Groundwork

Groceries and convenience · County · Alabama

Grocery stores in Lee County, AL

How Lee County, AL compares with other counties and the U.S. for grocery stores: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 74 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #323 of 2,070 scored counties
#6 of 60 scored counties in Alabama

Listings
37
18 chain locations (49%)
Official establishments
21
−8.7% since 2019
Household spending a year
$402.1M
On groceries · $5,790 a household
Spending per listing
$10.9M
17% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
5.3
22% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
189,881
+8.6% since 2020

See the grocery stores around any address in Lee County

The site report maps the grocery 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 card

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 37 grocery stores in Lee County. Of those, 18 are chain locations, or 49%, against 37% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 5.3, 22% below the U.S. rate of 6.8.

At $5,790 per household (8% below the U.S. average), households in Lee County spend about $402.1M a year on groceries. That is about $10.9M of household spending for each store on map listings, 17% above the U.S. figure of $9.3M. That spending covers all groceries, which grocery stores share with other businesses in the trade.

Official counts show 21 businesses with payroll classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in Lee County in 2023, down 8.7% from 2019. That is one for every 3,306 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $250K has gone to businesses classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in Lee County.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Lee County grew 8.6%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for grocery stores in Lee County is 74 (upper middle), #323 of 2,070 scored counties and #6 of 60 scored counties in Alabama. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.

How Lee County compares

The same measures for Alabama and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all groceries by the grocery 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 stores in Lee County, AL compared with Alabama and the U.S.
MeasureLee CountyAlabamaU.S.
Listings per 10k households5.37.46.8
Spending per listing$10.9M$7.8M$9.3M
Households per official establishment3,3062,5542,053
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−8.7%+6.3%0.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025+8.6%+3.2%+3.1%
Spending per household on groceries$5,790$5,771$6,319
Median household income$65,824$63,999$80,734
Groundwork market score7438

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
23 → 21−8.7% over the period
Employees, 2023
1,433
Annual payroll, 2023
$38.8M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
3718 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
43The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
1
Amount
$250K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as supermarkets and grocery 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
189,881+8.6% since 2020
Households
69,436
Median age
36.7
Homes lived in by their owners
66%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
608 sq. mi.
People per square mile
298
Median household income
$65,824+27.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$90,204
Median home value
$262,200
Jobs located here
64,944
Daytime population
179,619Residents 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 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 card

Grocery stores across Alabama

Every Alabama market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Alabama for grocery stores, numbered among those based in Alabama, with Lee County marked.

Top counties in Alabama

Counties in Alabama ranked for grocery stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Autauga County, AL8862.6$23M+5.1%#66 of 2,070
2Limestone County, AL85235.6$11.2M+18.0%#113 of 2,070
3Madison County, AL80996.0$10.6M+11.0%#205 of 2,070
4Shelby County, AL79455.2$12.8M+6.5%#218 of 2,070
5St. Clair County, AL74164.6$13.1M+7.1%#314 of 2,070
6Lee County, AL74375.3$10.9M+8.6%#323 of 2,070
7Baldwin County, AL73575.8$10.6M+14.8%#342 of 2,070
8Elmore County, AL65247.3$8.2M+4.2%#550 of 2,070
9Talladega County, AL64144.2$13.1M+0.3%#557 of 2,070
10Tuscaloosa County, AL64566.2$9.3M+3.8%#575 of 2,070

Other business types in Lee County

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

Questions

How many grocery stores are in Lee County, AL?

Lee County has 37 grocery stores on map listings as of September 2026. 18 of them (49%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery stores and supermarkets. Official counts show 21 businesses with payroll classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in 2023, down 8.7% from 2019.

How much do households in Lee County, AL spend on groceries?

About $402.1M a year, or $5,790 per household. That is 8% below the U.S. average (an index of 92, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 37 grocery stores on map listings, it comes to $10.9M per store. The spending figure covers all groceries, not only grocery stores. It is estimated from the incomes of the 69,436 households in Lee County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Lee County, AL compare with the U.S. for grocery stores?

Lee County has 5.3 grocery stores per 10,000 households, 22% below the U.S. rate of 6.8. Spending per store is $10.9M, 17% above the U.S. figure of $9.3M. At the national ratio of grocery stores to household spending, Lee County would have about 43, against 37 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 3,306 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S. The official count fell 8.7% from 2019 to 2023, against 0.0% for the U.S.

How fast is Lee County, AL growing?

Population estimates put Lee County at 189,881 people in 2025, up 8.6% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 69,436 households. Median household income in Lee County is $65,824, 18% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 27.9%, 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 74 for grocery stores (upper middle), #323 of 2,070 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 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 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.