Pets · County · Missouri
Pet businesses in Howard County, MO
The pet businesses in Howard County, MO, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 19 out of 100: Low
Ranked #2,133 of 2,200 scored counties
#72 of 76 scored counties in Missouri
- Listings
- 8
- 0 chain locations (0%)
- Official establishments
- n/a
- Fewer than 3, or not published
- Household spending a year
- $2.7M
- On pets · $757 a household
- Spending per listing
- $339K
- 61% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 22.3
- 2.1 times the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 10,180
- +0.3% since 2020
See the pet businesses around any address in Howard 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 Howard 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
The Groundwork market score for pet businesses in Howard County is 19 (low), #2,133 of 2,200 scored counties and #72 of 76 scored counties in Missouri. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
Household spending on pets in Howard County comes to about $2.7M a year: $757 per household, 17% below the U.S. average. That works out to $339K per business, 61% below the U.S. figure of $878K.
Howard County has 8 pet businesses on map listings as of September 2026. None of them are chain locations, against 17% across the U.S. That is 22.3 per 10,000 households, 2.1 times the U.S. rate of 10.4.
Official counts don’t publish a figure for pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in Howard County, since they leave out counts under 3. Population estimates put the population change in Howard County from 2020 to 2025 at +0.3%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Howard County compares
The same measures for Missouri 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 | Howard County | Missouri | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 22.3 | 11.3 | 10.4 |
| Spending per listing | $339K | $728K | $878K |
| Households per official establishment | n/a | 1,833 | 1,852 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +6.5% | +11.4% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +0.3% | +1.9% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on pets | $757 | $825 | $909 |
| Median household income | $65,938 | $70,702 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 19 | 36 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- n/a
- Employees, 2023
- n/a
- Annual payroll, 2023
- n/a
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 0Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 80 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 3The 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 Howard 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 Howard County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 10,180+0.3% since 2020
- Households
- 3,585
- Median age
- 39.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 79%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 464 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 22
- Median household income
- $65,938+25.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $83,071
- Median home value
- $159,400
- Jobs located here
- 2,720
- Daytime population
- 8,278Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Howard 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 Howard County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardPet businesses across Missouri
Every Missouri market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Missouri for pet businesses, numbered among those based in Missouri, with Howard County marked.
Top counties in Missouri
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Lincoln County, MO | 73 | 24 | 10.5 | $832K | +11.4% | #203 of 2,200 |
| 2Warren County, MO | 73 | 16 | 11.6 | $758K | +9.2% | #207 of 2,200 |
| 3Jackson County, MO | 69 | 246 | 8.0 | $1M | +2.1% | #312 of 2,200 |
| 4Osage County, MO | 68 | 5 | 9.5 | $878K | +2.7% | #355 of 2,200 |
| 5Platte County, MO | 67 | 51 | 11.6 | $858K | +6.7% | #392 of 2,200 |
| 6Clay County, MO | 64 | 109 | 10.7 | $861K | +4.3% | #508 of 2,200 |
| 7St. Charles County, MO | 64 | 201 | 12.5 | $830K | +4.9% | #511 of 2,200 |
| 8Stone County, MO | 64 | 13 | 9.6 | $773K | +4.1% | #520 of 2,200 |
| 9St. Louis County, MO | 62 | 368 | 8.9 | $1.1M | −1.2% | #570 of 2,200 |
| 10Ste. Genevieve County, MO | 61 | 7 | 9.8 | $824K | +1.1% | #618 of 2,200 |
| 72Howard County, MO | 19 | 8 | 22.3 | $339K | +0.3% | #2,133 of 2,200 |
Other business types in Howard County
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 businesses19
- Veterinarians
- Pet grooming and boarding
- Pet stores
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many pet businesses are in Howard County, MO?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 8 pet businesses in Howard County. None of them are chain locations. The listings count vets, groomers, boarding and pet stores. No official count is published for pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in Howard County: counts under 3 are left out.
How much do households in Howard County, MO spend on pets?
About $2.7M a year, or $757 per household. That is 17% below the U.S. average (an index of 83, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 8 pet businesses on map listings, it comes to $339K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 3,585 households in Howard County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Howard County, MO compare with the U.S. for pet businesses?
Howard County has 22.3 pet businesses per 10,000 households, 2.1 times the U.S. rate of 10.4. Spending per business is $339K, 61% below the U.S. figure of $878K. At the U.S. ratio of pet businesses to household spending, Howard County would have about 3, against 8 on map listings.
How fast is Howard County, MO growing?
Population estimates put Howard County at 10,180 people in 2025, up 0.3% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 3,585 households. Median household income in Howard County is $65,938, 18% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 25.1%, 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. Howard County scores 19 for pet businesses (low), #2,133 of 2,200 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Howard 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 Howard County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Howard 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 Howard 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.