Groundwork

Pets · County · New Jersey

Pet stores in Mercer County, NJ

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for pet stores in Mercer County, NJ, set against other counties and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 54 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #414 of 974 scored counties
#8 of 20 scored counties in New Jersey

Listings
29
11 chain locations (38%)
Official establishments
9
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$110.1M
On pets · $764 a household
Spending per listing
$3.8M
16% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
2.0
In line with the U.S.
Population, 2025
399,289
+3.3% since 2020

See the pet stores around any address in Mercer County

The site report maps the pet stores 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 Mercer County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Survey 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 29 pet stores in Mercer County. 11 of them (38%) are chain locations, against 38% across the U.S. That is 2.0 per 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 2.0.

At $764 per household (16% below the U.S. average), households in Mercer County spend about $110.1M a year on pets. Spread across 29 pet stores, that is $3.8M per store, 16% below the U.S. figure of $4.5M. That spending covers all pets, which pet stores share with other businesses in the trade.

In 2023, official counts showed 9 businesses with payroll in Mercer County classed as pet and pet supplies stores. That is one for every 16,013 households, against one for every 13,024 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $800K has gone to businesses classed as pet and pet supplies stores in Mercer County.

Population estimates put the population change in Mercer County from 2020 to 2025 at +3.3%, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for pet stores in Mercer County is 54 (upper middle), #414 of 974 scored counties and #8 of 20 scored counties in New Jersey.

How Mercer County compares

The same measures for New Jersey and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all pets by the pet stores 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 stores in Mercer County, NJ compared with New Jersey and the U.S.
MeasureMercer CountyNew JerseyU.S.
Listings per 10k households2.02.02.0
Spending per listing$3.8M$3.9M$4.5M
Households per official establishment16,01313,81013,024
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a−21.8%−1.6%
Population growth, 2020–2025+3.3%+3.0%+3.1%
Spending per household on pets$764$774$909
Median household income$100,645$103,556$80,734
Groundwork market score5436

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
14 → 9
Employees, 2023
142
Annual payroll, 2023
$4.5M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
2911 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
24The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
1
Amount
$800K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as pet and pet supplies stores in Mercer 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 Mercer County

Population, 2025 estimate
399,289+3.3% since 2020
Households
144,114
Median age
40.4
Homes lived in by their owners
62%
Vehicles per household
1.6
Land area
225 sq. mi.
People per square mile
1,719
Median household income
$100,645+24.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$142,372
Median home value
$377,700
Jobs located here
262,034
Daytime population
469,892Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Mercer 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 stores on map listings by name and distance.

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

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Pet stores across New Jersey

Every New Jersey market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in New Jersey for pet stores, numbered among those based in New Jersey, with Mercer County marked.

Top counties in New Jersey

Counties in New Jersey ranked for pet stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Middlesex County, NJ73381.2$6.5M+2.6%#126 of 974
2Essex County, NJ70391.2$5.7M+4.2%#165 of 974
3Hudson County, NJ66401.3$5.5M+1.8%#225 of 974
4Union County, NJ63351.7$4.6M+5.0%#272 of 974
5Cumberland County, NJ5650.9$6.3M+2.2%#373 of 974
6Passaic County, NJ56281.6$4.5M+1.6%#383 of 974
7Ocean County, NJ56441.8$3.9M+5.6%#390 of 974
8Mercer County, NJ54292.0$3.8M+3.3%#414 of 974
9Somerset County, NJ47362.8$3.3M+3.5%#541 of 974
10Bergen County, NJ46912.6$3.4M+2.4%#556 of 974

Other business types in Mercer County

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

Questions

How many pet stores are in Mercer County, NJ?

There are 29 pet stores on map listings in Mercer County as of September 2026. 11 of them (38%) are chain locations. The listings count pet stores. Official counts show 9 businesses with payroll classed as pet and pet supplies stores in 2023.

How much do households in Mercer County, NJ spend on pets?

About $110.1M a year, or $764 per household. That is 16% below the U.S. average (an index of 84, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 29 pet stores on map listings, it comes to $3.8M per store. The spending figure covers all pets, not only pet stores. It is estimated from the incomes of the 144,114 households in Mercer County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Mercer County, NJ compare with the U.S. for pet stores?

Mercer County has 2.0 pet stores per 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 2.0. Spending per store is $3.8M, 16% below the U.S. figure of $4.5M. At the national ratio of pet stores to household spending, Mercer County would have about 24, against 29 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 16,013 households, against one for every 13,024 across the U.S.

How fast is Mercer County, NJ growing?

Population estimates put Mercer County at 399,289 people in 2025, up 3.3% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 144,114 households. Median household income in Mercer County is $100,645, 25% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 24.2%, 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. Mercer County scores 54 for pet stores (upper middle), #414 of 974 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Mercer County. It maps the pet stores 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 stores · All 56 business types in Mercer County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Mercer 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 Mercer 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.