Food and drink · Metro area · Connecticut
Pizza places in the Waterbury-Shelton, CT metro area
The pizza places in the Waterbury-Shelton, CT metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 56 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #150 of 387 scored metro areas
#1 of 5 scored metro areas based in Connecticut
- Listings
- 185
- 33 chain locations (18%)
- Official establishments
- 332
- All limited-service restaurants
- Household spending a year
- $757.3M
- On food away from home · $4,205 a household
- Spending per listing
- $4.1M
- 19% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 10.3
- 29% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 463,349
- +3.2% since 2020
See the pizza places around any address in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area
The site report maps the pizza places 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 Waterbury-Shelton metro area. 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 $4,205 per household (3% above the U.S. average), households in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area spend about $757.3M a year on food away from home. Spread across 185 pizza places, that is $4.1M per pizza place, 19% below the U.S. figure of $5.1M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only pizza places.
There are 185 pizza places on map listings in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area as of September 2026. Of those, 33 are chain locations, or 18%, against 58% across the U.S. That comes to 10.3 for every 10,000 households, 29% above the U.S. rate of 8.0.
Official counts show 332 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area in 2023. That is one for every 543 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S. That count covers all limited-service restaurants (fast food and sandwich shops included), not only pizza places. Another 86 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $655K have gone to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area.
Population estimates show the Waterbury-Shelton metro area grew 3.2% from 2020 to 2025, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). For pizza places, the Waterbury-Shelton metro area has a Groundwork market score of 56 (upper middle): #150 of 387 scored metro areas and #1 of 5 scored metro areas based in Connecticut.
How the Waterbury-Shelton metro area compares
The same measures for Connecticut and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all food away from home by the pizza places 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 | Waterbury-Shelton metro area | Connecticut | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 10.3 | 10.7 | 8.0 |
| Spending per listing | $4.1M | $4.2M | $5.1M |
| Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants) | 543 | 497 | 478 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +7.5% | +6.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.2% | +3.0% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $4,205 | $4,498 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $86,191 | $95,781 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 56 | 48 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 332All limited-service restaurants
- Employees, 2023
- 4,428
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $96.2M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 86All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 18533 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 149The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 4
- Amount
- $655K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in the Waterbury-Shelton 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. These official figures cover all limited-service restaurants, not only pizza places.
Population and households in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 463,349+3.2% since 2020
- Households
- 180,116
- Median age
- 42.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 69%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 413 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 1,102
- Median household income
- $86,191
- Average household income
- $114,324
- Median home value
- $317,700
- Jobs located here
- 164,434
- Daytime population
- 395,318Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Waterbury-Shelton 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 pizza places on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Waterbury-Shelton metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardPizza across Connecticut
Every Connecticut market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Connecticut for pizza places, numbered among those based in Connecticut, with the Waterbury-Shelton metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Connecticut
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Waterbury-Shelton, CT | 56 | 185 | 10.3 | $4.1M | +3.2% | #150 of 387 |
| 2Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT | 55 | 365 | 10.3 | $4.9M | +3.7% | #157 of 387 |
| 3Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT | 55 | 494 | 10.6 | $4.2M | +3.0% | #158 of 387 |
| 4New Haven, CT | 41 | 268 | 11.6 | $3.7M | +2.5% | #265 of 387 |
| 5Norwich-New London-Willimantic, CT | 39 | 137 | 11.8 | $3.5M | +2.0% | #281 of 387 |
Other business types in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area
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
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many pizza places are in the Waterbury-Shelton, CT metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 185 pizza places in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area. 33 of them (18%) are chain locations. The listings count pizza restaurants. Official counts show 332 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in 2023. The official count takes in all limited-service restaurants, not only pizza places: fast food and sandwich shops are counted too. Official counts list 86 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Waterbury-Shelton, CT metro area spend on food away from home?
About $757.3M a year, or $4,205 per household. That is 3% above the U.S. average (an index of 103, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 185 pizza places on map listings, it comes to $4.1M per pizza place. That spending covers all food away from home, which pizza places share with other businesses in the trade. It is estimated from the incomes of the 180,116 households in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Waterbury-Shelton, CT metro area compare with the U.S. for pizza places?
The Waterbury-Shelton metro area has 10.3 pizza places per 10,000 households, 29% above the U.S. rate of 8.0. Spending per pizza place is $4.1M, 19% below the U.S. figure of $5.1M. At the U.S. ratio of pizza places to household spending, the Waterbury-Shelton metro area would have about 149, against 185 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 543 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S.
How fast is the Waterbury-Shelton, CT metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Waterbury-Shelton metro area at 463,349 people in 2025, up 3.2% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 180,116 households. Median household income in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area is $86,191, 7% above the U.S. median of $80,734.
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 Waterbury-Shelton metro area scores 56 for pizza places (upper middle), #150 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area. It maps the pizza places 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 pizza places · All 56 business types in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Waterbury-Shelton 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 Waterbury-Shelton 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.