Groceries and convenience · County · Illinois
Grocery stores in Clay County, IL
The grocery stores in Clay County, IL, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.
Groundwork market score
Not scored
The score needs at least 5 listings; this market has 2.
- Listings
- 2
- 2 chain locations (100%)
- Official establishments
- n/a
- Fewer than 3, or not published
- Household spending a year
- $29.6M
- On groceries · $5,568 a household
- Spending per listing
- $14.8M
- Too few listings to compare
- Listings per 10k households
- 3.8
- Too few listings to compare
- Population, 2025
- 12,793
- −3.6% since 2020
See the grocery stores around any address in Clay 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 Clay 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
Households in Clay County spend about $29.6M a year on groceries, or $5,568 per household, 12% below the U.S. average. Spread across 2 grocery stores, that is $14.8M per store. The spending figure covers all groceries, not only grocery stores.
There are 2 grocery stores on map listings in Clay County as of September 2026. That is 3.8 per 10,000 households.
Official counts don’t publish a figure for supermarkets and grocery stores in Clay County, since they leave out counts under 3.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Clay County declined 3.6%, against +3.1% for the U.S. With 2 grocery stores on map listings, Clay County isn’t given a market score: the score needs at least 5, since one listing more or less would swing it.
How Clay County 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 | Clay County | Illinois | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 3.8 | 6.1 | 6.8 |
| Spending per listing | $14.8M | $10.4M | $9.3M |
| Households per official establishment | n/a | 1,903 | 2,053 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +2.4% | 0.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −3.6% | −0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $5,568 | $6,290 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $60,417 | $83,390 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | Not scored | 45 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- n/a
- Employees, 2023
- n/a
- Annual payroll, 2023
- n/a
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 22 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 3The 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 Clay 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 Clay County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 12,793−3.6% since 2020
- Households
- 5,311
- Median age
- 41.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 79%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 468 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 28
- Median household income
- $60,417+24.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $78,530
- Median home value
- $97,400
- Jobs located here
- 4,511
- Daytime population
- 12,012Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Clay 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 Clay 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 Illinois
Every Illinois market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Illinois for grocery stores, numbered among those based in Illinois, with Clay County marked.
Top counties in Illinois
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Kendall County, IL | 92 | 15 | 3.3 | $20.8M | +9.9% | #34 of 2,070 |
| 2Grundy County, IL | 83 | 9 | 4.4 | $14.8M | +2.9% | #133 of 2,070 |
| 3Monroe County, IL | 79 | 5 | 3.6 | $18.5M | −0.3% | #208 of 2,070 |
| 4Boone County, IL | 77 | 7 | 3.6 | $17.5M | +0.4% | #239 of 2,070 |
| 5McHenry County, IL | 76 | 48 | 4.1 | $16.5M | +2.5% | #264 of 2,070 |
| 6Williamson County, IL | 75 | 9 | 3.1 | $18.6M | +0.2% | #285 of 2,070 |
| 7Will County, IL | 74 | 120 | 4.9 | $13.9M | +2.2% | #310 of 2,070 |
| 8Tazewell County, IL | 71 | 25 | 4.6 | $13.2M | −0.9% | #369 of 2,070 |
| 9DeKalb County, IL | 68 | 19 | 4.8 | $12.4M | +1.5% | #452 of 2,070 |
| 10Kane County, IL | 67 | 104 | 5.6 | $12M | +1.8% | #479 of 2,070 |
| Clay County, IL | Not scored | 2 | 3.8 | $14.8M | −3.6% |
Other business types in Clay County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores53
- Grocery stores
- Convenience stores
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 Clay County, IL?
As of September 2026, map listings count 2 grocery stores in Clay County. The listings count grocery stores and supermarkets. No official count is published for supermarkets and grocery stores in Clay County: counts under 3 are left out.
How much do households in Clay County, IL spend on groceries?
About $29.6M a year, or $5,568 per household. That is 12% below the U.S. average (an index of 88, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 2 grocery stores on map listings, it comes to $14.8M 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 5,311 households in Clay County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Clay County, IL compare with the U.S. for grocery stores?
Clay County has 2 grocery stores on map listings, too few for a steady comparison with the U.S. rate. At the U.S. ratio of grocery stores to household spending, Clay County would have about 3, against 2 on map listings.
How fast is Clay County, IL growing?
Population estimates put Clay County at 12,793 people in 2025, down 3.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 5,311 households. The median household income in Clay County is $60,417 a year, 25% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 24.6% 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. Clay County has no market score for grocery stores: the score needs at least 5 on map listings, and it has 2.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Clay 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 Clay County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Clay 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 Clay 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.