Groundwork

Groceries and convenience · Small-town market · Illinois

Grocery stores in the Canton, IL area

The grocery stores in the Canton, IL area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other small-town markets.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 57 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #181 of 506 scored small-town markets
#6 of 19 scored small-town markets based in Illinois

Listings
6
3 chain locations (50%)
Official establishments
6
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$77.7M
On groceries · $5,635 a household
Spending per listing
$13M
39% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
4.3
37% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
32,901
−2.0% since 2020

See the grocery stores around any address in the Canton 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 Canton area. 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 6 grocery stores in the Canton area. Of those, 3 are chain locations, or 50%, against 37% across the U.S. That comes to 4.3 for every 10,000 households, 37% below the U.S. rate of 6.8.

Household spending on groceries in the Canton area comes to about $77.7M a year: $5,635 per household, 11% below the U.S. average. That is about $13M of household spending for each store on map listings, 39% above the U.S. figure of $9.3M. That spending covers all groceries, which grocery stores share with other businesses in the trade.

In 2023, official counts showed 6 businesses with payroll in the Canton area classed as supermarkets and grocery stores. That is one for every 2,299 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S.

Population estimates show the Canton area declined 2.0% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Canton area scores 57 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for grocery stores, ranking #181 of 506 scored small-town markets and #6 of 19 scored small-town markets based in Illinois.

How the Canton area compares

The same measures for Illinois 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 Canton, IL area compared with Illinois and the U.S.
MeasureCanton areaIllinoisU.S.
Listings per 10k households4.36.16.8
Spending per listing$13M$10.4M$9.3M
Households per official establishment2,2991,9032,053
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+2.4%0.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025−2.0%−0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on groceries$5,635$6,290$6,319
Median household income$60,599$83,390$80,734
Groundwork market score5745

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
6
Employees, 2023
327
Annual payroll, 2023
$7.2M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
63 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
8The 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 the Canton 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 Canton area

Population, 2025 estimate
32,901−2.0% since 2020
Households
13,795
Median age
44.1
Homes lived in by their owners
77%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
866 sq. mi.
People per square mile
38
Median household income
$60,599
Average household income
$78,763
Median home value
$107,200
Jobs located here
8,322
Daytime population
27,980Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Canton 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 Canton area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Grocery stores across Illinois

Every Illinois market ranked →

The highest-scoring small-town markets in Illinois for grocery stores, numbered among those based in Illinois (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Canton area marked.

Top small-town markets in Illinois

Small-town markets in Illinois ranked for grocery stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Marion-Herrin, IL8093.1$18.6M+0.2%#24 of 506
2Rochelle, IL64157.2$8.5M−0.7%#113 of 506
3Charleston-Mattoon, IL63104.8$11.5M−1.0%#120 of 506
4Lincoln, IL6176.2$9.3M−2.5%#144 of 506
5Sterling, IL58114.8$12.1M−2.6%#172 of 506
6Canton, IL5764.3$13M−2.0%#181 of 506
Burlington, IA-IL5794.5$12.5M−2.5%#182 of 506
7Dixon, IL5686.0$9.9M−3.4%#200 of 506
8Effingham, IL56126.6$9.1M−0.9%#203 of 506
9Freeport, IL5594.6$12.2M−3.0%#217 of 506

Other business types in the Canton area

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

Questions

How many grocery stores are in the Canton, IL area?

The Canton area has 6 grocery stores on map listings as of September 2026. 3 of them (50%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery stores and supermarkets. Official counts show 6 businesses with payroll classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in 2023.

How much do households in the Canton, IL area spend on groceries?

About $77.7M a year, or $5,635 per household. That is 11% below the U.S. average (an index of 89, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 6 grocery stores on map listings, it comes to $13M per store. The spending figure covers all groceries, not only grocery stores. It is estimated from the incomes of the 13,795 households in the Canton area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Canton, IL area compare with the U.S. for grocery stores?

The Canton area has 4.3 grocery stores per 10,000 households, 37% below the U.S. rate of 6.8. Spending per store is $13M, 39% above the U.S. figure of $9.3M. At the national ratio of grocery stores to household spending, the Canton area would have about 8, against 6 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,299 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S.

How fast is the Canton, IL area growing?

Population estimates put the Canton area at 32,901 people in 2025, down 2.0% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 13,795 households. Median household income in the Canton area is $60,599, 25% below the U.S. median of $80,734.

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 Canton area scores 57 for grocery stores (upper middle), #181 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 Canton 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 Canton area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Canton 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 Canton 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.