Groundwork

Food and drink · Metro area · West Virginia

Pizza places in the Charleston, WV metro area

The pizza places in the Charleston, WV metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 12 out of 100: Low

Ranked #381 of 387 scored metro areas
#5 of 7 scored metro areas based in West Virginia

Listings
92
74 chain locations (80%)
Official establishments
188
All limited-service restaurants · −3.6% since 2019
Household spending a year
$290.8M
On food away from home · $3,329 a household
Spending per listing
$3.2M
38% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
10.5
31% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
200,170
−4.7% since 2020

See the pizza places around any address in the Charleston 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 Charleston 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

The Charleston metro area scores 12 (low) on the Groundwork market score for pizza places, ranking #381 of 387 scored metro areas and #5 of 7 scored metro areas based in West Virginia. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.

Households in the Charleston metro area spend about $290.8M a year on food away from home, or $3,329 per household, 18% below the U.S. average. Spread across 92 pizza places, that is $3.2M per pizza place, 38% below the U.S. figure of $5.1M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only pizza places.

The Charleston metro area has 92 pizza places on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 74 are chain locations, or 80%, against 58% across the U.S. That comes to 10.5 for every 10,000 households, 31% above the U.S. rate of 8.0.

Official counts show 188 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in the Charleston metro area in 2023, down 3.6% from 2019. That is one for every 465 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. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $295K has gone to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in the Charleston metro area. Population estimates show the Charleston metro area declined 4.7% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S.

How the Charleston metro area compares

The same measures for West Virginia 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.

Pizza in Charleston, WV metro area compared with West Virginia and the U.S.
MeasureCharleston metro areaWest VirginiaU.S.
Listings per 10k households10.510.98.0
Spending per listing$3.2M$3.1M$5.1M
Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants)465564478
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−3.6%−1.5%+6.1%
Population growth, 2020–2025−4.7%−1.4%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,329$3,343$4,070
Median household income$60,117$59,608$80,734
Groundwork market score1220

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
188All limited-service restaurants · −3.6% over the period
Employees, 2023
3,848
Annual payroll, 2023
$69.1M
One-person businesses, 2023
7All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
9274 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
57The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
1
Amount
$295K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in the Charleston 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 Charleston metro area

Population, 2025 estimate
200,170−4.7% since 2020
Households
87,358
Median age
43.9
Homes lived in by their owners
72%
Vehicles per household
1.6
Land area
1,746 sq. mi.
People per square mile
118
Median household income
$60,117
Average household income
$81,990
Median home value
$141,100
Jobs located here
110,278
Daytime population
231,110Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Charleston 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 Charleston metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Pizza across West Virginia

Every West Virginia market ranked →

The highest-scoring metro areas in West Virginia for pizza places, numbered among those based in West Virginia (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Charleston metro area marked.

Top metro areas in West Virginia

Metro areas in West Virginia ranked for pizza places by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV691,5816.7$7.7M+3.3%#61 of 387
Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV62988.3$4.6M+7.1%#106 of 387
Winchester, VA-WV56539.5$4.2M+6.5%#149 of 387
1Morgantown, WV217312.7$2.8M+1.3%#369 of 387
2Weirton-Steubenville, WV-OH216112.3$2.7M−3.6%#370 of 387
3Beckley, WV205211.6$2.7M−4.3%#372 of 387
4Parkersburg-Vienna, WV134211.1$2.9M−2.3%#380 of 387
5Charleston, WV129210.5$3.2M−4.7%#381 of 387
6Wheeling, WV-OH117613.1$2.6M−3.6%#384 of 387
7Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH917811.7$2.9M−2.6%#387 of 387

Other business types in the Charleston metro area

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

Questions

How many pizza places are in the Charleston, WV metro area?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 92 pizza places in the Charleston metro area. 74 of them (80%) are chain locations. The listings count pizza restaurants. Official counts show 188 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in 2023, down 3.6% from 2019. The official count takes in all limited-service restaurants, not only pizza places: fast food and sandwich shops are counted too. Another 7 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

How much do households in the Charleston, WV metro area spend on food away from home?

About $290.8M a year, or $3,329 per household. That is 18% below the U.S. average (an index of 82, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 92 pizza places on map listings, it comes to $3.2M 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 87,358 households in the Charleston metro area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Charleston, WV metro area compare with the U.S. for pizza places?

The Charleston metro area has 10.5 pizza places per 10,000 households, 31% above the U.S. rate of 8.0. Spending per pizza place is $3.2M, 38% below the U.S. figure of $5.1M. At the U.S. ratio of pizza places to household spending, the Charleston metro area would have about 57, against 92 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 465 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S. The official count fell 3.6% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.1% for the U.S.

How fast is the Charleston, WV metro area growing?

Population estimates put the Charleston metro area at 200,170 people in 2025, down 4.7% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 87,358 households. Median household income in the Charleston metro area is $60,117, 26% below 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 Charleston metro area scores 12 for pizza places (low), #381 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 Charleston 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 Charleston metro area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Charleston 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 Charleston 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.