Groceries and convenience · Metro area · Illinois
Grocery stores in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area
How the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for grocery stores: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 45 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #230 of 387 scored metro areas
#4 of 8 scored metro areas based in Illinois
- Listings
- 2,240
- 753 chain locations (34%)
- Official establishments
- 2,073
- +5.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $23.6B
- On groceries · $6,464 a household
- Spending per listing
- $10.5M
- 13% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 6.1
- 10% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 9,434,123
- 0.0% since 2020
See the grocery stores around any address in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro 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
Household spending on groceries in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area comes to about $23.6B a year: $6,464 per household, 2% above the U.S. average. That is about $10.5M of household spending for each store on map listings, 13% above the U.S. figure of $9.3M. The spending figure covers all groceries, not only grocery stores.
There are 2,240 grocery stores on map listings in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area as of September 2026. Of those, 753 are chain locations, or 34%, against 37% across the U.S. That comes to 6.1 for every 10,000 households, 10% below the U.S. rate of 6.8.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area was 2,073 in 2023, up 5.0% from 2019. That is one for every 1,758 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 65 SBA-backed loans worth $62.2M have gone to businesses classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area held about level, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Groundwork market score for grocery stores in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area is 45 (lower middle), #230 of 387 scored metro areas and #4 of 8 scored metro areas based in Illinois.
How the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro 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.
| Measure | Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area | Illinois | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 6.1 | 6.1 | 6.8 |
| Spending per listing | $10.5M | $10.4M | $9.3M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,758 | 1,903 | 2,053 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +5.0% | +2.4% | 0.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | 0.0% | −0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $6,464 | $6,290 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $90,887 | $83,390 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 45 | 45 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 2,073+5.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 77,622
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $2.6B
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 2,240753 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 2,534The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 65
- Amount
- $62.2M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 9,434,1230.0% since 2020
- Households
- 3,643,783
- Median age
- 39.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 66%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.6
- Land area
- 6,923 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 1,354
- Median household income
- $90,887
- Average household income
- $125,950
- Median home value
- $323,000
- Jobs located here
- 4,599,202
- Daytime population
- 9,509,530Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro 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 Illinois
Every Illinois market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Illinois for grocery stores, numbered among those based in Illinois (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Illinois
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Springfield, IL | 58 | 40 | 4.4 | $13.6M | −1.2% | #134 of 387 |
| St. Louis, MO-IL | 53 | 680 | 5.9 | $10.6M | −0.2% | #181 of 387 |
| 2Bloomington, IL | 51 | 36 | 5.1 | $12M | +0.1% | #193 of 387 |
| 3Peoria, IL | 50 | 78 | 5.1 | $11.8M | −1.3% | #203 of 387 |
| Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL | 46 | 91 | 5.6 | $10.6M | −0.9% | #222 of 387 |
| 4Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN | 45 | 2,240 | 6.1 | $10.5M | 0.0% | #230 of 387 |
| 5Decatur, IL | 44 | 22 | 5.1 | $11.3M | −4.3% | #235 of 387 |
| 6Rockford, IL | 40 | 74 | 5.5 | $10.7M | −0.3% | #256 of 387 |
| Cape Girardeau, MO-IL | 40 | 22 | 5.7 | $10M | +1.7% | #257 of 387 |
| 7Champaign-Urbana, IL | 40 | 58 | 5.9 | $9.9M | +1.5% | #258 of 387 |
Other business types in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores62
- Grocery stores45
- Convenience stores72
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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 2,240 grocery stores in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area. 753 of them (34%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery stores and supermarkets. Official counts show 2,073 businesses with payroll classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in 2023, up 5.0% from 2019.
How much do households in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area spend on groceries?
About $23.6B a year, or $6,464 per household. That is 2% above the U.S. average (an index of 102, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 2,240 grocery stores on map listings, it comes to $10.5M 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 3,643,783 households in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area compare with the U.S. for grocery stores?
The Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area has 6.1 grocery stores per 10,000 households, 10% below the U.S. rate of 6.8. Spending per store is $10.5M, 13% above the U.S. figure of $9.3M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery stores to household spending, the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area would have about 2,534, against 2,240 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,758 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S. The official count rose 5.0% from 2019 to 2023, against 0.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area at 9,434,123 people in 2025, unchanged since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 3,643,783 households. The median household income in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area is $90,887 a year, 13% above 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. 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area scores 45 for grocery stores (lower middle), #230 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro 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.