Pets · County · New Hampshire
Pet grooming and boarding businesses in Merrimack County, NH
How Merrimack County, NH 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 20 out of 100: Low
Ranked #1,364 of 1,461 scored counties
#8 of 10 scored counties in New Hampshire
- Listings
- 47
- 4 chain locations (9%)
- Official establishments
- 18
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $43.6M
- On pets · $716 a household
- Spending per listing
- $928K
- 64% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 7.7
- 2.1 times the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 158,078
- +2.6% since 2020
See the pet grooming and boarding businesses around any address in Merrimack 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 Merrimack 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
The Groundwork market score for pet grooming and boarding businesses in Merrimack County is 20 (low), #1,364 of 1,461 scored counties and #8 of 10 scored counties in New Hampshire. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
Households in Merrimack County spend about $43.6M a year on pets, or $716 per household, 21% below the U.S. average. Spread across 47 pet grooming and boarding businesses, that is $928K per business, 64% below the U.S. figure of $2.5M. The spending figure covers all pets, not only pet grooming and boarding businesses.
There are 47 pet grooming and boarding businesses on map listings in Merrimack County as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 9% of them, against 9% across the U.S. That is 7.7 per 10,000 households, 2.1 times the U.S. rate of 3.6.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as pet care (except veterinary) in Merrimack County was 18 in 2023. That is one for every 3,383 households, against one for every 5,057 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 6 SBA-backed loans worth $946K have gone to businesses classed as pet care (except veterinary) in Merrimack County. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Merrimack County grew 2.6%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Merrimack County compares
The same measures for New Hampshire 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 | Merrimack County | New Hampshire | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 7.7 | 6.1 | 3.6 |
| Spending per listing | $928K | $1.2M | $2.5M |
| Households per official establishment | 3,383 | 2,659 | 5,057 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +31.5% | +25.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.6% | +2.7% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on pets | $716 | $740 | $909 |
| Median household income | $97,004 | $99,031 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 20 | 13 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 18 → 18
- Employees, 2023
- 60
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $1.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 474 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 17The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 6
- Amount
- $946K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as pet care (except veterinary) in Merrimack 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 Merrimack County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 158,078+2.6% since 2020
- Households
- 60,901
- Median age
- 43.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 73%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 933 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 167
- Median household income
- $97,004+28.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $123,673
- Median home value
- $367,600
- Jobs located here
- 83,058
- Daytime population
- 159,180Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Merrimack 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 Merrimack 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 New Hampshire
Every New Hampshire market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in New Hampshire for pet grooming and boarding businesses, numbered among those based in New Hampshire, with Merrimack County marked.
Top counties in New Hampshire
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Grafton County, NH | 35 | 19 | 5.1 | $1.3M | +2.2% | #1,085 of 1,461 |
| 2Hillsborough County, NH | 32 | 79 | 4.7 | $1.6M | +2.5% | #1,139 of 1,461 |
| 3Cheshire County, NH | 30 | 11 | 3.6 | $1.8M | +2.3% | #1,181 of 1,461 |
| 4Carroll County, NH | 30 | 14 | 6.4 | $1M | +5.0% | #1,198 of 1,461 |
| 5Sullivan County, NH | 27 | 7 | 4.2 | $1.5M | +2.1% | #1,245 of 1,461 |
| 6Rockingham County, NH | 25 | 99 | 7.8 | $1.1M | +3.0% | #1,288 of 1,461 |
| 7Strafford County, NH | 24 | 30 | 5.8 | $1.2M | +3.0% | #1,306 of 1,461 |
| 8Merrimack County, NH | 20 | 47 | 7.7 | $928K | +2.6% | #1,364 of 1,461 |
| 9Belknap County, NH | 15 | 19 | 7.2 | $959K | +2.1% | #1,420 of 1,461 |
| 10Coos County, NH | 8 | 12 | 8.6 | $622K | +0.4% | #1,450 of 1,461 |
Other business types in Merrimack 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 businesses20
- Veterinarians23
- Pet grooming and boarding20
- Pet stores35
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many pet grooming and boarding businesses are in Merrimack County, NH?
As of September 2026, map listings count 47 pet grooming and boarding businesses in Merrimack County. 4 of them (9%) are chain locations. The listings count groomers, boarding, dog daycare and pet sitters. Official counts show 18 businesses with payroll classed as pet care (except veterinary) in 2023.
How much do households in Merrimack County, NH spend on pets?
About $43.6M a year, or $716 per household. That is 21% below the U.S. average (an index of 79, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 47 pet grooming and boarding businesses on map listings, it comes to $928K 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 60,901 households in Merrimack County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Merrimack County, NH compare with the U.S. for pet grooming and boarding businesses?
Merrimack County has 7.7 pet grooming and boarding businesses per 10,000 households, 2.1 times the U.S. rate of 3.6. Spending per business is $928K, 64% below the U.S. figure of $2.5M. At the U.S. ratio of pet grooming and boarding businesses to household spending, Merrimack County would have about 17, against 47 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 3,383 households, against one for every 5,057 across the U.S.
How fast is Merrimack County, NH growing?
Population estimates put Merrimack County at 158,078 people in 2025, up 2.6% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 60,901 households. Median household income in Merrimack County is $97,004, 20% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 28.1%, 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. Merrimack County scores 20 for pet grooming and boarding businesses (low), #1,364 of 1,461 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Merrimack 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 Merrimack County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Merrimack 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 Merrimack 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.