Groundwork

Pets · County · California

Pet businesses in Los Angeles County, CA

How Los Angeles County, CA compares with other counties and the U.S. for pet businesses: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 68 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #339 of 2,200 scored counties
#24 of 54 scored counties in California

Listings
2,776
564 chain locations (20%)
Official establishments
1,676
+15.4% since 2019
Household spending a year
$3.7B
On pets · $1,085 a household
Spending per listing
$1.3M
52% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
8.1
22% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
9,694,934
−3.0% since 2020

See the pet businesses around any address in Los Angeles County

The site report maps the pet businesses 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 Los Angeles County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

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

What this means

Households in Los Angeles County spend about $3.7B a year on pets, or $1,085 per household, 19% above the U.S. average. Spread across 2,776 pet businesses, that is $1.3M per business, 52% above the U.S. figure of $878K.

Los Angeles County has 2,776 pet businesses on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 564 are chain locations, or 20%, against 17% across the U.S. That comes to 8.1 for every 10,000 households, 22% below the U.S. rate of 10.4.

Official counts show 1,676 businesses with payroll classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in Los Angeles County in 2023, up 15.4% from 2019. That is one for every 2,038 households, against one for every 1,852 across the U.S. Official counts list 5,220 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 112 SBA-backed loans worth $91.7M have gone to businesses classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in Los Angeles County.

Population estimates put the population change in Los Angeles County from 2020 to 2025 at −3.0%, against +3.1% for the U.S. For pet businesses, Los Angeles County has a Groundwork market score of 68 (upper middle): #339 of 2,200 scored counties and #24 of 54 scored counties in California. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.

How Los Angeles County compares

The same measures for California and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all pets by the pet businesses counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.

Pet businesses in Los Angeles County, CA compared with California and the U.S.
MeasureLos Angeles CountyCaliforniaU.S.
Listings per 10k households8.19.310.4
Spending per listing$1.3M$1.2M$878K
Households per official establishment2,0381,8751,852
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+15.4%+11.6%+11.4%
Population growth, 2020–2025−3.0%−0.4%+3.1%
Spending per household on pets$1,085$1,149$909
Median household income$90,112$99,122$80,734
Groundwork market score6868

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
1,453 → 1,676+15.4% over the period
Employees, 2023
18,963
Annual payroll, 2023
$1.1B
One-person businesses, 2023
5,220Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
2,776564 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
4,220The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
112
Amount
$91.7M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in Los Angeles 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 Los Angeles County

Population, 2025 estimate
9,694,934−3.0% since 2020
Households
3,416,449
Median age
39.1
Homes lived in by their owners
46%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
4,060 sq. mi.
People per square mile
2,416
Median household income
$90,112+32.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$128,768
Median home value
$834,200
Jobs located here
4,875,632
Daytime population
10,082,231Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Los Angeles 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 pet businesses on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of Los Angeles County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Pet businesses across California

Every California market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in California for pet businesses, numbered among those based in California, with Los Angeles County marked.

Top counties in California

Counties in California ranked for pet businesses by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1San Benito County, CA902210.7$1.2M+8.6%#6 of 2,200
2Yuba County, CA872910.1$927K+8.2%#17 of 2,200
3San Joaquin County, CA861877.6$1.4M+5.5%#19 of 2,200
4Merced County, CA84687.9$1.1M+5.1%#39 of 2,200
5Fresno County, CA822126.5$1.5M+2.6%#45 of 2,200
6Tulare County, CA811067.4$1.2M+2.4%#57 of 2,200
7Kern County, CA812288.0$1.1M+2.3%#59 of 2,200
8Sacramento County, CA804527.9$1.4M+2.0%#68 of 2,200
9Riverside County, CA8078210.1$1.1M+5.0%#71 of 2,200
10Madera County, CA804710.4$919K+7.4%#75 of 2,200
24Los Angeles County, CA682,7768.1$1.3M−3.0%#339 of 2,200

Other business types in Los Angeles County

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

Questions

How many pet businesses are in Los Angeles County, CA?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 2,776 pet businesses in Los Angeles County. 564 of them (20%) are chain locations. The listings count vets, groomers, boarding and pet stores. Official counts show 1,676 businesses with payroll classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in 2023, up 15.4% from 2019. Official counts also show 5,220 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Los Angeles County, CA spend on pets?

About $3.7B a year, or $1,085 per household. That is 19% above the U.S. average (an index of 119, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 2,776 pet businesses on map listings, it comes to $1.3M per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 3,416,449 households in Los Angeles County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Los Angeles County, CA compare with the U.S. for pet businesses?

Los Angeles County has 8.1 pet businesses per 10,000 households, 22% below the U.S. rate of 10.4. Spending per business is $1.3M, 52% above the U.S. figure of $878K. At the U.S. ratio of pet businesses to household spending, Los Angeles County would have about 4,220, against 2,776 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,038 households, against one for every 1,852 across the U.S. The official count rose 15.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +11.4% for the U.S.

How fast is Los Angeles County, CA growing?

Population estimates put Los Angeles County at 9,694,934 people in 2025, down 3.0% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 3,416,449 households. Median household income in Los Angeles County is $90,112, 12% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 32.4%, 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. Los Angeles County scores 68 for pet businesses (upper middle), #339 of 2,200 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Los Angeles County. It maps the pet businesses 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 pet businesses · All 56 business types in Los Angeles County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Los Angeles 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 Los Angeles 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.