Pets · County · Iowa
Pet grooming and boarding businesses in Story County, IA
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for pet grooming and boarding businesses in Story County, IA, set against other counties and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 71 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #199 of 1,461 scored counties
#3 of 28 scored counties in Iowa
- Listings
- 9
- 1 chain location (11%)
- Official establishments
- 7
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $32.4M
- On pets · $832 a household
- Spending per listing
- $3.6M
- 41% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 2.3
- 36% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 101,291
- +2.7% since 2020
See the pet grooming and boarding businesses around any address in Story 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 Story County. 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
At $832 per household (8% below the U.S. average), households in Story County spend about $32.4M a year on pets. Spread across 9 pet grooming and boarding businesses, that is $3.6M per business, 41% above the U.S. figure of $2.5M. The spending figure covers all pets, not only pet grooming and boarding businesses.
Story County has 9 pet grooming and boarding businesses on map listings as of September 2026. One of them (11%) is a chain location, against 9% across the U.S. That comes to 2.3 for every 10,000 households, 36% below the U.S. rate of 3.6.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as pet care (except veterinary) in Story County was 7 in 2023. That is one for every 5,558 households, against one for every 5,057 across the U.S.
Population estimates put the population change in Story County from 2020 to 2025 at +2.7%, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). For pet grooming and boarding businesses, Story County has a Groundwork market score of 71 (upper middle): #199 of 1,461 scored counties and #3 of 28 scored counties in Iowa. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.
How Story County compares
The same measures for Iowa 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.
| Measure | Story County | Iowa | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 2.3 | 3.9 | 3.6 |
| Spending per listing | $3.6M | $2.2M | $2.5M |
| Households per official establishment | 5,558 | 4,460 | 5,057 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +39.8% | +25.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.7% | +1.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on pets | $832 | $843 | $909 |
| Median household income | $69,685 | $75,059 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 71 | 35 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 7 → 7
- Employees, 2023
- 42
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $1.3M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 91 chain location
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 13The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as pet care (except veterinary) in Story 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 Story County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 101,291+2.7% since 2020
- Households
- 38,904
- Median age
- 33.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 56%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 573 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 175
- Median household income
- $69,685+22.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $96,918
- Median home value
- $258,700
- Jobs located here
- 47,997
- Daytime population
- 107,341Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Story 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 Story County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardPet grooming and boarding across Iowa
Every Iowa market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Iowa for pet grooming and boarding businesses, numbered among those based in Iowa, with Story County marked.
Top counties in Iowa
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Dallas County, IA | 75 | 12 | 2.8 | $3.7M | +17.8% | #116 of 1,461 |
| 2Johnson County, IA | 73 | 16 | 2.5 | $3.5M | +4.6% | #152 of 1,461 |
| 3Story County, IA | 71 | 9 | 2.3 | $3.6M | +2.7% | #199 of 1,461 |
| 4Warren County, IA | 70 | 6 | 2.9 | $3.3M | +9.0% | #226 of 1,461 |
| 5Scott County, IA | 61 | 29 | 4.0 | $2.2M | +0.4% | #456 of 1,461 |
| 6Pottawattamie County, IA | 61 | 14 | 3.7 | $2.2M | −0.7% | #458 of 1,461 |
| 7Woodbury County, IA | 57 | 7 | 1.7 | $4.7M | +0.7% | #544 of 1,461 |
| 8Polk County, IA | 57 | 85 | 4.1 | $2.2M | +4.8% | #555 of 1,461 |
| 9Black Hawk County, IA | 57 | 20 | 3.7 | $2.1M | +0.4% | #558 of 1,461 |
| 10Clinton County, IA | 51 | 6 | 3.1 | $2.6M | −0.9% | #701 of 1,461 |
Other business types in Story County
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 businesses36
- Veterinarians28
- Pet grooming and boarding71
- Pet stores31
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many pet grooming and boarding businesses are in Story County, IA?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 9 pet grooming and boarding businesses in Story County. One of them (11%) is a chain location. The listings count groomers, boarding, dog daycare and pet sitters. Official counts show 7 businesses with payroll classed as pet care (except veterinary) in 2023.
How much do households in Story County, IA spend on pets?
About $32.4M a year, or $832 per household. That is 8% below the U.S. average (an index of 92, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 9 pet grooming and boarding businesses on map listings, it comes to $3.6M per business. That spending covers all pets, which pet grooming and boarding businesses share with other businesses in the trade. It is estimated from the incomes of the 38,904 households in Story County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Story County, IA compare with the U.S. for pet grooming and boarding businesses?
Story County has 2.3 pet grooming and boarding businesses per 10,000 households, 36% below the U.S. rate of 3.6. Spending per business is $3.6M, 41% above the U.S. figure of $2.5M. At the U.S. ratio of pet grooming and boarding businesses to household spending, Story County would have about 13, against 9 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 5,558 households, against one for every 5,057 across the U.S.
How fast is Story County, IA growing?
Population estimates put Story County at 101,291 people in 2025, up 2.7% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 38,904 households. Median household income in Story County is $69,685, 14% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 22.8%, 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. Story County scores 71 for pet grooming and boarding businesses (upper middle), #199 of 1,461 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Story 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 Story County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Story County?
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 Story County. 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.