Groceries and convenience · County · Florida
Grocery stores in Polk County, FL
How Polk County, FL 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 68 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #462 of 2,070 scored counties
#28 of 59 scored counties in Florida
- Listings
- 170
- 74 chain locations (44%)
- Official establishments
- 106
- +12.8% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $1.7B
- On groceries · $5,794 a household
- Spending per listing
- $9.9M
- 6% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 5.9
- 13% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 874,790
- +19.8% since 2020
See the grocery stores around any address in Polk 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 Polk 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
Household spending on groceries in Polk County comes to about $1.7B a year: $5,794 per household, 8% below the U.S. average. Spread across 170 grocery stores, that is $9.9M per store, 6% above the U.S. figure of $9.3M. The spending figure covers all groceries, not only grocery stores.
There are 170 grocery stores on map listings in Polk County as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 44% of them, against 37% across the U.S. That is 5.9 per 10,000 households, 13% below the U.S. rate of 6.8.
Official counts show 106 businesses with payroll classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in Polk County in 2023, up 12.8% from 2019. That is one for every 2,730 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 6 SBA-backed loans worth $12.8M have gone to businesses classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in Polk County.
Population estimates put the population change in Polk County from 2020 to 2025 at +19.8%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). For grocery stores, Polk County has a Groundwork market score of 68 (upper middle): #462 of 2,070 scored counties and #28 of 59 scored counties in Florida. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.
How Polk County compares
The same measures for Florida 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 | Polk County | Florida | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 5.9 | 6.5 | 6.8 |
| Spending per listing | $9.9M | $9.4M | $9.3M |
| Households per official establishment | 2,730 | 2,273 | 2,053 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +12.8% | +4.5% | 0.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +19.8% | +8.7% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $5,794 | $6,077 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $65,978 | $74,568 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 68 | 59 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 94 → 106+12.8% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 6,344
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $160.7M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 17074 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 180The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 6
- Amount
- $12.8M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in Polk 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 Polk County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 874,790+19.8% since 2020
- Households
- 289,425
- Median age
- 40.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 70%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 1,799 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 440
- Median household income
- $65,978+30.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $87,487
- Median home value
- $266,500
- Jobs located here
- 284,856
- Daytime population
- 728,367Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Polk 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 Polk 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 Florida
Every Florida market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Florida for grocery stores, numbered among those based in Florida, with Polk County marked.
Top counties in Florida
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1St. Johns County, FL | 91 | 56 | 4.8 | $14.3M | +25.0% | #48 of 2,070 |
| 2Santa Rosa County, FL | 90 | 32 | 4.4 | $14.5M | +11.7% | #53 of 2,070 |
| 3Nassau County, FL | 89 | 12 | 3.1 | $20.9M | +17.4% | #57 of 2,070 |
| 4Clay County, FL | 88 | 36 | 4.3 | $14.6M | +9.4% | #71 of 2,070 |
| 5Pasco County, FL | 86 | 92 | 3.9 | $15.4M | +19.1% | #100 of 2,070 |
| 6Sumter County, FL | 86 | 29 | 4.1 | $14.6M | +21.1% | #101 of 2,070 |
| 7Lake County, FL | 85 | 77 | 4.7 | $12.8M | +18.1% | #112 of 2,070 |
| 8Charlotte County, FL | 83 | 41 | 4.5 | $13M | +15.5% | #137 of 2,070 |
| 9Flagler County, FL | 82 | 26 | 4.9 | $12.4M | +21.0% | #157 of 2,070 |
| 10Brevard County, FL | 80 | 129 | 5.0 | $12.3M | +9.1% | #198 of 2,070 |
| 28Polk County, FL | 68 | 170 | 5.9 | $9.9M | +19.8% | #462 of 2,070 |
Other business types in Polk County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores67
- Grocery stores68
- Convenience stores64
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 Polk County, FL?
As of September 2026, map listings count 170 grocery stores in Polk County. 74 of them (44%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery stores and supermarkets. Official counts show 106 businesses with payroll classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in 2023, up 12.8% from 2019.
How much do households in Polk County, FL spend on groceries?
About $1.7B a year, or $5,794 per household. That is 8% below the U.S. average (an index of 92, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 170 grocery stores on map listings, it comes to $9.9M 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 289,425 households in Polk County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Polk County, FL compare with the U.S. for grocery stores?
Polk County has 5.9 grocery stores per 10,000 households, 13% below the U.S. rate of 6.8. Spending per store is $9.9M, 6% above the U.S. figure of $9.3M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery stores to household spending, Polk County would have about 180, against 170 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,730 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S. The official count rose 12.8% from 2019 to 2023, against 0.0% for the U.S.
How fast is Polk County, FL growing?
Population estimates put Polk County at 874,790 people in 2025, up 19.8% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 289,425 households. The median household income in Polk County is $65,978 a year, 18% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 30.4% 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. Polk County scores 68 for grocery stores (upper middle), #462 of 2,070 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Polk 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 Polk County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Polk 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 Polk 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.