Groundwork

Pets · County · Michigan

Pet businesses in St. Joseph County, MI

The pet businesses in St. Joseph County, MI, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 50 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #1,115 of 2,200 scored counties
#24 of 72 scored counties in Michigan

Listings
29
1 chain location (3%)
Official establishments
5
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$17.7M
On pets · $747 a household
Spending per listing
$609K
31% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
12.3
18% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
60,968
+0.1% since 2020

See the pet businesses around any address in St. Joseph 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 St. Joseph 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 St. Joseph County spend about $17.7M a year on pets, or $747 per household, 18% below the U.S. average. That works out to $609K per business, 31% below the U.S. figure of $878K.

St. Joseph County has 29 pet businesses on map listings as of September 2026. One of them (3%) is a chain location, against 17% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 12.3, 18% above the U.S. rate of 10.4.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in St. Joseph County was 5 in 2023. That is one for every 4,724 households, against one for every 1,852 across the U.S. Another 33 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 3 SBA-backed loans worth $994K have gone to businesses classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in St. Joseph County.

Population estimates put the population change in St. Joseph County from 2020 to 2025 at +0.1%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). St. Joseph County scores 50 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for pet businesses, ranking #1,115 of 2,200 scored counties and #24 of 72 scored counties in Michigan.

How St. Joseph County 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.

Pet businesses in St. Joseph County, MI compared with Michigan and the U.S.
MeasureSt. Joseph CountyMichiganU.S.
Listings per 10k households12.310.410.4
Spending per listing$609K$814K$878K
Households per official establishment4,7242,0451,852
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+13.8%+11.4%
Population growth, 2020–2025+0.1%+0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on pets$747$843$909
Median household income$66,425$72,875$80,734
Groundwork market score5050

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
6 → 5
Employees, 2023
86
Annual payroll, 2023
$4M
One-person businesses, 2023
33Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
291 chain location
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
20The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
3
Amount
$994K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in St. Joseph 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 St. Joseph County

Population, 2025 estimate
60,968+0.1% since 2020
Households
23,620
Median age
40.0
Homes lived in by their owners
76%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
501 sq. mi.
People per square mile
122
Median household income
$66,425+27.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$81,433
Median home value
$178,300
Jobs located here
19,267
Daytime population
52,362Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in St. Joseph 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 St. Joseph 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 Michigan

Every Michigan market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Michigan for pet businesses, numbered among those based in Michigan, with St. Joseph County marked.

Top counties in Michigan

Counties in Michigan ranked for pet businesses by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Ottawa County, MI721059.4$999K+3.9%#222 of 2,200
2Leelanau County, MI721010.4$970K+3.0%#225 of 2,200
3Manistee County, MI7087.6$1M+2.3%#275 of 2,200
4Macomb County, MI703138.7$987K+0.7%#277 of 2,200
5Wayne County, MI683885.5$1.4M−1.1%#337 of 2,200
6Clinton County, MI683310.4$895K+1.6%#352 of 2,200
7Branch County, MI67158.9$835K+2.5%#396 of 2,200
8Monroe County, MI66629.8$876K+0.7%#433 of 2,200
9Oakland County, MI6556510.7$960K+1.2%#466 of 2,200
10Kent County, MI6326710.4$865K+2.5%#545 of 2,200
24St. Joseph County, MI502912.3$609K+0.1%#1,115 of 2,200

Other business types in St. Joseph County

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

Questions

How many pet businesses are in St. Joseph County, MI?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 29 pet businesses in St. Joseph County. One of them (3%) is a chain location. The listings count vets, groomers, boarding and pet stores. Official counts show 5 businesses with payroll classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in 2023. Official counts list 33 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in St. Joseph County, MI spend on pets?

About $17.7M a year, or $747 per household. That is 18% below the U.S. average (an index of 82, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 29 pet businesses on map listings, it comes to $609K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 23,620 households in St. Joseph County and national spending patterns by income.

How does St. Joseph County, MI compare with the U.S. for pet businesses?

St. Joseph County has 12.3 pet businesses per 10,000 households, 18% above the U.S. rate of 10.4. Spending per business is $609K, 31% below the U.S. figure of $878K. At the U.S. ratio of pet businesses to household spending, St. Joseph County would have about 20, against 29 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 4,724 households, against one for every 1,852 across the U.S.

How fast is St. Joseph County, MI growing?

Population estimates put St. Joseph County at 60,968 people in 2025, up 0.1% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 23,620 households. Median household income in St. Joseph County is $66,425, 18% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 27.5%, 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. St. Joseph County scores 50 for pet businesses (upper middle), #1,115 of 2,200 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in St. Joseph 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 St. Joseph County

Screening a site or an acquisition in St. Joseph 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 St. Joseph 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.