Groundwork

Groceries and convenience · County · Illinois

Grocery stores in Mercer County, IL

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for grocery stores in Mercer County, IL, set against other counties and the U.S.

Groundwork market score

Not scored

The score needs at least 5 listings; this market has 3.

Listings
3
0 chain locations (0%)
Official establishments
n/a
Fewer than 3, or not published
Household spending a year
$39.5M
On groceries · $6,015 a household
Spending per listing
$13.2M
42% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
4.6
32% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
15,229
−2.6% since 2020

See the grocery stores around any address in Mercer 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 Mercer County. 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

Households in Mercer County spend about $39.5M a year on groceries, or $6,015 per household, 5% below the U.S. average. That is about $13.2M of household spending for each store on map listings, 42% above the U.S. figure of $9.3M. The spending figure covers all groceries, not only grocery stores.

Mercer County has 3 grocery stores on map listings as of September 2026. That comes to 4.6 for every 10,000 households, 32% below the U.S. rate of 6.8.

Official counts don’t publish a figure for supermarkets and grocery stores in Mercer County, since they leave out counts under 3.

Population estimates put the population change in Mercer County from 2020 to 2025 at −2.6%, against +3.1% for the U.S. With 3 grocery stores on map listings, Mercer County isn’t given a market score: the score needs at least 5, since one listing more or less would swing it.

How Mercer 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.

Grocery stores in Mercer County, IL compared with Illinois and the U.S.
MeasureMercer CountyIllinoisU.S.
Listings per 10k households4.66.16.8
Spending per listing$13.2M$10.4M$9.3M
Households per official establishmentn/a1,9032,053
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+2.4%0.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025−2.6%−0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on groceries$6,015$6,290$6,319
Median household income$74,182$83,390$80,734
Groundwork market scoreNot scored45

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
30 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
4The 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 Mercer 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 Mercer County

Population, 2025 estimate
15,229−2.6% since 2020
Households
6,565
Median age
43.9
Homes lived in by their owners
84%
Vehicles per household
2.2
Land area
561 sq. mi.
People per square mile
28
Median household income
$74,182+24.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$92,846
Median home value
$146,700
Jobs located here
3,052
Daytime population
11,354Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

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

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Grocery stores across Illinois

Every Illinois market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Illinois for grocery stores, numbered among those based in Illinois, with Mercer County marked.

Top counties in Illinois

Counties in Illinois ranked for grocery stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Kendall County, IL92153.3$20.8M+9.9%#34 of 2,070
2Grundy County, IL8394.4$14.8M+2.9%#133 of 2,070
3Monroe County, IL7953.6$18.5M−0.3%#208 of 2,070
4Boone County, IL7773.6$17.5M+0.4%#239 of 2,070
5McHenry County, IL76484.1$16.5M+2.5%#264 of 2,070
6Williamson County, IL7593.1$18.6M+0.2%#285 of 2,070
7Will County, IL741204.9$13.9M+2.2%#310 of 2,070
8Tazewell County, IL71254.6$13.2M−0.9%#369 of 2,070
9DeKalb County, IL68194.8$12.4M+1.5%#452 of 2,070
10Kane County, IL671045.6$12M+1.8%#479 of 2,070
Mercer County, ILNot scored34.6$13.2M−2.6%

Other business types in Mercer County

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

Questions

How many grocery stores are in Mercer County, IL?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 3 grocery stores in Mercer County. The listings count grocery stores and supermarkets. No official count is published for supermarkets and grocery stores in Mercer County: counts under 3 are left out.

How much do households in Mercer County, IL spend on groceries?

About $39.5M a year, or $6,015 per household. That is 5% below the U.S. average (an index of 95, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 3 grocery stores on map listings, it comes to $13.2M 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 6,565 households in Mercer County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Mercer County, IL compare with the U.S. for grocery stores?

Mercer County has 4.6 grocery stores per 10,000 households, 32% below the U.S. rate of 6.8. Spending per store is $13.2M, 42% above the U.S. figure of $9.3M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery stores to household spending, Mercer County would have about 4, against 3 on map listings.

How fast is Mercer County, IL growing?

Population estimates put Mercer County at 15,229 people in 2025, down 2.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 6,565 households. The median household income in Mercer County is $74,182 a year, 8% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 24.1% 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. Mercer County has no market score for grocery stores: the score needs at least 5 on map listings, and it has 3.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Mercer 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 Mercer County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Mercer 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 Mercer 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.