Groceries and convenience · County · Wisconsin
Grocery stores in Columbia County, WI
How Columbia County, WI 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 56 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #814 of 2,070 scored counties
#27 of 61 scored counties in Wisconsin
- Listings
- 17
- 9 chain locations (53%)
- Official establishments
- 9
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $150.8M
- On groceries · $6,242 a household
- Spending per listing
- $8.9M
- 5% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 7.0
- 3% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 58,132
- −0.7% since 2020
See the grocery stores around any address in Columbia 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 Columbia 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
Household spending on groceries in Columbia County comes to about $150.8M a year: $6,242 per household, in line with the U.S. average. Spread across 17 grocery stores, that is $8.9M per store, 5% below the U.S. figure of $9.3M. The spending figure covers all groceries, not only grocery stores.
Columbia County has 17 grocery stores on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 53% of them, against 37% across the U.S. That is 7.0 per 10,000 households, 3% above the U.S. rate of 6.8.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in Columbia County was 9 in 2023. That is one for every 2,684 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $1M has gone to businesses classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in Columbia County.
Population estimates put the population change in Columbia County from 2020 to 2025 at −0.7%, against +3.1% for the U.S. For grocery stores, Columbia County has a Groundwork market score of 56 (upper middle): #814 of 2,070 scored counties and #27 of 61 scored counties in Wisconsin.
How Columbia County compares
The same measures for Wisconsin 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 | Columbia County | Wisconsin | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 7.0 | 6.5 | 6.8 |
| Spending per listing | $8.9M | $9.3M | $9.3M |
| Households per official establishment | 2,684 | 2,540 | 2,053 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +1.1% | 0.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −0.7% | +1.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on groceries | $6,242 | $6,105 | $6,319 |
| Median household income | $85,351 | $77,485 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 56 | 49 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 8 → 9
- Employees, 2023
- 371
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $8.7M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 179 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 16The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $1M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in Columbia 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 Columbia County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 58,132−0.7% since 2020
- Households
- 24,158
- Median age
- 43.7
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 77%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 766 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 76
- Median household income
- $85,351+25.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $102,726
- Median home value
- $283,200
- Jobs located here
- 21,803
- Daytime population
- 48,504Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Columbia 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 Columbia 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 Wisconsin
Every Wisconsin market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Wisconsin for grocery stores, numbered among those based in Wisconsin, with Columbia County marked.
Top counties in Wisconsin
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Calumet County, WI | 87 | 7 | 3.3 | $19.4M | +2.9% | #78 of 2,070 |
| 2St. Croix County, WI | 87 | 17 | 4.5 | $14.8M | +4.7% | #81 of 2,070 |
| 3Waukesha County, WI | 82 | 83 | 4.9 | $13.8M | +2.4% | #154 of 2,070 |
| 4Dane County, WI | 81 | 130 | 5.2 | $12.5M | +4.9% | #172 of 2,070 |
| 5Ozaukee County, WI | 80 | 18 | 4.7 | $14.2M | +3.0% | #188 of 2,070 |
| 6Outagamie County, WI | 80 | 36 | 4.6 | $13.7M | +2.6% | #189 of 2,070 |
| 7Washington County, WI | 79 | 26 | 4.6 | $14.3M | +1.8% | #215 of 2,070 |
| 8Eau Claire County, WI | 77 | 24 | 5.4 | $11.3M | +3.0% | #254 of 2,070 |
| 9Chippewa County, WI | 73 | 13 | 4.8 | $12.5M | +1.9% | #337 of 2,070 |
| 10Winnebago County, WI | 73 | 36 | 5.0 | $12.1M | +1.4% | #338 of 2,070 |
| 27Columbia County, WI | 56 | 17 | 7.0 | $8.9M | −0.7% | #814 of 2,070 |
Other business types in Columbia County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
- Grocery and convenience stores62
- Grocery stores56
- Convenience stores61
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 Columbia County, WI?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 17 grocery stores in Columbia County. 9 of them (53%) are chain locations. The listings count grocery stores and supermarkets. Official counts show 9 businesses with payroll classed as supermarkets and grocery stores in 2023.
How much do households in Columbia County, WI spend on groceries?
About $150.8M a year, or $6,242 per household. That is in line with the U.S. average (an index of 99, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 17 grocery stores on map listings, it comes to $8.9M 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 24,158 households in Columbia County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Columbia County, WI compare with the U.S. for grocery stores?
Columbia County has 7.0 grocery stores per 10,000 households, 3% above the U.S. rate of 6.8. Spending per store is $8.9M, 5% below the U.S. figure of $9.3M. At the U.S. ratio of grocery stores to household spending, Columbia County would have about 16, against 17 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,684 households, against one for every 2,053 across the U.S.
How fast is Columbia County, WI growing?
Population estimates put Columbia County at 58,132 people in 2025, down 0.7% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 24,158 households. The median household income in Columbia County is $85,351 a year, 6% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 25.5% 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. Columbia County scores 56 for grocery stores (upper middle), #814 of 2,070 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Columbia 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 Columbia County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Columbia 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 Columbia 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.