Groceries and convenience · Small-town market · California
Grocery stores in the Eureka-Arcata, CA area
How the Eureka-Arcata, CA area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for grocery stores: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 17 out of 100: Low
Ranked #483 of 506 scored small-town markets
#8 of 9 scored small-town markets based in California
- Listings
- 55
- 16 chain locations (29%)
- Official establishments
- 47
- +4.4% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $309.2M
- On groceries · $5,630 a household
- Spending per listing
- $5.6M
- 40% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 10.0
- 47% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 131,647
- −3.4% since 2020
See the grocery stores around any address in the Eureka-Arcata area
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 the Eureka-Arcata 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
The Eureka-Arcata area scores 17 (low) on the Groundwork market score for grocery stores, ranking #483 of 506 scored small-town markets and #8 of 9 scored small-town markets based in California. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.
Households in the Eureka-Arcata area spend about $309.2M a year on groceries, or $5,630 per household, 11% below the U.S. average. That is about $5.6M of household spending for each store on map listings, 40% below the U.S. figure of $9.3M. The spending figure covers all groceries, not only grocery stores.
There are 55 grocery stores on map listings in the Eureka-Arcata area as of September 2026. 16 of them (29%) are chain locations, against 37% across the U.S. That comes to 10.0 for every 10,000 households, 47% above the U.S. rate of 6.8.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in the Eureka-Arcata area was 47 in 2023, up 4.4% from 2019. That is one for every 1,169 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $793K have gone to businesses classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in the Eureka-Arcata area. Population estimates show the Eureka-Arcata area declined 3.4% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How the Eureka-Arcata area compares
The same measures for California 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 | Eureka-Arcata area | California | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 10.0 | 7.2 | 6.8 |
| Spending per listing | $5.6M | $9.1M | $9.3M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,169 | 1,684 | 2,053 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +4.4% | +4.0% | 0.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −3.4% | −0.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $5,630 | $6,548 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $61,160 | $99,122 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 17 | 34 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 47+4.4% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,623
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $58.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 5516 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 33The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $793K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in the Eureka-Arcata 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 Eureka-Arcata area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 131,647−3.4% since 2020
- Households
- 54,922
- Median age
- 40.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 57%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 3,568 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 38
- Median household income
- $61,160+27.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $86,194
- Median home value
- $446,900
- Jobs located here
- 48,178
- Daytime population
- 133,286Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Eureka-Arcata area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 the Eureka-Arcata area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardGrocery stores across California
Every California market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in California for grocery stores, numbered among those based in California (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Eureka-Arcata area marked.
Top small-town markets in California
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gardnerville Ranchos, NV-CA | 88 | 7 | 3.2 | $19.8M | +0.9% | #6 of 506 |
| 1Crescent City, CA | 53 | 5 | 5.3 | $10.9M | −4.4% | #238 of 506 |
| 2Truckee-Grass Valley, CA | 53 | 27 | 6.3 | $10.1M | −0.4% | #239 of 506 |
| 3Red Bluff, CA | 46 | 14 | 5.6 | $10M | −1.7% | #301 of 506 |
| 4Sonora, CA | 37 | 18 | 7.9 | $7.6M | −4.0% | #376 of 506 |
| 5Susanville, CA | 25 | 7 | 7.6 | $7.5M | −13.1% | #447 of 506 |
| 6Bishop, CA | 25 | 11 | 13.7 | $4.3M | −4.4% | #451 of 506 |
| 7Clearlake, CA | 22 | 28 | 10.4 | $5.4M | −0.6% | #460 of 506 |
| 8Eureka-Arcata, CA | 17 | 55 | 10.0 | $5.6M | −3.4% | #483 of 506 |
| 9Ukiah, CA | 16 | 44 | 12.6 | $4.6M | −3.5% | #487 of 506 |
Other business types in the Eureka-Arcata area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores36
- Grocery stores17
- Convenience stores67
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 the Eureka-Arcata, CA area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 55 grocery stores in the Eureka-Arcata area. 16 of them (29%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery stores and supermarkets. Official counts show 47 businesses with payroll classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in 2023, up 4.4% from 2019.
How much do households in the Eureka-Arcata, CA area spend on groceries?
About $309.2M a year, or $5,630 per household. That is 11% below the U.S. average (an index of 89, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 55 grocery stores on map listings, it comes to $5.6M 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 54,922 households in the Eureka-Arcata area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Eureka-Arcata, CA area compare with the U.S. for grocery stores?
The Eureka-Arcata area has 10.0 grocery stores per 10,000 households, 47% above the U.S. rate of 6.8. Spending per store is $5.6M, 40% below the U.S. figure of $9.3M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery stores to household spending, the Eureka-Arcata area would have about 33, against 55 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,169 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S. The official count rose 4.4% from 2019 to 2023, against 0.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Eureka-Arcata, CA area growing?
Population estimates put the Eureka-Arcata area at 131,647 people in 2025, down 3.4% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 54,922 households. The median household income in the Eureka-Arcata area is $61,160 a year, 24% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 27.3% 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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 Eureka-Arcata area scores 17 for grocery stores (low), #483 of 506 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Eureka-Arcata area. 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 the Eureka-Arcata area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Eureka-Arcata 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 Eureka-Arcata 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.