Groceries and convenience · County · Arizona
Grocery stores in Santa Cruz County, AZ
The grocery stores in Santa Cruz County, AZ, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 28 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,716 of 2,070 scored counties
#12 of 14 scored counties in Arizona
- Listings
- 29
- 3 chain locations (10%)
- Official establishments
- 8
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $90.9M
- On groceries · $5,356 a household
- Spending per listing
- $3.1M
- 66% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 17.1
- 2.5 times the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 50,020
- +4.8% since 2020
See the grocery stores around any address in Santa Cruz 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 Santa Cruz 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 stores, Santa Cruz County has a Groundwork market score of 28 (lower middle): #1,716 of 2,070 scored counties and #12 of 14 scored counties in Arizona. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
Household spending on groceries in Santa Cruz County comes to about $90.9M a year: $5,356 per household, 15% below the U.S. average. Spread across 29 grocery stores, that is $3.1M per store, 66% below the U.S. figure of $9.3M. The spending figure covers all groceries, not only grocery stores.
Santa Cruz County has 29 grocery stores on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 10% of them, against 37% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 17.1, 2.5 times the U.S. rate of 6.8.
In 2023, official counts showed 8 businesses with payroll in Santa Cruz County classed as supermarkets and grocery stores. That is one for every 2,121 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S. Population estimates put the population change in Santa Cruz County from 2020 to 2025 at +4.8%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Santa Cruz County compares
The same measures for Arizona 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.
| Measure | Santa Cruz County | Arizona | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 17.1 | 4.1 | 6.8 |
| Spending per listing | $3.1M | $15M | $9.3M |
| Households per official establishment | 2,121 | 3,561 | 2,053 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +3.9% | 0.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +4.8% | +6.1% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $5,356 | $6,084 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $55,217 | $79,964 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 28 | 87 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 7 → 8
- Employees, 2023
- 272
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $9.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 293 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 10The 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 supermarkets and grocery stores in Santa Cruz 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 Santa Cruz County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 50,020+4.8% since 2020
- Households
- 16,966
- Median age
- 38.7
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 69%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 1,236 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 40
- Median household income
- $55,217+33.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $71,913
- Median home value
- $233,000
- Jobs located here
- 12,313
- Daytime population
- 42,829Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Santa Cruz 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 Santa Cruz County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardGrocery stores across Arizona
Every Arizona market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Arizona for grocery stores, numbered among those based in Arizona, with Santa Cruz County marked.
Top counties in Arizona
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Pinal County, AZ | 92 | 45 | 2.8 | $21.6M | +25.4% | #33 of 2,070 |
| 2Maricopa County, AZ | 86 | 697 | 4.0 | $15.7M | +5.5% | #99 of 2,070 |
| 3Yavapai County, AZ | 82 | 44 | 4.0 | $14.6M | +6.5% | #152 of 2,070 |
| 4Mohave County, AZ | 80 | 19 | 1.9 | $29.3M | +6.5% | #181 of 2,070 |
| 5Pima County, AZ | 78 | 155 | 3.5 | $16.5M | +2.8% | #226 of 2,070 |
| 6Graham County, AZ | 66 | 7 | 5.5 | $10.3M | +4.0% | #518 of 2,070 |
| 7Cochise County, AZ | 65 | 21 | 4.1 | $13.4M | +0.6% | #533 of 2,070 |
| 8Gila County, AZ | 65 | 10 | 4.2 | $13.1M | +0.9% | #534 of 2,070 |
| 9Coconino County, AZ | 64 | 27 | 4.9 | $12.1M | −0.6% | #562 of 2,070 |
| 10Yuma County, AZ | 59 | 51 | 6.4 | $8.6M | +9.2% | #727 of 2,070 |
| 12Santa Cruz County, AZ | 28 | 29 | 17.1 | $3.1M | +4.8% | #1,716 of 2,070 |
Other business types in Santa Cruz County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores33
- Grocery stores28
- Convenience stores61
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 stores are in Santa Cruz County, AZ?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 29 grocery stores in Santa Cruz County. 3 of them (10%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery stores and supermarkets. Official counts show 8 businesses with payroll classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in 2023.
How much do households in Santa Cruz County, AZ spend on groceries?
About $90.9M a year, or $5,356 per household. That is 15% below the U.S. average (an index of 85, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 29 grocery stores on map listings, it comes to $3.1M per store. That spending covers all groceries, which grocery stores share with other businesses in the trade. It is estimated from the incomes of the 16,966 households in Santa Cruz County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Santa Cruz County, AZ compare with the U.S. for grocery stores?
Santa Cruz County has 17.1 grocery stores per 10,000 households, 2.5 times the U.S. rate of 6.8. Spending per store is $3.1M, 66% below the U.S. figure of $9.3M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery stores to household spending, Santa Cruz County would have about 10, against 29 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,121 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S.
How fast is Santa Cruz County, AZ growing?
Population estimates put Santa Cruz County at 50,020 people in 2025, up 4.8% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 16,966 households. The median household income in Santa Cruz County is $55,217 a year, 32% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 33.8% 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. Santa Cruz County scores 28 for grocery stores (lower middle), #1,716 of 2,070 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Santa Cruz 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 Santa Cruz County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Santa Cruz 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 Santa Cruz 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.