Pets · Metro area · North Carolina
Pet businesses in the Burlington, NC metro area
How the Burlington, NC metro area compares with other metro areas 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 #62 of 387 scored metro areas
#5 of 15 scored metro areas based in North Carolina
- Listings
- 60
- 12 chain locations (20%)
- Official establishments
- 35
- −2.8% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $57.7M
- On pets · $823 a household
- Spending per listing
- $962K
- 9% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 8.6
- 17% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 186,177
- +8.5% since 2020
See the pet businesses around any address in the Burlington metro 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 metro 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
Household spending on pets in the Burlington metro area comes to about $57.7M a year: $823 per household, 9% below the U.S. average. That works out to $962K per business, 9% above the U.S. figure of $878K.
There are 60 pet businesses on map listings in the Burlington metro area as of September 2026. Of those, 12 are chain locations, or 20%, against 17% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 8.6, 17% below the U.S. rate of 10.4.
In 2023, official counts showed 35 businesses with payroll in the Burlington metro area classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores, down 2.8% from 2019. That is one for every 2,002 households, against one for every 1,852 across the U.S. Another 103 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $2.4M have gone to businesses classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in the Burlington metro area.
Population estimates put the population change in the Burlington metro area from 2020 to 2025 at +8.5%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). For pet businesses, the Burlington metro area has a Groundwork market score of 68 (upper middle): #62 of 387 scored metro areas and #5 of 15 scored metro areas based in North Carolina. That puts it in the top quarter of metro areas.
How the Burlington metro area compares
The same measures for North Carolina 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 | Burlington metro area | North Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 8.6 | 11.0 | 10.4 |
| Spending per listing | $962K | $817K | $878K |
| Households per official establishment | 2,002 | 1,719 | 1,852 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −2.8% | +15.0% | +11.4% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +8.5% | +7.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on pets | $823 | $899 | $909 |
| Median household income | $65,651 | $72,388 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 68 | 59 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 35−2.8% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 417
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $17.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 103Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 6012 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 66The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $2.4M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in the Burlington metro 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 metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 186,177+8.5% since 2020
- Households
- 70,062
- Median age
- 39.7
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 65%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 424 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 418
- Median household income
- $65,651+32.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $85,032
- Median home value
- $241,500
- Jobs located here
- 69,257
- Daytime population
- 166,616Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Burlington metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 metro 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 North Carolina
Every North Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in North Carolina for pet businesses, numbered among those based in North Carolina (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Burlington metro area marked.
Top metro areas in North Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Goldsboro, NC | 74 | 33 | 6.9 | $1.1M | +3.8% | #35 of 387 |
| 2Rocky Mount, NC | 73 | 36 | 6.2 | $1.3M | +2.8% | #38 of 387 |
| 3Fayetteville, NC | 68 | 106 | 7.1 | $1.1M | +1.6% | #59 of 387 |
| 4Durham-Chapel Hill, NC | 68 | 238 | 9.6 | $1M | +7.5% | #61 of 387 |
| 5Burlington, NC | 68 | 60 | 8.6 | $962K | +8.5% | #62 of 387 |
| 6Raleigh-Cary, NC | 67 | 685 | 11.9 | $913K | +12.6% | #70 of 387 |
| 7Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | 65 | 1,228 | 11.4 | $863K | +10.1% | #84 of 387 |
| Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC | 63 | 638 | 9.0 | $1.1M | +0.9% | #94 of 387 |
| 8Greenville, NC | 60 | 59 | 7.9 | $989K | +5.4% | #111 of 387 |
| 9Greensboro-High Point, NC | 58 | 320 | 10.1 | $828K | +4.1% | #133 of 387 |
Other business types in the Burlington metro 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 businesses68
- Veterinarians52
- Pet grooming and boarding78
- Pet stores63
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many pet businesses are in the Burlington, NC metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 60 pet businesses in the Burlington metro area. 12 of them (20%) are chain locations. The listings count vets, groomers, boarding and pet stores. Official counts show 35 businesses with payroll classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in 2023, down 2.8% from 2019. Official counts list 103 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Burlington, NC metro area spend on pets?
About $57.7M a year, or $823 per household. That is 9% below the U.S. average (an index of 91, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 60 pet businesses on map listings, it comes to $962K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 70,062 households in the Burlington metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Burlington, NC metro area compare with the U.S. for pet businesses?
The Burlington metro area has 8.6 pet businesses per 10,000 households, 17% below the U.S. rate of 10.4. Spending per business is $962K, 9% above the U.S. figure of $878K. At the U.S. ratio of pet businesses to household spending, the Burlington metro area would have about 66, against 60 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,002 households, against one for every 1,852 across the U.S. The official count fell 2.8% from 2019 to 2023, against +11.4% for the U.S.
How fast is the Burlington, NC metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Burlington metro area at 186,177 people in 2025, up 8.5% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 70,062 households. Median household income in the Burlington metro area is $65,651, 19% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 32.1%, 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. The Burlington metro area scores 68 for pet businesses (upper middle), #62 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Burlington metro 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 metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Burlington metro 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 metro 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.