Groceries and convenience · Small-town market · North Carolina
Grocery stores in the Morehead City, NC area
How the Morehead City, NC area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for grocery stores: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 51 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #265 of 506 scored small-town markets
#7 of 23 scored small-town markets based in North Carolina
- Listings
- 30
- 14 chain locations (47%)
- Official establishments
- 15
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $191.6M
- On groceries · $5,993 a household
- Spending per listing
- $6.4M
- 31% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 9.4
- 38% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 70,469
- +4.1% since 2020
See the grocery stores around any address in the Morehead City 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 Morehead City 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
As of September 2026, map listings count 30 grocery stores in the Morehead City area. 14 of them (47%) are chain locations, against 37% across the U.S. That comes to 9.4 for every 10,000 households, 38% above the U.S. rate of 6.8.
Household spending on groceries in the Morehead City area comes to about $191.6M a year: $5,993 per household, 5% below the U.S. average. Spread across 30 grocery stores, that is $6.4M per store, 31% below the U.S. figure of $9.3M. That spending covers all groceries, which grocery stores share with other businesses in the trade.
Official counts show 15 businesses with payroll classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in the Morehead City area in 2023. That is one for every 2,132 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S.
Population estimates put the population change in the Morehead City area from 2020 to 2025 at +4.1%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). For grocery stores, the Morehead City area has a Groundwork market score of 51 (upper middle): #265 of 506 scored small-town markets and #7 of 23 scored small-town markets based in North Carolina.
How the Morehead City area compares
The same measures for North Carolina 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 | Morehead City area | North Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 9.4 | 7.4 | 6.8 |
| Spending per listing | $6.4M | $8.1M | $9.3M |
| Households per official establishment | 2,132 | 2,134 | 2,053 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +3.5% | 0.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +4.1% | +7.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $5,993 | $6,016 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $72,322 | $72,388 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 51 | 43 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 15
- Employees, 2023
- 937
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $25.1M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 3014 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 21The 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 Morehead City 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 Morehead City area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 70,469+4.1% since 2020
- Households
- 31,977
- Median age
- 49.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 75%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 508 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 136
- Median household income
- $72,322+26.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $99,351
- Median home value
- $333,300
- Jobs located here
- 23,748
- Daytime population
- 65,592Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Morehead City area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 Morehead City 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 North Carolina
Every North Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in North Carolina for grocery stores, numbered among those based in North Carolina, with the Morehead City area marked.
Top small-town markets in North Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Anderson Creek, NC | 67 | 41 | 8.2 | $7.1M | +12.3% | #97 of 506 |
| 2Marion, NC | 58 | 12 | 6.4 | $8.6M | +1.5% | #175 of 506 |
| 3Brevard, NC | 56 | 10 | 6.9 | $8.5M | +2.9% | #207 of 506 |
| 4Forest City, NC | 55 | 18 | 6.8 | $8M | +2.1% | #220 of 506 |
| 5Waynesville, NC | 53 | 22 | 8.1 | $7M | +1.9% | #245 of 506 |
| 6Sanford, NC | 51 | 19 | 7.6 | $7.6M | +10.8% | #262 of 506 |
| 7Morehead City, NC | 51 | 30 | 9.4 | $6.4M | +4.1% | #265 of 506 |
| 8New Bern, NC | 49 | 38 | 7.2 | $7.9M | +3.6% | #274 of 506 |
| 9Elizabeth City, NC | 49 | 14 | 8.9 | $6.5M | +4.5% | #278 of 506 |
| 10Shelby-Kings Mountain, NC | 44 | 32 | 8.2 | $6.7M | +3.4% | #324 of 506 |
Other business types in the Morehead City area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores54
- Grocery stores51
- Convenience stores66
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 Morehead City, NC area?
The Morehead City area has 30 grocery stores on map listings as of September 2026. 14 of them (47%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery stores and supermarkets. Official counts show 15 businesses with payroll classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in 2023.
How much do households in the Morehead City, NC area spend on groceries?
About $191.6M a year, or $5,993 per household. That is 5% below the U.S. average (an index of 95, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 30 grocery stores on map listings, it comes to $6.4M per store. The spending figure covers all groceries, not only grocery stores. It is estimated from the incomes of the 31,977 households in the Morehead City area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Morehead City, NC area compare with the U.S. for grocery stores?
The Morehead City area has 9.4 grocery stores per 10,000 households, 38% above the U.S. rate of 6.8. Spending per store is $6.4M, 31% below the U.S. figure of $9.3M. At the national ratio of grocery stores to household spending, the Morehead City area would have about 21, against 30 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,132 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S.
How fast is the Morehead City, NC area growing?
Population estimates put the Morehead City area at 70,469 people in 2025, up 4.1% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 31,977 households. Median household income in the Morehead City area is $72,322, 10% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 26.5%, 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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 Morehead City area scores 51 for grocery stores (upper middle), #265 of 506 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Morehead City 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 Morehead City area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Morehead City 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 Morehead City 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.