Groundwork

Pets · Metro area · North Dakota

Pet businesses in the Bismarck, ND metro area

How the Bismarck, ND 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 61 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #104 of 387 scored metro areas
#2 of 4 scored metro areas based in North Dakota

Listings
56
3 chain locations (5%)
Official establishments
34
+10.3% since 2019
Household spending a year
$51M
On pets · $912 a household
Spending per listing
$911K
4% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
10.0
4% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
139,750
+4.5% since 2020

See the pet businesses around any address in the Bismarck 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 Bismarck metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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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 the Bismarck metro area spend about $51M a year on pets, or $912 per household, in line with the U.S. average. That is about $911K of household spending for each business on map listings, 4% above the U.S. figure of $878K.

The Bismarck metro area has 56 pet businesses on map listings as of September 2026. 3 of them (5%) are chain locations, against 17% across the U.S. That comes to 10.0 for every 10,000 households, 4% below the U.S. rate of 10.4.

In 2023, official counts showed 34 businesses with payroll in the Bismarck metro area classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores, up 10.3% from 2019. That is one for every 1,645 households, against one for every 1,852 across the U.S. Official counts list 50 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $791K have gone to businesses classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in the Bismarck metro area.

Population estimates put the population change in the Bismarck metro area from 2020 to 2025 at +4.5%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for pet businesses in the Bismarck metro area is 61 (upper middle), #104 of 387 scored metro areas and #2 of 4 scored metro areas based in North Dakota.

How the Bismarck metro area compares

The same measures for North Dakota 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 Bismarck, ND metro area compared with North Dakota and the U.S.
MeasureBismarck metro areaNorth DakotaU.S.
Listings per 10k households10.010.710.4
Spending per listing$911K$805K$878K
Households per official establishment1,6451,8501,852
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+10.3%+7.8%+11.4%
Population growth, 2020–2025+4.5%+2.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on pets$912$858$909
Median household income$85,156$76,657$80,734
Groundwork market score6147

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
34+10.3% over the period
Employees, 2023
282
Annual payroll, 2023
$12.7M
One-person businesses, 2023
50Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
563 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
58The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
2
Amount
$791K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in the Bismarck 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 Bismarck metro area

Population, 2025 estimate
139,750+4.5% since 2020
Households
55,940
Median age
39.2
Homes lived in by their owners
72%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
4,281 sq. mi.
People per square mile
32
Median household income
$85,156+19.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$110,205
Median home value
$306,400
Jobs located here
71,351
Daytime population
138,130Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Bismarck 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 Bismarck metro 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 North Dakota

Every North Dakota market ranked →

The highest-scoring metro areas in North Dakota for pet businesses, numbered among those based in North Dakota, with the Bismarck metro area marked.

Top metro areas in North Dakota

Metro areas in North Dakota ranked for pet businesses by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Fargo, ND-MN651059.5$907K+7.7%#83 of 387
2Bismarck, ND615610.0$911K+4.5%#104 of 387
3Grand Forks, ND-MN56419.4$862K+0.8%#152 of 387
4Minot, ND403310.4$832K−2.4%#270 of 387

Other business types in the Bismarck metro area

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

Questions

How many pet businesses are in the Bismarck, ND metro area?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 56 pet businesses in the Bismarck metro area. 3 of them (5%) are chain locations. The listings count vets, groomers, boarding and pet stores. Official counts show 34 businesses with payroll classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in 2023, up 10.3% from 2019. Official counts also show 50 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in the Bismarck, ND metro area spend on pets?

About $51M a year, or $912 per household. That is in line with the U.S. average (an index of 100, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 56 pet businesses on map listings, it comes to $911K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 55,940 households in the Bismarck metro area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Bismarck, ND metro area compare with the U.S. for pet businesses?

The Bismarck metro area has 10.0 pet businesses per 10,000 households, 4% below the U.S. rate of 10.4. Spending per business is $911K, 4% above the U.S. figure of $878K. At the U.S. ratio of pet businesses to household spending, the Bismarck metro area would have about 58, against 56 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,645 households, against one for every 1,852 across the U.S. The official count rose 10.3% from 2019 to 2023, against +11.4% for the U.S.

How fast is the Bismarck, ND metro area growing?

Population estimates put the Bismarck metro area at 139,750 people in 2025, up 4.5% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 55,940 households. Median household income in the Bismarck metro area is $85,156, 5% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 19.3%, 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 Bismarck metro area scores 61 for pet businesses (upper middle), #104 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 Bismarck 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 Bismarck metro area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Bismarck 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 Bismarck 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.