U.S. convenience store census shows continued growth

NACS store counts shows more than 152,000 c-stores operate in the U.S., up 1.5% from 2023.

The U.S. convenience store industry has added more retail locations to the c-store universe for the second consecutive year.

There are 152,396 convenience stores operating in the United States, a 1.5% increase from last year’s store count, according to the 2024 NACS/NIQ Convenience Industry Store Count.

Convenience stores sell an estimated 80% of the fuels purchased by consumers in the United States. The newly released c-store census shows that 120,061 convenience stores sell fuels, a 1.2% increase over 118,678 stores in 2023.

The bulk of convenience stores comes from “A-sized” (1-10 stores) operators at 96,156 locations (63.1% of total c-stores), of which 91,799 are single-store operators, up slightly from 90,423 stores in 2023. Second are “E-sized” operators with more than 500 stores.

Nearly every state increased its store count including Texas, which continues to have the most convenience stores (16,304 stores), or more than 1 in 10 stores in the United States. After losing 53 stores in 2023, California added 177 to its store count.

With the U.S. population at an estimated 336 million, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, there is one convenience store per every 2,204 people.