Biggest Retail Cities in Pennsylvania: Top 25 Towns Ranked
Pennsylvania has 98,947 independent retail places spread across 1,226 towns. Philadelphia leads with 8,557 — 8.6% of the state. The top 25 towns, and the eight most common store types, by count.
Published September 15, 2026 · Useful Economy Research
Pennsylvania by the numbers
Where the stores are
Pennsylvania has 98,947 independent retail places — 763.4 per 100,000 residents, 1.05× the national average of 724.8 and 20th of the 50 states and D.C. on retail density.
Philadelphia holds 8,557 of them (8.6% of the state total). Pittsburgh is second with 5,329 (5.4%). The 25 towns below account for 33.2% of Pennsylvania's retail; 1,226 towns in the state have at least five places.
The most common store type is the construction supplies store (11,390, 11.5% of the state's retail), followed by miscellaneous stores (6,584).
Top 25 retail towns in Pennsylvania
Independent retail places per city or town, with each town's share of Pennsylvania's 98,947 total. Only towns with at least five places are counted.
| # | City / town | Retail places | Share of state |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Philadelphia | 8,557 | 8.6% |
| 2 | Pittsburgh | 5,329 | 5.4% |
| 3 | Lancaster | 1,898 | 1.9% |
| 4 | York | 1,445 | 1.5% |
| 5 | Erie | 1,426 | 1.4% |
| 6 | Allentown | 1,314 | 1.3% |
| 7 | Harrisburg | 1,280 | 1.3% |
| 8 | Reading | 887 | 0.9% |
| 9 | Scranton | 773 | 0.8% |
| 10 | Bethlehem | 769 | 0.8% |
| 11 | Greensburg | 731 | 0.7% |
| 12 | Easton | 703 | 0.7% |
| 13 | West Chester | 690 | 0.7% |
| 14 | Pottstown | 675 | 0.7% |
| 15 | Chambersburg | 621 | 0.6% |
| 16 | State College | 617 | 0.6% |
| 17 | Altoona | 616 | 0.6% |
| 18 | Wilkes-Barre | 606 | 0.6% |
| 19 | Mechanicsburg | 601 | 0.6% |
| 20 | Johnstown | 582 | 0.6% |
| 21 | Washington | 577 | 0.6% |
| 22 | Butler | 541 | 0.5% |
| 23 | Doylestown | 534 | 0.5% |
| 24 | Monroeville | 528 | 0.5% |
| 25 | King of Prussia | 524 | 0.5% |
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 Pennsylvania
The eight largest independent-retail categories in Pennsylvania, with each one's share of the state's 98,947 places.
| # | Store type | Places | Share of state retail |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Construction Supplies Store | 11,390 | 11.5% |
| 2 | Miscellaneous Store | 6,584 | 6.7% |
| 3 | Furniture and Home Store | 5,337 | 5.4% |
| 4 | Clothing Store | 4,885 | 4.9% |
| 5 | Print Store | 4,149 | 4.2% |
| 6 | Hardware Store | 4,002 | 4.0% |
| 7 | Gift Store | 3,281 | 3.3% |
| 8 | Electronics Store | 3,212 | 3.2% |
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 Pennsylvania has the most retail stores?
- Philadelphia, with 8,557 independent retail places — 8.6% of Pennsylvania's 98,947 total. Pittsburgh is next with 5,329.
- How many independent retail stores are in Pennsylvania?
- 98,947 shoppable independent retail places, or 763.4 per 100,000 residents (1.05× the U.S. average of 724.8). That ranks Pennsylvania 20th of 51 for retail density.
- What is the most common type of store in Pennsylvania?
- The construction supplies store: 11,390 places, or 11.5% of Pennsylvania's retail. Miscellaneous Stores are second at 6,584.
Related reports
Store types where Pennsylvania ranks in the top 10
- Florists by State: Every State RankedPennsylvania ranks #7 per capita (21.5 per 100k)
- Music Stores by State: Every State RankedPennsylvania ranks #9 per capita (8.3 per 100k)
National retail reports
More states
- Biggest Retail Cities in Ohio: Top 25 Towns Ranked82,521 retail places
- Biggest Retail Cities in Oklahoma: Top 25 Towns Ranked28,616 retail places
- Biggest Retail Cities in Oregon: Top 25 Towns Ranked35,446 retail places
- Biggest Retail Cities in Rhode Island: Top 25 Towns Ranked8,168 retail places
- Biggest Retail Cities in South Carolina: Top 25 Towns Ranked39,138 retail places
- Biggest Retail Cities in South Dakota: Top 25 Towns Ranked7,453 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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