Groundwork

Groceries and convenience · County · South Dakota

Grocery and convenience stores in Pennington County, SD

The grocery and convenience stores in Pennington County, SD, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 69 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #485 of 2,402 scored counties
#6 of 17 scored counties in South Dakota

Listings
108
60 chain locations (56%)
Official establishments
17
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$278.7M
On groceries · $6,011 a household
Spending per listing
$2.6M
24% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
23.3
25% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
116,792
+6.6% since 2020

See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in Pennington 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 Pennington 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

As of September 2026, map listings count 108 grocery and convenience stores in Pennington County. 60 of them (56%) are chain locations, against 42% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 23.3, 25% above the U.S. rate of 18.7.

At $6,011 per household (5% below the U.S. average), households in Pennington County spend about $278.7M a year on groceries. Spread across 108 grocery and convenience stores, that is $2.6M per store, 24% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M.

In 2023, official counts showed 17 businesses with payroll in Pennington County classed as grocery and convenience stores. That is one for every 2,728 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Official counts list 13 one-person businesses without payroll.

Population estimates put the population change in Pennington County from 2020 to 2025 at +6.6%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores in Pennington County is 69 (upper middle), #485 of 2,402 scored counties and #6 of 17 scored counties in South Dakota. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.

How Pennington County compares

The same measures for South Dakota 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 Pennington County, SD compared with South Dakota and the U.S.
MeasurePennington CountySouth DakotaU.S.
Listings per 10k households23.324.718.7
Spending per listing$2.6M$2.4M$3.4M
Households per official establishment2,7281,5761,293
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+9.4%+7.2%
Population growth, 2020–2025+6.6%+5.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on groceries$6,011$6,012$6,319
Median household income$74,517$75,081$80,734
Groundwork market score6940

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
13 → 17
Employees, 2023
645
Annual payroll, 2023
$16.9M
One-person businesses, 2023
13Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
10860 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
82The 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 Pennington 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 Pennington County

Population, 2025 estimate
116,792+6.6% since 2020
Households
46,370
Median age
41.0
Homes lived in by their owners
69%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
2,777 sq. mi.
People per square mile
41
Median household income
$74,517+30.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$99,289
Median home value
$302,200
Jobs located here
59,416
Daytime population
120,445Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

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

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Grocery and convenience stores across South Dakota

Every South Dakota market ranked →

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

Top counties in South Dakota

Counties in South Dakota ranked for grocery and convenience stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Lincoln County, SD914415.8$4.2M+17.5%#45 of 2,402
2Yankton County, SD741414.4$4.1M+1.5%#317 of 2,402
3Meade County, SD742117.5$3.5M+2.7%#329 of 2,402
4Minnehaha County, SD7417520.6$3M+7.6%#338 of 2,402
5Lawrence County, SD732117.4$3.4M+14.0%#369 of 2,402
6Pennington County, SD6910823.3$2.6M+6.6%#485 of 2,402
7Brookings County, SD662921.0$2.8M+9.6%#573 of 2,402
8Davison County, SD621516.9$3.4M+0.6%#710 of 2,402
9Hughes County, SD591317.9$3.4M−0.9%#826 of 2,402
10Union County, SD592128.7$2.2M+3.3%#850 of 2,402

Other business types in Pennington County

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

Questions

How many grocery and convenience stores are in Pennington County, SD?

Pennington County has 108 grocery and convenience stores on map listings as of September 2026. 60 of them (56%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 17 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023. Official counts also show 13 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Pennington County, SD spend on groceries?

About $278.7M a year, or $6,011 per household. That is 5% below the U.S. average (an index of 95, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 108 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $2.6M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 46,370 households in Pennington County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Pennington County has 23.3 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 25% above the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $2.6M, 24% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the national ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, Pennington County would have about 82, against 108 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,728 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S.

How fast is Pennington County, SD growing?

Population estimates put Pennington County at 116,792 people in 2025, up 6.6% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 46,370 households. Median household income in Pennington County is $74,517, 8% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 30.6%, 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. Pennington County scores 69 for grocery and convenience stores (upper middle), #485 of 2,402 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Pennington 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 Pennington 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.