Groceries and convenience · Metro area · Louisiana
Grocery stores in the Lake Charles, LA metro area
How the Lake Charles, LA 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 20 out of 100: Low
Ranked #366 of 387 scored metro areas
#7 of 10 scored metro areas based in Louisiana
- Listings
- 68
- 32 chain locations (47%)
- Official establishments
- 42
- 0.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $538.1M
- On groceries · $5,846 a household
- Spending per listing
- $7.9M
- 15% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 7.4
- 9% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 244,655
- −3.8% since 2020
See the grocery stores around any address in the Lake Charles 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 Lake Charles 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
The Groundwork market score for grocery stores in the Lake Charles metro area is 20 (low), #366 of 387 scored metro areas and #7 of 10 scored metro areas based in Louisiana. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
Households in the Lake Charles metro area spend about $538.1M a year on groceries, or $5,846 per household, 7% below the U.S. average. That is about $7.9M of household spending for each store on map listings, 15% below the U.S. figure of $9.3M. The spending figure covers all groceries, not only grocery stores.
There are 68 grocery stores on map listings in the Lake Charles metro area as of September 2026. 32 of them (47%) are chain locations, against 37% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 7.4, 9% above the U.S. rate of 6.8.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in the Lake Charles metro area was 42 in 2023, unchanged from 2019. That is one for every 2,192 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S. Population estimates show the Lake Charles metro area declined 3.8% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How the Lake Charles metro area compares
The same measures for Louisiana 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 | Lake Charles metro area | Louisiana | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 7.4 | 8.7 | 6.8 |
| Spending per listing | $7.9M | $6.5M | $9.3M |
| Households per official establishment | 2,192 | 2,037 | 2,053 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | 0.0% | −0.7% | 0.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −3.8% | −0.7% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $5,846 | $5,704 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $66,700 | $60,756 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 20 | 11 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 420.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 2,315
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $54.1M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 6832 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 58The 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 Lake Charles 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 Lake Charles metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 244,655−3.8% since 2020
- Households
- 92,043
- Median age
- 38.0
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 74%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 3,006 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 81
- Median household income
- $66,700
- Average household income
- $91,252
- Median home value
- $207,800
- Jobs located here
- 97,089
- Daytime population
- 245,958Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Lake Charles 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 Lake Charles 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 Louisiana
Every Louisiana market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Louisiana for grocery stores, numbered among those based in Louisiana, with the Lake Charles metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Louisiana
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Slidell-Mandeville-Covington, LA | 63 | 64 | 6.1 | $10.3M | +5.3% | #100 of 387 |
| 2Hammond, LA | 39 | 34 | 6.5 | $8.5M | +5.8% | #268 of 387 |
| 3Shreveport-Bossier City, LA | 25 | 111 | 7.1 | $7.9M | −2.3% | #344 of 387 |
| 4Alexandria, LA | 25 | 49 | 8.7 | $6.4M | −2.5% | #346 of 387 |
| 5Baton Rouge, LA | 24 | 302 | 9.1 | $6.5M | +2.1% | #351 of 387 |
| 6Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux, LA | 23 | 57 | 7.1 | $8M | −3.5% | #354 of 387 |
| 7Lake Charles, LA | 20 | 68 | 7.4 | $7.9M | −3.8% | #366 of 387 |
| 8Lafayette, LA | 20 | 165 | 10.0 | $5.7M | +3.8% | #370 of 387 |
| 9Monroe, LA | 16 | 72 | 8.3 | $6.6M | −1.9% | #379 of 387 |
| 10New Orleans-Metairie, LA | 10 | 394 | 9.9 | $5.8M | −3.4% | #386 of 387 |
Other business types in the Lake Charles 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 stores16
- Grocery stores20
- Convenience stores14
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 Lake Charles, LA metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 68 grocery stores in the Lake Charles metro area. 32 of them (47%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery stores and supermarkets. Official counts show 42 businesses with payroll classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in 2023, unchanged from 2019.
How much do households in the Lake Charles, LA metro area spend on groceries?
About $538.1M a year, or $5,846 per household. That is 7% below the U.S. average (an index of 93, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 68 grocery stores on map listings, it comes to $7.9M 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 92,043 households in the Lake Charles metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Lake Charles, LA metro area compare with the U.S. for grocery stores?
The Lake Charles metro area has 7.4 grocery stores per 10,000 households, 9% above the U.S. rate of 6.8. Spending per store is $7.9M, 15% below the U.S. figure of $9.3M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery stores to household spending, the Lake Charles metro area would have about 58, against 68 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,192 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S. The official count held level from 2019 to 2023, against 0.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Lake Charles, LA metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Lake Charles metro area at 244,655 people in 2025, down 3.8% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 92,043 households. The median household income in the Lake Charles metro area is $66,700 a year, 17% 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. 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 Lake Charles metro area scores 20 for grocery stores (low), #366 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 Lake Charles 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 Lake Charles metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Lake Charles 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 Lake Charles 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.