Biggest Retail Cities in Delaware: Top 25 Towns Ranked
Delaware has 7,192 independent retail places spread across 56 towns. Wilmington leads with 1,559 — 21.7% of the state. The top 25 towns, and the eight most common store types, by count.
Published September 15, 2026 · Useful Economy Research
Delaware by the numbers
Where the stores are
Delaware has 7,192 independent retail places — 697.0 per 100,000 residents, 0.96× the national average of 724.8 and 40th of the 50 states and D.C. on retail density.
Wilmington holds 1,559 of them (21.7% of the state total). Newark is second with 869 (12.1%). The 25 towns below account for 88.9% of Delaware's retail; 56 towns in the state have at least five places.
The most common store type is the construction supplies store (1,002, 13.9% of the state's retail), followed by miscellaneous stores (501).
Top 25 retail towns in Delaware
Independent retail places per city or town, with each town's share of Delaware's 7,192 total. Only towns with at least five places are counted.
| # | City / town | Retail places | Share of state |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wilmington | 1,559 | 21.7% |
| 2 | Newark | 869 | 12.1% |
| 3 | Dover | 586 | 8.1% |
| 4 | Rehoboth Beach | 574 | 8.0% |
| 5 | New Castle | 349 | 4.9% |
| 6 | Lewes | 326 | 4.5% |
| 7 | Middletown | 258 | 3.6% |
| 8 | Milford | 200 | 2.8% |
| 9 | Millsboro | 190 | 2.6% |
| 10 | Bear | 185 | 2.6% |
| 11 | Seaford | 174 | 2.4% |
| 12 | Georgetown | 123 | 1.7% |
| 13 | Smyrna | 112 | 1.6% |
| 14 | Bethany Beach | 107 | 1.5% |
| 15 | Laurel | 96 | 1.3% |
| 16 | Selbyville | 91 | 1.3% |
| 17 | Milton | 82 | 1.1% |
| 18 | Ocean View | 77 | 1.1% |
| 19 | Claymont | 70 | 1.0% |
| 20 | Hockessin | 70 | 1.0% |
| 21 | Delmar | 67 | 0.9% |
| 22 | Harrington | 64 | 0.9% |
| 23 | Bridgeville | 56 | 0.8% |
| 24 | Fenwick Island | 56 | 0.8% |
| 25 | Dagsboro | 54 | 0.8% |
Counts use the city/town label on each place, so boroughs, villages and unincorporated areas appear separately from their parent city.
Most common store types in Delaware
The eight largest independent-retail categories in Delaware, with each one's share of the state's 7,192 places.
| # | Store type | Places | Share of state retail |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Construction Supplies Store | 1,002 | 13.9% |
| 2 | Miscellaneous Store | 501 | 7.0% |
| 3 | Furniture and Home Store | 417 | 5.8% |
| 4 | Clothing Store | 403 | 5.6% |
| 5 | Print Store | 275 | 3.8% |
| 6 | Electronics Store | 261 | 3.6% |
| 7 | Hardware Store | 252 | 3.5% |
| 8 | Mobile Phone Store | 219 | 3.0% |
Each place is counted once under its primary retail category. Grocery, pharmacy, fuel, liquor, cannabis, automotive and mall categories are excluded.
Frequently asked questions
- Which city in Delaware has the most retail stores?
- Wilmington, with 1,559 independent retail places — 21.7% of Delaware's 7,192 total. Newark is next with 869.
- How many independent retail stores are in Delaware?
- 7,192 shoppable independent retail places, or 697.0 per 100,000 residents (0.96× the U.S. average of 724.8). That ranks Delaware 40th of 51 for retail density.
- What is the most common type of store in Delaware?
- The construction supplies store: 1,002 places, or 13.9% of Delaware's retail. Miscellaneous Stores are second at 501.
Related reports
Store types where Delaware ranks in the top 10
- Toy Stores by State: Every State RankedDelaware ranks #4 per capita (6.6 per 100k)
National retail reports
More states
- Biggest Retail Cities in California: Top 25 Towns Ranked271,352 retail places
- Biggest Retail Cities in Colorado: Top 25 Towns Ranked46,098 retail places
- Biggest Retail Cities in Connecticut: Top 25 Towns Ranked28,565 retail places
- Biggest Retail Cities in Florida: Top 25 Towns Ranked175,522 retail places
- Biggest Retail Cities in Georgia: Top 25 Towns Ranked83,747 retail places
- Biggest Retail Cities in Hawaii: Top 25 Towns Ranked12,174 retail places
Data & method
- Source: Foursquare Open Source Places (U.S. slice, Apache-2.0), counted by Useful Economy. Population: U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2023 estimates (July 1, 2023).
- What counts as retail: an open place carrying a Retail category label. Grocery and other food retail, pharmacies, convenience stores and fuel, liquor, cannabis, tobacco and vape, automotive, gun and hunting, adult, betting, fireworks, markets and shopping malls are excluded, so the counts describe shoppable independent storefronts rather than all commerce.
- Counting rule: each place is counted once, under its primary retail category and the city/town label on its address. Town tables include only towns with at least five places. Per-100k figures divide by state population; city populations are not used.
- Generated: September 15, 2026. Figures refresh when the source data is re-counted.
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