Groundwork

Groceries and convenience · County · Maine

Grocery stores in Kennebec County, ME

How Kennebec County, ME compares with other counties and the U.S. for grocery stores: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 68 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #459 of 2,070 scored counties
#3 of 16 scored counties in Maine

Listings
34
14 chain locations (41%)
Official establishments
22
−4.3% since 2019
Household spending a year
$348.1M
On groceries · $6,410 a household
Spending per listing
$10.2M
10% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
6.3
7% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
129,067
+3.5% since 2020

See the grocery stores around any address in Kennebec 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 Kennebec County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

At $6,410 per household (in line with the U.S. average), households in Kennebec County spend about $348.1M a year on groceries. That works out to $10.2M per store, 10% above the U.S. figure of $9.3M. The spending figure covers all groceries, not only grocery stores.

Kennebec County has 34 grocery stores on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 41% of them, against 37% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 6.3, 7% below the U.S. rate of 6.8.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in Kennebec County was 22 in 2023, down 4.3% from 2019. That is one for every 2,469 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S.

Population estimates show Kennebec County grew 3.5% from 2020 to 2025, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for grocery stores in Kennebec County is 68 (upper middle), #459 of 2,070 scored counties and #3 of 16 scored counties in Maine. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.

How Kennebec County compares

The same measures for Maine 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 Kennebec County, ME compared with Maine and the U.S.
MeasureKennebec CountyMaineU.S.
Listings per 10k households6.38.96.8
Spending per listing$10.2M$7.4M$9.3M
Households per official establishment2,4691,6732,053
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−4.3%−3.0%0.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025+3.5%+3.7%+3.1%
Spending per household on groceries$6,410$6,619$6,319
Median household income$69,077$74,733$80,734
Groundwork market score6835

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
23 → 22−4.3% over the period
Employees, 2023
1,718
Annual payroll, 2023
$46M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
3414 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
38The 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 Kennebec 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 Kennebec County

Population, 2025 estimate
129,067+3.5% since 2020
Households
54,312
Median age
43.8
Homes lived in by their owners
74%
Vehicles per household
1.7
Land area
868 sq. mi.
People per square mile
146
Median household income
$69,077+24.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$88,742
Median home value
$238,200
Jobs located here
65,677
Daytime population
134,017Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

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

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Grocery stores across Maine

Every Maine market ranked →

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

Top counties in Maine

Counties in Maine ranked for grocery stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Sagadahoc County, ME75106.1$11.2M+3.4%#302 of 2,070
2York County, ME73566.1$11.3M+4.8%#341 of 2,070
3Kennebec County, ME68346.3$10.2M+3.5%#459 of 2,070
4Androscoggin County, ME59326.8$9.3M+4.8%#721 of 2,070
5Penobscot County, ME58507.7$8.3M+3.8%#760 of 2,070
6Cumberland County, ME571188.9$8M+4.5%#789 of 2,070
7Somerset County, ME51177.3$8.2M+2.3%#985 of 2,070
8Lincoln County, ME491810.8$6.1M+3.8%#1,068 of 2,070
9Oxford County, ME48249.9$6.2M+4.2%#1,099 of 2,070
10Waldo County, ME392112.0$5.4M+2.6%#1,408 of 2,070

Other business types in Kennebec County

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

Questions

How many grocery stores are in Kennebec County, ME?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 34 grocery stores in Kennebec County. 14 of them (41%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery stores and supermarkets. Official counts show 22 businesses with payroll classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in 2023, down 4.3% from 2019.

How much do households in Kennebec County, ME spend on groceries?

About $348.1M a year, or $6,410 per household. That is in line with the U.S. average (an index of 101, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 34 grocery stores on map listings, it comes to $10.2M 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 54,312 households in Kennebec County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Kennebec County, ME compare with the U.S. for grocery stores?

Kennebec County has 6.3 grocery stores per 10,000 households, 7% below the U.S. rate of 6.8. Spending per store is $10.2M, 10% above the U.S. figure of $9.3M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery stores to household spending, Kennebec County would have about 38, against 34 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,469 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S. The official count fell 4.3% from 2019 to 2023, against 0.0% for the U.S.

How fast is Kennebec County, ME growing?

Population estimates put Kennebec County at 129,067 people in 2025, up 3.5% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 54,312 households. The median household income in Kennebec County is $69,077 a year, 14% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 24.8% 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. Kennebec County scores 68 for grocery stores (upper middle), #459 of 2,070 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Kennebec 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 Kennebec 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.