Groceries and convenience · County · South Carolina
Grocery stores in Lancaster County, SC
How Lancaster County, SC 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 63 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #597 of 2,070 scored counties
#14 of 41 scored counties in South Carolina
- Listings
- 28
- 15 chain locations (54%)
- Official establishments
- 20
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $247.2M
- On groceries · $6,161 a household
- Spending per listing
- $8.8M
- 5% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 7.0
- 3% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 114,296
- +18.3% since 2020
See the grocery stores around any address in Lancaster 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 Lancaster 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 Lancaster County spend about $247.2M a year on groceries, or $6,161 per household, 3% below the U.S. average. That works out to $8.8M per store, 5% below the U.S. figure of $9.3M. The spending figure covers all groceries, not only grocery stores.
There are 28 grocery stores on map listings in Lancaster County as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 54% of them, against 37% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 7.0, 3% above the U.S. rate of 6.8.
In 2023, official counts showed 20 businesses with payroll in Lancaster County classed as supermarkets and grocery stores. That is one for every 2,006 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 3 SBA-backed loans worth $3.7M have gone to businesses classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in Lancaster County.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Lancaster County grew 18.3%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). For grocery stores, Lancaster County has a Groundwork market score of 63 (upper middle): #597 of 2,070 scored counties and #14 of 41 scored counties in South Carolina.
How Lancaster County compares
The same measures for South 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 | Lancaster County | South Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 7.0 | 6.8 | 6.8 |
| Spending per listing | $8.8M | $8.7M | $9.3M |
| Households per official establishment | 2,006 | 2,325 | 2,053 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +6.4% | 0.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +18.3% | +8.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $6,161 | $5,910 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $78,869 | $69,324 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 63 | 49 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 19 → 20
- Employees, 2023
- 834
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $20.2M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 2815 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 27The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 3
- Amount
- $3.7M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in Lancaster 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 Lancaster County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 114,296+18.3% since 2020
- Households
- 40,128
- Median age
- 43.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 83%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 549 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 190
- Median household income
- $78,869+34.0% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $106,641
- Median home value
- $329,900
- Jobs located here
- 29,873
- Daytime population
- 88,047Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Lancaster 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 Lancaster 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 South Carolina
Every South Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in South Carolina for grocery stores, numbered among those based in South Carolina, with Lancaster County marked.
Top counties in South Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Berkeley County, SC | 79 | 51 | 5.4 | $11.4M | +18.7% | #221 of 2,070 |
| 2York County, SC | 77 | 59 | 5.2 | $12.4M | +8.1% | #250 of 2,070 |
| 3Aiken County, SC | 77 | 37 | 5.3 | $11.2M | +7.3% | #256 of 2,070 |
| 4Dorchester County, SC | 76 | 37 | 5.9 | $10.5M | +10.1% | #279 of 2,070 |
| 5Kershaw County, SC | 74 | 12 | 4.5 | $13.1M | +11.6% | #315 of 2,070 |
| 6Spartanburg County, SC | 72 | 67 | 5.1 | $11.4M | +15.6% | #356 of 2,070 |
| 7Pickens County, SC | 72 | 27 | 5.2 | $11M | +5.7% | #357 of 2,070 |
| 8Anderson County, SC | 70 | 48 | 5.7 | $10.1M | +7.7% | #415 of 2,070 |
| 9Richland County, SC | 67 | 94 | 5.6 | $10.4M | +4.6% | #484 of 2,070 |
| 10Edgefield County, SC | 66 | 7 | 7.2 | $8.1M | +16.1% | #532 of 2,070 |
| 14Lancaster County, SC | 63 | 28 | 7.0 | $8.8M | +18.3% | #597 of 2,070 |
Other business types in Lancaster County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores61
- Grocery stores63
- Convenience stores58
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 Lancaster County, SC?
As of September 2026, map listings count 28 grocery stores in Lancaster County. 15 of them (54%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery stores and supermarkets. Official counts show 20 businesses with payroll classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in 2023.
How much do households in Lancaster County, SC spend on groceries?
About $247.2M a year, or $6,161 per household. That is 3% below the U.S. average (an index of 97, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 28 grocery stores on map listings, it comes to $8.8M 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 40,128 households in Lancaster County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Lancaster County, SC compare with the U.S. for grocery stores?
Lancaster County has 7.0 grocery stores per 10,000 households, 3% above the U.S. rate of 6.8. Spending per store is $8.8M, 5% below the U.S. figure of $9.3M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery stores to household spending, Lancaster County would have about 27, against 28 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,006 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S.
How fast is Lancaster County, SC growing?
Population estimates put Lancaster County at 114,296 people in 2025, up 18.3% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 40,128 households. The median household income in Lancaster County is $78,869 a year, 2% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 34.0% 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. Lancaster County scores 63 for grocery stores (upper middle), #597 of 2,070 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Lancaster 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 Lancaster County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Lancaster 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 Lancaster 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.