Groundwork

Pets · Metro area · Pennsylvania

Pet stores in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD metro area

The pet stores in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 32 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #319 of 382 scored metro areas
#6 of 16 scored metro areas based in Pennsylvania

Listings
467
218 chain locations (47%)
Official establishments
212
−20.5% since 2019
Household spending a year
$1.9B
On pets · $750 a household
Spending per listing
$4M
12% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
1.9
5% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
6,329,118
+1.4% since 2020

See the pet stores around any address in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area

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 the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area. 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 stores, the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area has a Groundwork market score of 32 (lower middle): #319 of 382 scored metro areas and #6 of 16 scored metro areas based in Pennsylvania. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.

As of September 2026, map listings count 467 pet stores in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area. 218 of them (47%) are chain locations, against 38% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 1.9, 5% below the U.S. rate of 2.0.

Household spending on pets in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area comes to about $1.9B a year: $750 per household, 17% below the U.S. average. That works out to $4M per store, 12% below the U.S. figure of $4.5M. That spending covers all pets, which pet stores share with other businesses in the trade.

Official counts show 212 businesses with payroll classed as pet and pet supplies stores in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area in 2023, down 20.5% from 2019. That is one for every 11,640 households, against one for every 13,024 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 10 SBA-backed loans worth $2.8M have gone to businesses classed as pet and pet supplies stores in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area. Population estimates put the population change in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area from 2020 to 2025 at +1.4%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area compares

The same measures for Pennsylvania 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 Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD metro area compared with Pennsylvania and the U.S.
MeasurePhiladelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro areaPennsylvaniaU.S.
Listings per 10k households1.92.12.0
Spending per listing$4M$3.1M$4.5M
Households per official establishment11,64013,70113,024
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−20.5%−14.1%−1.6%
Population growth, 2020–2025+1.4%+0.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on pets$750$647$909
Median household income$91,289$77,971$80,734
Groundwork market score3218

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
212−20.5% over the period
Employees, 2023
2,935
Annual payroll, 2023
$84M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
467218 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
409The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
10
Amount
$2.8M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as pet and pet supplies stores in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington 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 Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area

Population, 2025 estimate
6,329,118+1.4% since 2020
Households
2,467,761
Median age
40.5
Homes lived in by their owners
67%
Vehicles per household
1.6
Land area
4,603 sq. mi.
People per square mile
1,363
Median household income
$91,289+26.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$126,166
Median home value
$351,900
Jobs located here
2,980,509
Daytime population
6,255,075Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington 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 stores on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Pet stores across Pennsylvania

Every Pennsylvania market ranked →

The highest-scoring metro areas in Pennsylvania for pet stores, numbered among those based in Pennsylvania, with the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area marked.

Top metro areas in Pennsylvania

Metro areas in Pennsylvania ranked for pet stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Williamsport, PA4651.1$5.2M−1.3%#218 of 382
2Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA46461.9$3.5M+4.2%#225 of 382
3Erie, PA39131.2$4.8M−1.8%#268 of 382
4Gettysburg, PA3371.7$3.8M+3.6%#314 of 382
5Chambersburg, PA33142.2$2.8M+3.0%#317 of 382
6Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD324671.9$4M+1.4%#319 of 382
7Lebanon, PA32152.6$2.4M+2.2%#323 of 382
8Lancaster, PA29653.1$2.2M+1.9%#337 of 382
9York-Hanover, PA27522.9$2.3M+3.6%#345 of 382
10Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ26862.5$2.7M+3.0%#347 of 382

Other business types in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area

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

Questions

How many pet stores are in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD metro area?

The Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area has 467 pet stores on map listings as of September 2026. 218 of them (47%) are chain locations. The listings count pet stores. Official counts show 212 businesses with payroll classed as pet and pet supplies stores in 2023, down 20.5% from 2019.

How much do households in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD metro area spend on pets?

About $1.9B a year, or $750 per household. That is 17% below the U.S. average (an index of 83, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 467 pet stores on map listings, it comes to $4M per store. The spending figure covers all pets, not only pet stores. It is estimated from the incomes of the 2,467,761 households in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD metro area compare with the U.S. for pet stores?

The Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area has 1.9 pet stores per 10,000 households, 5% below the U.S. rate of 2.0. Spending per store is $4M, 12% below the U.S. figure of $4.5M. At the national ratio of pet stores to household spending, the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area would have about 409, against 467 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 11,640 households, against one for every 13,024 across the U.S. The official count fell 20.5% from 2019 to 2023, against −1.6% for the U.S.

How fast is the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD metro area growing?

Population estimates put the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area at 6,329,118 people in 2025, up 1.4% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 2,467,761 households. Median household income in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area is $91,289, 13% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 26.2%, 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. The Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area scores 32 for pet stores (lower middle), #319 of 382 scored metro areas.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area. 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 the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington 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 Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington 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.