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Pets · County · California

Pet grooming and boarding businesses in Alameda County, CA

How Alameda County, CA compares with other counties and the U.S. for pet grooming and boarding businesses: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 78 out of 100: High

Ranked #80 of 1,461 scored counties
#16 of 45 scored counties in California

Listings
131
15 chain locations (11%)
Official establishments
77
−9.4% since 2019
Household spending a year
$797.4M
On pets · $1,333 a household
Spending per listing
$6.1M
2.4 times the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
2.2
39% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
1,636,630
−2.6% since 2020

See the pet grooming and boarding businesses around any address in Alameda County

The site report maps the pet grooming and boarding 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 Alameda County. 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

For pet grooming and boarding businesses, Alameda County has a Groundwork market score of 78 (high): #80 of 1,461 scored counties and #16 of 45 scored counties in California. That puts it in the top 10% of counties for pet grooming and boarding businesses.

As of September 2026, map listings count 131 pet grooming and boarding businesses in Alameda County. Chain locations make up 11% of them, against 9% across the U.S. That comes to 2.2 for every 10,000 households, 39% below the U.S. rate of 3.6.

At $1,333 per household (47% above the U.S. average), households in Alameda County spend about $797.4M a year on pets. That works out to $6.1M per business, 2.4 times the U.S. figure of $2.5M. That spending covers all pets, which pet grooming and boarding businesses share with other businesses in the trade.

In 2023, official counts showed 77 businesses with payroll in Alameda County classed as pet care (except veterinary), down 9.4% from 2019. That is one for every 7,769 households, against one for every 5,057 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 6 SBA-backed loans worth $5.9M have gone to businesses classed as pet care (except veterinary) in Alameda County. Population estimates put the population change in Alameda County from 2020 to 2025 at −2.6%, against +3.1% for the U.S.

How Alameda County compares

The same measures for California and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all pets by the pet grooming and boarding 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 grooming and boarding in Alameda County, CA compared with California and the U.S.
MeasureAlameda CountyCaliforniaU.S.
Listings per 10k households2.23.03.6
Spending per listing$6.1M$3.8M$2.5M
Households per official establishment7,7695,2295,057
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−9.4%+21.4%+25.2%
Population growth, 2020–2025−2.6%−0.4%+3.1%
Spending per household on pets$1,333$1,149$909
Median household income$129,367$99,122$80,734
Groundwork market score7869

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
85 → 77−9.4% over the period
Employees, 2023
774
Annual payroll, 2023
$29.3M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
13115 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
313The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
6
Amount
$5.9M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as pet care (except veterinary) in Alameda 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 Alameda County

Population, 2025 estimate
1,636,630−2.6% since 2020
Households
598,246
Median age
40.1
Homes lived in by their owners
54%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
738 sq. mi.
People per square mile
2,237
Median household income
$129,367+30.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$177,147
Median home value
$1,090,100
Jobs located here
831,131
Daytime population
1,673,490Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Alameda 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 grooming and boarding businesses on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of Alameda County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Pet grooming and boarding across California

Every California market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in California for pet grooming and boarding businesses, numbered among those based in California, with Alameda County marked.

Top counties in California

Counties in California ranked for pet grooming and boarding businesses by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1San Joaquin County, CA91512.1$5.2M+5.5%#2 of 1,461
2San Benito County, CA8983.9$3.2M+8.6%#10 of 1,461
3Placer County, CA85573.6$3.5M+8.9%#21 of 1,461
4Madera County, CA85163.5$2.7M+7.4%#23 of 1,461
5Sacramento County, CA841302.3$4.7M+2.0%#25 of 1,461
6Yolo County, CA84233.0$3.6M+3.1%#28 of 1,461
7Fresno County, CA83702.2$4.4M+2.6%#33 of 1,461
8Merced County, CA83242.8$3.1M+5.1%#37 of 1,461
9Kern County, CA81732.6$3.6M+2.3%#48 of 1,461
10Tulare County, CA81382.7$3.4M+2.4%#49 of 1,461
16Alameda County, CA781312.2$6.1M−2.6%#80 of 1,461

Other business types in Alameda County

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

Pets

Funeral services

Questions

How many pet grooming and boarding businesses are in Alameda County, CA?

Alameda County has 131 pet grooming and boarding businesses on map listings as of September 2026. 15 of them (11%) are chain locations. The listings count groomers, boarding, dog daycare and pet sitters. Official counts show 77 businesses with payroll classed as pet care (except veterinary) in 2023, down 9.4% from 2019.

How much do households in Alameda County, CA spend on pets?

About $797.4M a year, or $1,333 per household. That is 47% above the U.S. average (an index of 147, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 131 pet grooming and boarding businesses on map listings, it comes to $6.1M per business. The spending figure covers all pets, not only pet grooming and boarding businesses. It is estimated from the incomes of the 598,246 households in Alameda County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Alameda County, CA compare with the U.S. for pet grooming and boarding businesses?

Alameda County has 2.2 pet grooming and boarding businesses per 10,000 households, 39% below the U.S. rate of 3.6. Spending per business is $6.1M, 2.4 times the U.S. figure of $2.5M. At the national ratio of pet grooming and boarding businesses to household spending, Alameda County would have about 313, against 131 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 7,769 households, against one for every 5,057 across the U.S. The official count fell 9.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +25.2% for the U.S.

How fast is Alameda County, CA growing?

Population estimates put Alameda County at 1,636,630 people in 2025, down 2.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 598,246 households. The median household income in Alameda County is $129,367 a year, 60% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 30.1% from the 2015–2019 survey, 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. Alameda County scores 78 for pet grooming and boarding businesses (high), #80 of 1,461 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Alameda County. It maps the pet grooming and boarding 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 grooming and boarding businesses · All 56 business types in Alameda County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Alameda County?

A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.

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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.