Groceries and convenience · Metro area · Virginia
Grocery and convenience stores in the Richmond, VA metro area
How the Richmond, VA metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 51 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #194 of 387 scored metro areas
#1 of 9 scored metro areas based in Virginia
- Listings
- 1,032
- 508 chain locations (49%)
- Official establishments
- 504
- +10.1% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $3.4B
- On groceries · $6,374 a household
- Spending per listing
- $3.3M
- 3% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 19.3
- 3% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 1,389,338
- +5.5% since 2020
See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in the Richmond metro area
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 the Richmond metro area. 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
At $6,374 per household (in line with the U.S. average), households in the Richmond metro area spend about $3.4B a year on groceries. Spread across 1,032 grocery and convenience stores, that is $3.3M per store, 3% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M.
There are 1,032 grocery and convenience stores on map listings in the Richmond metro area as of September 2026. Of those, 508 are chain locations, or 49%, against 42% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 19.3, 3% above the U.S. rate of 18.7.
Official counts show 504 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in the Richmond metro area in 2023, up 10.1% from 2019. That is one for every 1,058 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Official counts also show 279 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 11 SBA-backed loans worth $4M have gone to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in the Richmond metro area.
Population estimates put the population change in the Richmond metro area from 2020 to 2025 at +5.5%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores in the Richmond metro area is 51 (upper middle), #194 of 387 scored metro areas and #1 of 9 scored metro areas based in Virginia.
How the Richmond metro area compares
The same measures for Virginia 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 | Richmond metro area | Virginia | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 19.3 | 19.1 | 18.7 |
| Spending per listing | $3.3M | $3.4M | $3.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,058 | 1,152 | 1,293 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +10.1% | +7.3% | +7.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +5.5% | +2.8% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $6,374 | $6,537 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $86,679 | $93,170 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 51 | 51 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 504+10.1% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 13,880
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $378.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 279Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 1,032508 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 1,004The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 11
- Amount
- $4M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in the Richmond metro area, 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 the Richmond metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 1,389,338+5.5% since 2020
- Households
- 533,430
- Median age
- 40.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 67%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 4,368 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 307
- Median household income
- $86,679+26.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $117,479
- Median home value
- $353,500
- Jobs located here
- 693,750
- Daytime population
- 1,389,666Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Richmond metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 the Richmond metro area. 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 Virginia
Every Virginia market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Virginia for grocery and convenience stores, numbered among those based in Virginia (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Richmond metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Virginia
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | 72 | 3,408 | 14.4 | $5M | +3.3% | #45 of 387 |
| 1Richmond, VA | 51 | 1,032 | 19.3 | $3.3M | +5.5% | #194 of 387 |
| 2Winchester, VA-WV | 50 | 135 | 24.3 | $2.6M | +6.5% | #204 of 387 |
| Kingsport-Bristol, TN-VA | 48 | 212 | 16.2 | $3.4M | +2.3% | #210 of 387 |
| 3Charlottesville, VA | 48 | 183 | 20.2 | $3.2M | +3.1% | #212 of 387 |
| 4Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC | 43 | 1,317 | 18.6 | $3.4M | +0.9% | #244 of 387 |
| 5Lynchburg, VA | 30 | 211 | 20.4 | $2.9M | +2.9% | #323 of 387 |
| 6Staunton-Stuarts Draft, VA | 30 | 117 | 22.4 | $2.6M | +3.2% | #324 of 387 |
| 7Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford, VA | 28 | 136 | 19.4 | $3M | −0.1% | #331 of 387 |
| 8Roanoke, VA | 25 | 269 | 20.5 | $2.9M | +0.4% | #343 of 387 |
Other business types in the Richmond metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores51
- Grocery stores56
- Convenience stores47
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 the Richmond, VA metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 1,032 grocery and convenience stores in the Richmond metro area. 508 of them (49%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 504 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023, up 10.1% from 2019. Another 279 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Richmond, VA metro area spend on groceries?
About $3.4B a year, or $6,374 per household. That is in line with the U.S. average (an index of 101, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 1,032 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $3.3M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 533,430 households in the Richmond metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Richmond, VA metro area compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?
The Richmond metro area has 19.3 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 3% above the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $3.3M, 3% below the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, the Richmond metro area would have about 1,004, against 1,032 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,058 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. The official count rose 10.1% from 2019 to 2023, against +7.2% for the U.S.
How fast is the Richmond, VA metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Richmond metro area at 1,389,338 people in 2025, up 5.5% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 533,430 households. The median household income in the Richmond metro area is $86,679 a year, 7% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 26.5% 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. The Richmond metro area scores 51 for grocery and convenience stores (upper middle), #194 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Richmond metro area. 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 the Richmond metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Richmond metro area?
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 the Richmond metro area. 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.