Groundwork

Pets · Small-town market · Iowa

Pet businesses in the Burlington, IA-IL area

The pet businesses in the Burlington, IA-IL area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other small-town markets.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 29 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #465 of 527 scored small-town markets
#14 of 15 scored small-town markets based in Iowa

Listings
25
2 chain locations (8%)
Official establishments
13
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$14.7M
On pets · $742 a household
Spending per listing
$590K
33% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
12.6
21% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
44,061
−2.5% since 2020

See the pet businesses around any address in the Burlington area

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 the Burlington area. 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

The Groundwork market score for pet businesses in the Burlington area is 29 (lower middle), #465 of 527 scored small-town markets and #14 of 15 scored small-town markets based in Iowa. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.

As of September 2026, map listings count 25 pet businesses in the Burlington area. Chain locations make up 8% of them, against 17% across the U.S. That is 12.6 per 10,000 households, 21% above the U.S. rate of 10.4.

Household spending on pets in the Burlington area comes to about $14.7M a year: $742 per household, 18% below the U.S. average. That works out to $590K per business, 33% below the U.S. figure of $878K.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in the Burlington area was 13 in 2023. That is one for every 1,529 households, against one for every 1,852 across the U.S. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Burlington area declined 2.5%, against +3.1% for the U.S.

How the Burlington area compares

The same measures for Iowa 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 Burlington, IA-IL area compared with Iowa and the U.S.
MeasureBurlington areaIowaU.S.
Listings per 10k households12.612.910.4
Spending per listing$590K$654K$878K
Households per official establishment1,5291,5421,852
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+13.4%+11.4%
Population growth, 2020–2025−2.5%+1.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on pets$742$843$909
Median household income$62,811$75,059$80,734
Groundwork market score2926

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
13
Employees, 2023
143
Annual payroll, 2023
$4.4M
One-person businesses, 2023
13Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
252 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
17The 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 pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in the Burlington 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 Burlington area

Population, 2025 estimate
44,061−2.5% since 2020
Households
19,882
Median age
43.1
Homes lived in by their owners
76%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
795 sq. mi.
People per square mile
56
Median household income
$62,811+21.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$79,624
Median home value
$131,000
Jobs located here
20,875
Daytime population
44,288Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

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

Or open the report at the center of the Burlington area. 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 Iowa

Every Iowa market ranked →

The highest-scoring small-town markets in Iowa for pet businesses, numbered among those based in Iowa, with the Burlington area marked.

Top small-town markets in Iowa

Small-town markets in Iowa ranked for pet businesses by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Storm Lake, IA6768.0$1M−1.7%#79 of 527
2Le Mars, IA581110.7$818K0.0%#160 of 527
3Marshalltown, IA571811.6$674K−0.5%#179 of 527
4Ottumwa, IA521812.9$583K−0.3%#258 of 527
5Spirit Lake, IA511213.6$641K+1.7%#272 of 527
6Clinton, IA502512.8$620K−0.9%#279 of 527
7Carroll, IA451213.6$593K−2.0%#333 of 527
8Pella, IA452015.0$570K+2.3%#336 of 527
9Spencer, IA431013.7$561K−0.8%#354 of 527
10Muscatine, IA422112.1$648K−3.0%#359 of 527
14Burlington, IA-IL292512.6$590K−2.5%#465 of 527

Other business types in the Burlington area

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

Questions

How many pet businesses are in the Burlington, IA-IL area?

The Burlington area has 25 pet businesses on map listings as of September 2026. 2 of them (8%) are chain locations. The listings count vets, groomers, boarding and pet stores. Official counts show 13 businesses with payroll classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in 2023. Another 13 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

How much do households in the Burlington, IA-IL area spend on pets?

About $14.7M a year, or $742 per household. That is 18% below the U.S. average (an index of 82, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 25 pet businesses on map listings, it comes to $590K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 19,882 households in the Burlington area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Burlington, IA-IL area compare with the U.S. for pet businesses?

The Burlington area has 12.6 pet businesses per 10,000 households, 21% above the U.S. rate of 10.4. Spending per business is $590K, 33% below the U.S. figure of $878K. At the national ratio of pet businesses to household spending, the Burlington area would have about 17, against 25 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,529 households, against one for every 1,852 across the U.S.

How fast is the Burlington, IA-IL area growing?

Population estimates put the Burlington area at 44,061 people in 2025, down 2.5% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 19,882 households. The median household income in the Burlington area is $62,811 a year, 22% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 21.6% 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. 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 Burlington area scores 29 for pet businesses (lower middle), #465 of 527 scored small-town markets.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Burlington area. 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 the Burlington area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Burlington 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 Burlington 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.