Market rankings · South Carolina
Pet businesses in South Carolina
Markets across South Carolina ranked by the Groundwork market score for pet businesses, with competitor counts and household spending for each.
- Listings
- 2,375
- 429 chain locations (18%)
- Official establishments
- 1,120
- +17.3% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $1.8B
- On pets
- Listings per 10k households
- 11.2
- 8% above the U.S.
- Spending per listing
- $775K
- 12% below the U.S.
- Rank among states
- #18 of 51
- Market score 58 · Upper middle
A site report maps the pet businesses on map listings around any address in South Carolina by name and distance, and the spending within reach.
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
Map listings as of September 2026 show 2,375 pet businesses in South Carolina. 429 of them (18%) are chain locations, against 17% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 11.2, 8% above the U.S. rate of 10.4.
Households in South Carolina spend about $1.8B a year on pets, or $869 per household, 4% below the U.S. average. That is about $775K of household spending for each business on map listings, 12% below the U.S. figure of $878K.
In 2023, official counts showed 1,120 businesses with payroll in South Carolina classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores, up 17.3% from 2019. That is one for every 1,891 households, against one for every 1,852 across the U.S. Across the U.S., the count rose 11.4% over the same years. Since fiscal 2022, 69 SBA-backed loans worth $45M have gone to businesses classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in South Carolina.
Among the 50 states and DC, South Carolina ranks #18 for pet businesses, with a Groundwork market score of 58 (upper middle). Of the 10 scored metro areas in or partly in South Carolina, the Spartanburg metro area scores highest (69). Of the 6 scored small-town markets in or partly in South Carolina, the Seneca area scores highest (69).
Every market in South Carolina for pet businesses
Download the ranking (CSV)Numbered by Groundwork market score among the markets based in South Carolina, highest first; the U.S. rank compares each market with every other of its kind. A metro area that crosses a state line is listed in each state it reaches, and numbered only in the state its page is under. How the score works.
Metro areas
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Spartanburg, SC | 69 | 132 | 9.2 | $885K | +14.3% | #57 of 387 |
| Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC | 67 | 207 | 8.9 | $972K | +4.7% | #68 of 387 |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | 65 | 1,228 | 11.4 | $863K | +10.1% | #84 of 387 |
| 2Columbia, SC | 64 | 342 | 10.1 | $855K | +6.0% | #91 of 387 |
| 3Sumter, SC | 59 | 30 | 7.3 | $1M | −0.3% | #120 of 387 |
| 4Charleston-North Charleston, SC | 55 | 427 | 12.7 | $773K | +10.7% | #159 of 387 |
| 5Greenville-Anderson-Greer, SC | 55 | 457 | 11.9 | $737K | +9.0% | #161 of 387 |
| 6Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC | 53 | 126 | 13.2 | $747K | +12.0% | #176 of 387 |
| 7Florence, SC | 52 | 76 | 9.7 | $798K | +0.9% | #180 of 387 |
| 8Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach, SC | 46 | 193 | 12.2 | $680K | +20.9% | #227 of 387 |
Small-town markets
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Seneca, SC | 69 | 33 | 9.6 | $864K | +6.3% | #62 of 527 |
| 2Newberry, SC | 60 | 21 | 13.7 | $559K | +4.8% | #149 of 527 |
| 3Greenwood, SC | 54 | 43 | 11.4 | $656K | +1.7% | #223 of 527 |
| 4Orangeburg, SC | 50 | 31 | 9.4 | $739K | −0.9% | #276 of 527 |
| 5Murrells Inlet, SC | 50 | 46 | 17.0 | $517K | +3.8% | #282 of 527 |
| 6Gaffney, SC | 50 | 32 | 14.5 | $488K | +3.7% | #283 of 527 |
Counties
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Berkeley County, SC | 79 | 95 | 10.1 | $924K | +18.7% | #92 of 2,200 |
| 2York County, SC | 76 | 122 | 10.7 | $946K | +8.1% | #144 of 2,200 |
| 3Edgefield County, SC | 73 | 7 | 7.2 | $1.2M | +16.1% | #188 of 2,200 |
| 4Richland County, SC | 73 | 147 | 8.8 | $973K | +4.6% | #196 of 2,200 |
| 5Lancaster County, SC | 72 | 52 | 13.0 | $727K | +18.3% | #235 of 2,200 |
| 6Laurens County, SC | 71 | 21 | 7.8 | $952K | +6.2% | #248 of 2,200 |
| 7Spartanburg County, SC | 71 | 127 | 9.6 | $858K | +15.6% | #255 of 2,200 |
| 8Dorchester County, SC | 71 | 76 | 12.0 | $773K | +10.1% | #264 of 2,200 |
| 9Greenville County, SC | 67 | 265 | 12.0 | $775K | +10.6% | #402 of 2,200 |
| 10Chesterfield County, SC | 66 | 10 | 5.7 | $1.2M | +3.4% | #417 of 2,200 |
| 11Florence County, SC | 66 | 46 | 8.7 | $907K | +1.2% | #431 of 2,200 |
| 12Lexington County, SC | 66 | 130 | 10.7 | $844K | +7.7% | #436 of 2,200 |
| 13Beaufort County, SC | 65 | 107 | 13.0 | $779K | +8.9% | #484 of 2,200 |
| 14Oconee County, SC | 63 | 33 | 9.6 | $864K | +6.3% | #546 of 2,200 |
| 15Sumter County, SC | 62 | 30 | 7.3 | $1M | −0.3% | #571 of 2,200 |
| 16Pickens County, SC | 62 | 66 | 12.6 | $634K | +5.7% | #598 of 2,200 |
| 17Barnwell County, SC | 61 | 5 | 6.2 | $1.1M | +0.4% | #606 of 2,200 |
| 18Clarendon County, SC | 60 | 10 | 8.1 | $887K | +0.7% | #654 of 2,200 |
| 19Saluda County, SC | 60 | 7 | 9.1 | $819K | +4.1% | #661 of 2,200 |
| 20Horry County, SC | 58 | 193 | 12.2 | $680K | +20.9% | #744 of 2,200 |
| 21Charleston County, SC | 57 | 256 | 14.3 | $717K | +6.4% | #783 of 2,200 |
| 22Colleton County, SC | 57 | 17 | 10.4 | $712K | +2.2% | #785 of 2,200 |
| 23Abbeville County, SC | 56 | 10 | 10.2 | $766K | +2.3% | #824 of 2,200 |
| 24Newberry County, SC | 56 | 21 | 13.7 | $559K | +4.8% | #845 of 2,200 |
| 25Aiken County, SC | 54 | 93 | 13.3 | $652K | +7.3% | #921 of 2,200 |
Show all 46 counties
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 26Union County, SC | 53 | 5 | 4.3 | $1.6M | −1.4% | #933 of 2,200 |
| 27Kershaw County, SC | 53 | 47 | 17.5 | $480K | +11.6% | #975 of 2,200 |
| 28Anderson County, SC | 52 | 105 | 12.5 | $664K | +7.7% | #1,007 of 2,200 |
| 29Darlington County, SC | 51 | 30 | 11.7 | $631K | +0.1% | #1,060 of 2,200 |
| 30Orangeburg County, SC | 48 | 31 | 9.4 | $739K | −0.9% | #1,189 of 2,200 |
| 31Greenwood County, SC | 47 | 33 | 11.8 | $622K | +1.5% | #1,246 of 2,200 |
| 32Georgetown County, SC | 47 | 46 | 17.0 | $517K | +3.8% | #1,258 of 2,200 |
| 33Cherokee County, SC | 47 | 32 | 14.5 | $488K | +3.7% | #1,260 of 2,200 |
| 34Dillon County, SC | 46 | 7 | 6.5 | $1M | −2.9% | #1,263 of 2,200 |
| 35Marion County, SC | 45 | 7 | 5.7 | $1.1M | −2.9% | #1,308 of 2,200 |
| 36Jasper County, SC | 44 | 19 | 14.5 | $563K | +32.2% | #1,367 of 2,200 |
| 37Williamsburg County, SC | 43 | 11 | 8.9 | $736K | −4.0% | #1,380 of 2,200 |
| 38Fairfield County, SC | 42 | 8 | 9.0 | $819K | −2.6% | #1,421 of 2,200 |
| 39Chester County, SC | 35 | 19 | 14.4 | $488K | +2.2% | #1,731 of 2,200 |
| 40Marlboro County, SC | 30 | 8 | 8.2 | $746K | −3.8% | #1,856 of 2,200 |
| 41Lee County, SC | 24 | 6 | 9.4 | $664K | −5.0% | #2,026 of 2,200 |
| Hampton County, SC | Not scored | 4 | 5.5 | $1.2M | −1.9% | |
| Calhoun County, SC | Not scored | 3 | 4.9 | $1.6M | +0.6% | |
| Bamberg County, SC | Not scored | 3 | 6.5 | $1M | −3.5% | |
| McCormick County, SC | Not scored | 2 | 4.8 | $1.5M | +7.3% | |
| Allendale County, SC | Not scored | 3 | 9.3 | $673K | −7.4% |
Markets with fewer than 5 pet businesses on map listings, and counties under 10,000 people, aren’t scored; they’re listed last in each table.
Questions
How many pet businesses are in South Carolina?
There are 2,375 pet businesses on map listings in South Carolina as of September 2026. 429 of them (18%) are chain locations. The listings count vets, groomers, boarding and pet stores. Official counts show 1,120 businesses with payroll classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in 2023, up 17.3% from 2019. Another 3,129 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in South Carolina spend on pets?
About $1.8B a year, or $869 per household. That is 4% below the U.S. average (an index of 96, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 2,375 pet businesses on map listings, it comes to $775K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 2,117,989 households in South Carolina and national spending patterns by income.
How does South Carolina compare with the U.S. for pet businesses?
South Carolina has 11.2 pet businesses per 10,000 households, 8% above the U.S. rate of 10.4. Spending per business is $775K, 12% below the U.S. figure of $878K. At the national ratio of pet businesses to household spending, South Carolina would have about 2,095, against 2,375 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,891 households, against one for every 1,852 across the U.S. The official count rose 17.3% from 2019 to 2023, against +11.4% for the U.S.
Which market in South Carolina has the highest market score for pet businesses?
Among 10 scored metro areas in or partly in South Carolina, the Spartanburg metro area scores highest, at 69 (upper middle). Among 6 scored small-town markets in or partly in South Carolina, the Seneca area scores highest, at 69 (upper middle). Among 41 scored counties in South Carolina, Berkeley County scores highest, at 79 (high). Scores compare each market with others of its kind across the U.S.
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. South Carolina scores 58 for pet businesses (upper middle), #18 of the 50 states and DC.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in South Carolina. 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.
Pet businesses in other states
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Top markets for pet businesses across the U.S. · All business types in South Carolina
Related business types in South Carolina
- Veterinarians754 listings
- Pet grooming and boarding865 listings
- Pet stores417 listings
Screening a site or an acquisition in South Carolina?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
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.