Pets · Small-town market · Michigan
Pet businesses in the Alpena, MI area
How the Alpena, MI area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for pet businesses: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 20 out of 100: Low
Ranked #512 of 527 scored small-town markets
#18 of 18 scored small-town markets based in Michigan
- Listings
- 24
- 4 chain locations (17%)
- Official establishments
- 7
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $9.1M
- On pets · $696 a household
- Spending per listing
- $378K
- 57% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 18.4
- 77% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 28,853
- −0.1% since 2020
See the pet businesses around any address in the Alpena 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 Alpena 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
The Alpena area scores 20 (low) on the Groundwork market score for pet businesses, ranking #512 of 527 scored small-town markets and #18 of 18 scored small-town markets based in Michigan. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.
As of September 2026, map listings count 24 pet businesses in the Alpena area. Chain locations make up 17% of them, against 17% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 18.4, 77% above the U.S. rate of 10.4.
Households in the Alpena area spend about $9.1M a year on pets, or $696 per household, 23% below the U.S. average. That is about $378K of household spending for each business on map listings, 57% below the U.S. figure of $878K.
In 2023, official counts showed 7 businesses with payroll in the Alpena area classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores. That is one for every 1,860 households, against one for every 1,852 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $211K have gone to businesses classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in the Alpena area. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Alpena area declined 0.1%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How the Alpena area compares
The same measures for Michigan 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.
| Measure | Alpena area | Michigan | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 18.4 | 10.4 | 10.4 |
| Spending per listing | $378K | $814K | $878K |
| Households per official establishment | 1,860 | 2,045 | 1,852 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +13.8% | +11.4% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −0.1% | +0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on pets | $696 | $843 | $909 |
| Median household income | $53,950 | $72,875 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 20 | 50 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 7
- Employees, 2023
- 60
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $2.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 18Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 244 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 10The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $211K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in the Alpena 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 Alpena area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 28,853−0.1% since 2020
- Households
- 13,019
- Median age
- 47.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 80%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 572 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 50
- Median household income
- $53,950+24.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $74,418
- Median home value
- $153,900
- Jobs located here
- 11,363
- Daytime population
- 29,194Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Alpena 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 Alpena area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardPet businesses across Michigan
Every Michigan market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Michigan for pet businesses, numbered among those based in Michigan, with the Alpena area marked.
Top small-town markets in Michigan
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Coldwater, MI | 74 | 15 | 8.9 | $835K | +2.5% | #36 of 527 |
| 2Houghton, MI | 63 | 15 | 9.7 | $774K | +1.8% | #109 of 527 |
| 3Sturgis, MI | 56 | 29 | 12.3 | $609K | +0.1% | #201 of 527 |
| 4Iron Mountain, MI-WI | 49 | 19 | 13.5 | $557K | +0.4% | #294 of 527 |
| 5Big Rapids, MI | 49 | 23 | 13.8 | $517K | +4.7% | #296 of 527 |
| 6Ludington, MI | 48 | 16 | 12.5 | $618K | 0.0% | #305 of 527 |
| 7Cadillac, MI | 48 | 32 | 16.3 | $452K | +2.0% | #312 of 527 |
| 8Petoskey, MI | 46 | 23 | 15.1 | $584K | −1.0% | #326 of 527 |
| 9Mount Pleasant, MI | 42 | 29 | 11.6 | $608K | +0.3% | #362 of 527 |
| 10Marquette, MI | 42 | 36 | 12.7 | $592K | +2.3% | #363 of 527 |
| 18Alpena, MI | 20 | 24 | 18.4 | $378K | −0.1% | #512 of 527 |
Other business types in the Alpena area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Pets
- Pet businesses20
- Veterinarians34
- Pet grooming and boarding15
- Pet stores20
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many pet businesses are in the Alpena, MI area?
The Alpena area has 24 pet businesses on map listings as of September 2026. 4 of them (17%) are chain locations. The listings count vets, groomers, boarding and pet stores. Official counts show 7 businesses with payroll classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in 2023. Official counts also show 18 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Alpena, MI area spend on pets?
About $9.1M a year, or $696 per household. That is 23% below the U.S. average (an index of 77, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 24 pet businesses on map listings, it comes to $378K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 13,019 households in the Alpena area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Alpena, MI area compare with the U.S. for pet businesses?
The Alpena area has 18.4 pet businesses per 10,000 households, 77% above the U.S. rate of 10.4. Spending per business is $378K, 57% below the U.S. figure of $878K. At the national ratio of pet businesses to household spending, the Alpena area would have about 10, against 24 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,860 households, against one for every 1,852 across the U.S.
How fast is the Alpena, MI area growing?
Population estimates put the Alpena area at 28,853 people in 2025, down 0.1% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 13,019 households. The median household income in the Alpena area is $53,950 a year, 33% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 24.4% 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 Alpena area scores 20 for pet businesses (low), #512 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 Alpena 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 Alpena area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Alpena 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 Alpena 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.