.8M a year, or $4,999 per household. That is 21% below the U.S. average (an index of 79, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 22 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $1.4M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 6,351 households in Lee County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Lee County, SC compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?
Lee County has 34.6 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 85% above the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $1.4M, 57% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the national ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, Lee County would have about 9, against 22 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 529 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S.
How fast is Lee County, SC growing?
Population estimates put Lee County at 15,730 people in 2025, down 5.0% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 6,351 households. Median household income in Lee County is $44,760, 45% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 38.3%, 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. Lee County scores 3 for grocery and convenience stores (very low), #2,396 of 2,402 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Lee 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 Lee County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Lee 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 Lee 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.