Pets · Metro area · Tennessee
Pet businesses in the Knoxville, TN metro area
How the Knoxville, TN 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 48 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #211 of 387 scored metro areas
#8 of 10 scored metro areas based in Tennessee
- Listings
- 457
- 74 chain locations (16%)
- Official establishments
- 232
- +4.2% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $334M
- On pets · $883 a household
- Spending per listing
- $731K
- 17% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 12.1
- 16% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 968,137
- +6.9% since 2020
See the pet businesses around any address in the Knoxville 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 Knoxville 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
Households in the Knoxville metro area spend about $334M a year on pets, or $883 per household, 3% below the U.S. average. That is about $731K of household spending for each business on map listings, 17% below the U.S. figure of $878K.
There are 457 pet businesses on map listings in the Knoxville metro area as of September 2026. 74 of them (16%) are chain locations, against 17% across the U.S. That comes to 12.1 for every 10,000 households, 16% above the U.S. rate of 10.4.
In 2023, official counts showed 232 businesses with payroll in the Knoxville metro area classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores, up 4.2% from 2019. That is one for every 1,630 households, against one for every 1,852 across the U.S. Another 521 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 14 SBA-backed loans worth $9.2M have gone to businesses classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in the Knoxville metro area.
Population estimates show the Knoxville metro area grew 6.9% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). For pet businesses, the Knoxville metro area has a Groundwork market score of 48 (lower middle): #211 of 387 scored metro areas and #8 of 10 scored metro areas based in Tennessee.
How the Knoxville metro area compares
The same measures for Tennessee 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 | Knoxville metro area | Tennessee | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 12.1 | 10.7 | 10.4 |
| Spending per listing | $731K | $811K | $878K |
| Households per official establishment | 1,630 | 1,990 | 1,852 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +4.2% | +16.8% | +11.4% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +6.9% | +5.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on pets | $883 | $871 | $909 |
| Median household income | $72,422 | $69,595 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 48 | 62 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 232+4.2% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 2,315
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $97.3M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 521Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 45774 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 380The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 14
- Amount
- $9.2M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in the Knoxville 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 Knoxville metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 968,137+6.9% since 2020
- Households
- 378,234
- Median age
- 41.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 70%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 3,501 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 266
- Median household income
- $72,422
- Average household income
- $98,653
- Median home value
- $290,200
- Jobs located here
- 432,193
- Daytime population
- 955,487Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Knoxville 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 Knoxville 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 Tennessee
Every Tennessee market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Tennessee for pet businesses, numbered among those based in Tennessee, with the Knoxville metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Tennessee
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TN | 73 | 864 | 10.4 | $947K | +8.7% | #42 of 387 |
| 2Memphis, TN-MS-AR | 70 | 366 | 7.0 | $1.2M | −0.3% | #48 of 387 |
| 3Clarksville, TN-KY | 64 | 124 | 9.9 | $834K | +8.5% | #92 of 387 |
| 4Chattanooga, TN-GA | 54 | 268 | 11.6 | $766K | +5.3% | #168 of 387 |
| 5Jackson, TN | 52 | 69 | 9.5 | $817K | +2.2% | #179 of 387 |
| 6Johnson City, TN | 51 | 86 | 9.7 | $805K | +4.3% | #187 of 387 |
| 7Cleveland, TN | 49 | 62 | 12.4 | $652K | +6.1% | #204 of 387 |
| 8Knoxville, TN | 48 | 457 | 12.1 | $731K | +6.9% | #211 of 387 |
| 9Kingsport-Bristol, TN-VA | 45 | 146 | 11.2 | $699K | +2.3% | #238 of 387 |
| 10Morristown, TN | 28 | 70 | 14.6 | $535K | +7.9% | #350 of 387 |
Other business types in the Knoxville 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 businesses48
- Veterinarians46
- Pet grooming and boarding45
- Pet stores65
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many pet businesses are in the Knoxville, TN metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 457 pet businesses in the Knoxville metro area. 74 of them (16%) are chain locations. The listings count vets, groomers, boarding and pet stores. Official counts show 232 businesses with payroll classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in 2023, up 4.2% from 2019. Official counts list 521 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Knoxville, TN metro area spend on pets?
About $334M a year, or $883 per household. That is 3% below the U.S. average (an index of 97, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 457 pet businesses on map listings, it comes to $731K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 378,234 households in the Knoxville metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Knoxville, TN metro area compare with the U.S. for pet businesses?
The Knoxville metro area has 12.1 pet businesses per 10,000 households, 16% above the U.S. rate of 10.4. Spending per business is $731K, 17% below the U.S. figure of $878K. At the U.S. ratio of pet businesses to household spending, the Knoxville metro area would have about 380, against 457 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,630 households, against one for every 1,852 across the U.S. The official count rose 4.2% from 2019 to 2023, against +11.4% for the U.S.
How fast is the Knoxville, TN metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Knoxville metro area at 968,137 people in 2025, up 6.9% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 378,234 households. Median household income in the Knoxville metro area is $72,422, 10% below the U.S. median of $80,734.
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 Knoxville metro area scores 48 for pet businesses (lower middle), #211 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 Knoxville 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 Knoxville metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Knoxville 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 Knoxville 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.