Groceries and convenience · County · California
Grocery stores in Imperial County, CA
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for grocery stores in Imperial County, CA, set against other counties and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 22 out of 100: Low
Ranked #1,848 of 2,070 scored counties
#47 of 55 scored counties in California
- Listings
- 59
- 22 chain locations (37%)
- Official establishments
- 29
- +11.5% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $272.7M
- On groceries · $5,494 a household
- Spending per listing
- $4.6M
- 50% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 11.9
- 75% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 181,411
- +1.1% since 2020
See the grocery stores around any address in Imperial 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 Imperial 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, Imperial County has a Groundwork market score of 22 (low): #1,848 of 2,070 scored counties and #47 of 55 scored counties in California. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
Households in Imperial County spend about $272.7M a year on groceries, or $5,494 per household, 13% below the U.S. average. That works out to $4.6M per store, 50% below the U.S. figure of $9.3M. The spending figure covers all groceries, not only grocery stores.
Imperial County has 59 grocery stores on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 37% of them, against 37% across the U.S. That is 11.9 per 10,000 households, 75% above the U.S. rate of 6.8.
Official counts show 29 businesses with payroll classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in Imperial County in 2023, up 11.5% from 2019. That is one for every 1,712 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 3 SBA-backed loans worth $550K have gone to businesses classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in Imperial County. Population estimates show Imperial County grew 1.1% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Imperial County 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 | Imperial County | California | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 11.9 | 7.2 | 6.8 |
| Spending per listing | $4.6M | $9.1M | $9.3M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,712 | 1,684 | 2,053 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +11.5% | +4.0% | 0.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.1% | −0.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $5,494 | $6,548 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $57,681 | $99,122 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 22 | 34 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 26 → 29+11.5% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 831
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $28.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 5922 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 29The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 3
- Amount
- $550K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in Imperial 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 Imperial County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 181,411+1.1% since 2020
- Households
- 49,644
- Median age
- 33.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 57%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 4,176 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 43
- Median household income
- $57,681+21.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $79,363
- Median home value
- $309,600
- Jobs located here
- 63,081
- Daytime population
- 165,766Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Imperial 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 Imperial 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 California
Every California market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in California for grocery stores, numbered among those based in California, with Imperial County marked.
Top counties in California
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Placer County, CA | 80 | 74 | 4.7 | $14.6M | +8.9% | #184 of 2,070 |
| 2El Dorado County, CA | 69 | 38 | 5.0 | $13.5M | +0.6% | #427 of 2,070 |
| 3Solano County, CA | 66 | 77 | 4.9 | $13.4M | +0.6% | #498 of 2,070 |
| 4Riverside County, CA | 66 | 464 | 6.0 | $10.6M | +5.0% | #513 of 2,070 |
| 5Contra Costa County, CA | 63 | 242 | 5.8 | $12.1M | +0.3% | #588 of 2,070 |
| 6Santa Clara County, CA | 62 | 404 | 6.1 | $12.3M | −0.9% | #609 of 2,070 |
| 7Orange County, CA | 62 | 619 | 5.7 | $12M | −1.1% | #610 of 2,070 |
| 8San Diego County, CA | 61 | 657 | 5.6 | $11.9M | −0.6% | #643 of 2,070 |
| 9San Benito County, CA | 60 | 19 | 9.2 | $7.4M | +8.6% | #693 of 2,070 |
| 10Calaveras County, CA | 56 | 11 | 6.0 | $10.3M | +2.8% | #802 of 2,070 |
| 47Imperial County, CA | 22 | 59 | 11.9 | $4.6M | +1.1% | #1,848 of 2,070 |
Other business types in Imperial County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores26
- Grocery stores22
- Convenience stores41
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 Imperial County, CA?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 59 grocery stores in Imperial County. 22 of them (37%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery stores and supermarkets. Official counts show 29 businesses with payroll classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in 2023, up 11.5% from 2019.
How much do households in Imperial County, CA spend on groceries?
About $272.7M a year, or $5,494 per household. That is 13% below the U.S. average (an index of 87, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 59 grocery stores on map listings, it comes to $4.6M 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 49,644 households in Imperial County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Imperial County, CA compare with the U.S. for grocery stores?
Imperial County has 11.9 grocery stores per 10,000 households, 75% above the U.S. rate of 6.8. Spending per store is $4.6M, 50% below the U.S. figure of $9.3M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery stores to household spending, Imperial County would have about 29, against 59 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,712 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S. The official count rose 11.5% from 2019 to 2023, against 0.0% for the U.S.
How fast is Imperial County, CA growing?
Population estimates put Imperial County at 181,411 people in 2025, up 1.1% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 49,644 households. The median household income in Imperial County is $57,681 a year, 29% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 21.1% 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. Imperial County scores 22 for grocery stores (low), #1,848 of 2,070 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Imperial 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 Imperial County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Imperial 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 Imperial 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.