Groceries and convenience · County · Washington
Grocery and convenience stores in Thurston County, WA
How Thurston County, WA 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 77 out of 100: High
Ranked #239 of 2,402 scored counties
#3 of 35 scored counties in Washington
- Listings
- 163
- 58 chain locations (36%)
- Official establishments
- 70
- +16.7% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $756.5M
- On groceries · $6,362 a household
- Spending per listing
- $4.6M
- 37% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 13.7
- 27% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 304,261
- +2.8% since 2020
See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in Thurston 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 Thurston 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
Thurston County scores 77 (high) on the Groundwork market score for grocery and convenience stores, ranking #239 of 2,402 scored counties and #3 of 35 scored counties in Washington. That puts it in the top 10% of counties for grocery and convenience stores.
Households in Thurston County spend about $756.5M a year on groceries, or $6,362 per household, in line with the U.S. average. Spread across 163 grocery and convenience stores, that is $4.6M per store, 37% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M.
Thurston County has 163 grocery and convenience stores on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 36% of them, against 42% across the U.S. That is 13.7 per 10,000 households, 27% below the U.S. rate of 18.7.
Official counts show 70 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in Thurston County in 2023, up 16.7% from 2019. That is one for every 1,699 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 10 SBA-backed loans worth $10.5M have gone to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in Thurston County. Population estimates show Thurston County grew 2.8% from 2020 to 2025, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Thurston County compares
The same measures for Washington 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 | Thurston County | Washington | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 13.7 | 16.9 | 18.7 |
| Spending per listing | $4.6M | $3.9M | $3.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,699 | 1,353 | 1,293 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +16.7% | +10.2% | +7.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.8% | +3.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $6,362 | $6,520 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $96,563 | $98,141 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 77 | 67 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 60 → 70+16.7% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 2,175
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $81.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 28Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 16358 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 223The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 10
- Amount
- $10.5M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in Thurston 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 Thurston County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 304,261+2.8% since 2020
- Households
- 118,899
- Median age
- 40.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 68%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 723 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 414
- Median household income
- $96,563+34.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $114,140
- Median home value
- $480,300
- Jobs located here
- 136,091
- Daytime population
- 311,425Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Thurston 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 Thurston 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 Washington
Every Washington market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Washington for grocery and convenience stores, numbered among those based in Washington, with Thurston County marked.
Top counties in Washington
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Clark County, WA | 81 | 250 | 12.8 | $5.1M | +5.3% | #158 of 2,402 |
| 2Kitsap County, WA | 79 | 138 | 12.7 | $5.2M | +2.7% | #192 of 2,402 |
| 3Thurston County, WA | 77 | 163 | 13.7 | $4.6M | +2.8% | #239 of 2,402 |
| 4Snohomish County, WA | 76 | 468 | 14.8 | $4.6M | +4.9% | #262 of 2,402 |
| 5King County, WA | 75 | 1,546 | 16.4 | $4.3M | +3.1% | #291 of 2,402 |
| 6Benton County, WA | 75 | 139 | 17.8 | $3.5M | +6.9% | #299 of 2,402 |
| 7Pierce County, WA | 73 | 448 | 12.8 | $5.1M | +2.5% | #342 of 2,402 |
| 8Spokane County, WA | 73 | 307 | 14.1 | $4.3M | +3.2% | #349 of 2,402 |
| 9Asotin County, WA | 71 | 11 | 11.6 | $5.1M | +1.0% | #404 of 2,402 |
| 10Douglas County, WA | 71 | 25 | 15.7 | $3.9M | +8.0% | #411 of 2,402 |
Other business types in Thurston County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores77
- Grocery stores67
- Convenience stores82
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 Thurston County, WA?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 163 grocery and convenience stores in Thurston County. 58 of them (36%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 70 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023, up 16.7% from 2019. Official counts list 28 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Thurston County, WA spend on groceries?
About $756.5M a year, or $6,362 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 163 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $4.6M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 118,899 households in Thurston County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Thurston County, WA compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?
Thurston County has 13.7 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 27% below the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $4.6M, 37% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, Thurston County would have about 223, against 163 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,699 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. The official count rose 16.7% from 2019 to 2023, against +7.2% for the U.S.
How fast is Thurston County, WA growing?
Population estimates put Thurston County at 304,261 people in 2025, up 2.8% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 118,899 households. The median household income in Thurston County is $96,563 a year, 20% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 34.1% 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. Thurston County scores 77 for grocery and convenience stores (high), #239 of 2,402 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Thurston 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 Thurston County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Thurston 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 Thurston 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.