Groceries and convenience · County · Wisconsin
Grocery and convenience stores in Waukesha County, WI
The grocery and convenience stores in Waukesha County, WI, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 87 out of 100: High
Ranked #75 of 2,402 scored counties
#1 of 67 scored counties in Wisconsin
- Listings
- 233
- 120 chain locations (52%)
- Official establishments
- 57
- +5.6% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $1.1B
- On groceries · $6,785 a household
- Spending per listing
- $4.9M
- 45% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 13.8
- 26% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 417,210
- +2.4% since 2020
See the grocery and convenience stores around any address in Waukesha 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 Waukesha 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
For grocery and convenience stores, Waukesha County has a Groundwork market score of 87 (high): #75 of 2,402 scored counties and #1 of 67 scored counties in Wisconsin. That puts it in the top 10% of counties for grocery and convenience stores.
Household spending on groceries in Waukesha County comes to about $1.1B a year: $6,785 per household, 7% above the U.S. average. That is about $4.9M of household spending for each store on map listings, 45% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M.
Waukesha County has 233 grocery and convenience stores on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 120 are chain locations, or 52%, against 42% across the U.S. That is 13.8 per 10,000 households, 26% below the U.S. rate of 18.7.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in Waukesha County was 57 in 2023, up 5.6% from 2019. That is one for every 2,959 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $4.5M have gone to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in Waukesha County. Population estimates put the population change in Waukesha County from 2020 to 2025 at +2.4%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Waukesha County compares
The same measures for Wisconsin 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 | Waukesha County | Wisconsin | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 13.8 | 20.0 | 18.7 |
| Spending per listing | $4.9M | $3M | $3.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 2,959 | 2,181 | 1,293 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +5.6% | +4.0% | +7.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.4% | +1.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $6,785 | $6,105 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $106,076 | $77,485 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 87 | 52 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 54 → 57+5.6% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 4,335
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $120.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 65Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 233120 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 338The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 4
- Amount
- $4.5M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as grocery and convenience stores in Waukesha 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 Waukesha County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 417,210+2.4% since 2020
- Households
- 168,658
- Median age
- 44.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 76%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 550 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 749
- Median household income
- $106,076+21.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $137,605
- Median home value
- $398,200
- Jobs located here
- 265,439
- Daytime population
- 468,429Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Waukesha 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 Waukesha 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 Wisconsin
Every Wisconsin market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Wisconsin for grocery and convenience stores, numbered among those based in Wisconsin, with Waukesha County marked.
Top counties in Wisconsin
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Waukesha County, WI | 87 | 233 | 13.8 | $4.9M | +2.4% | #75 of 2,402 |
| 2Ozaukee County, WI | 86 | 46 | 12.0 | $5.5M | +3.0% | #87 of 2,402 |
| 3Calumet County, WI | 86 | 29 | 13.6 | $4.7M | +2.9% | #89 of 2,402 |
| 4Dane County, WI | 86 | 385 | 15.3 | $4.2M | +4.9% | #93 of 2,402 |
| 5Washington County, WI | 80 | 98 | 17.2 | $3.8M | +1.8% | #187 of 2,402 |
| 6Outagamie County, WI | 79 | 140 | 17.9 | $3.5M | +2.6% | #210 of 2,402 |
| 7St. Croix County, WI | 79 | 83 | 22.1 | $3M | +4.7% | #213 of 2,402 |
| 8Winnebago County, WI | 74 | 120 | 16.5 | $3.6M | +1.4% | #327 of 2,402 |
| 9Brown County, WI | 74 | 211 | 19.0 | $3.2M | +2.6% | #337 of 2,402 |
| 10La Crosse County, WI | 72 | 86 | 16.7 | $3.6M | +0.3% | #391 of 2,402 |
Other business types in Waukesha County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores87
- Grocery stores82
- Convenience stores89
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 Waukesha County, WI?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 233 grocery and convenience stores in Waukesha County. 120 of them (52%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery, convenience and specialty food stores. Official counts show 57 businesses with payroll classed as grocery and convenience stores in 2023, up 5.6% from 2019. Official counts list 65 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Waukesha County, WI spend on groceries?
About $1.1B a year, or $6,785 per household. That is 7% above the U.S. average (an index of 107, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 233 grocery and convenience stores on map listings, it comes to $4.9M per store. It is estimated from the incomes of the 168,658 households in Waukesha County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Waukesha County, WI compare with the U.S. for grocery and convenience stores?
Waukesha County has 13.8 grocery and convenience stores per 10,000 households, 26% below the U.S. rate of 18.7. Spending per store is $4.9M, 45% above the U.S. figure of $3.4M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery and convenience stores to household spending, Waukesha County would have about 338, against 233 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,959 households, against one for every 1,293 across the U.S. The official count rose 5.6% from 2019 to 2023, against +7.2% for the U.S.
How fast is Waukesha County, WI growing?
Population estimates put Waukesha County at 417,210 people in 2025, up 2.4% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 168,658 households. The median household income in Waukesha County is $106,076 a year, 31% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 21.5% 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. Waukesha County scores 87 for grocery and convenience stores (high), #75 of 2,402 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Waukesha 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 Waukesha County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Waukesha 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 Waukesha 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.