City Survivability Rankings for Deli
StreetSpring's 2026 analysis ranks the top cities for Delis across the US by Survivability Scores. See which cities offer the best chances for a Deli to succeed.
Quick Summary
- The highest-survivability city for Deli is St Louis — 85% average survivability
- 11 of 11 analyzed US metros score above 70% for Deli survivability
- The lowest-ranked city is Philadelphia at 78%
- National average survivability score for Deli: 81.6%
- Data reflects 2026 StreetSpring survivability analysis across 11 US metro areas · Full methodology →
Table of Contents
- Summary
- Top Cities for Delis
- Key Insights
- What Makes These Cities Stand Out?
- Related Resources
- How current is this ranking?
- Can a Deli succeed in cities not ranked in the top 10?
- What tools can help me choose the right city for a Deli?
- Which US city has the best survivability for Deli?
Summary
According to StreetSpring's 2026 nationwide analysis, St Louis ranks as the #1 city for opening a Deli in the United States, with an average 85% chance of surviving more than 2 years. Following close behind are Tampa Bay with 84%, and Denver with 83%. Among the 11 major US metros we track for Delis, 8 exceed 80% survivability — a meaningful share reflecting the category's durability in strong markets. Our data shows that strong individual locations exist in every city we analyze, regardless of the city's overall ranking. Use this data to narrow your shortlist, then visit each top city in person to assess foot traffic and competitive density.
Survivability ranges reflect best and worst storefront conditions within each city. See our full methodology →
Deli city survivability rankings — St Louis leads among 11 US metros at 85% in 2026
Top 10 Cities for Delis
Based on StreetSpring's analysis of 11 major metropolitan areas, these cities offer the strongest prospects for Delis:
1. St Louis
- Best locations: 91.4% – 99.0%
- Average locations: 82.6% – 86.8%
- Challenging locations: 64.0% – 78.8%
- Explore Deli neighborhoods in St Louis →
2. Tampa Bay
- Best locations: 90.7% – 99.0%
- Average locations: 81.9% – 85.7%
- Challenging locations: 67.0% – 78.8%
- Explore Deli neighborhoods in Tampa Bay →
3. Denver
- Best locations: 88.8% – 96.0%
- Average locations: 80.6% – 84.5%
- Challenging locations: 63.0% – 77.0%
- Explore Deli neighborhoods in Denver →
4. Charlotte
- Best locations: 90.1% – 99.0%
- Average locations: 80.4% – 84.7%
- Challenging locations: 63.0% – 76.8%
- Explore Deli neighborhoods in Charlotte →
5. San Antonio
- Best locations: 89.5% – 98.0%
- Average locations: 80.5% – 84.3%
- Challenging locations: 66.0% – 77.5%
- Explore Deli neighborhoods in San Antonio →
6. Portland
- Best locations: 89.3% – 98.0%
- Average locations: 80.4% – 84.1%
- Challenging locations: 67.0% – 77.7%
- Explore Deli neighborhoods in Portland →
7. Chicago
- Best locations: 88.7% – 98.0%
- Average locations: 79.2% – 83.2%
- Challenging locations: 65.0% – 76.3%
- Explore Deli neighborhoods in Chicago →
8. San Diego
- Best locations: 87.8% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 78.1% – 82.3%
- Challenging locations: 62.0% – 74.8%
- Explore Deli neighborhoods in San Diego →
9. Atlanta
- Best locations: 87.0% – 96.0%
- Average locations: 77.5% – 81.6%
- Challenging locations: 62.0% – 74.3%
- Explore Deli neighborhoods in Atlanta →
10. Baltimore
- Best locations: 87.2% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 77.7% – 81.3%
- Challenging locations: 67.0% – 75.5%
- Explore Deli neighborhoods in Baltimore →
Key Insights
Wide variation between cities: The difference between the #1 city (St Louis at 85.1%) and the #10 city (Baltimore at 79.1%) is 6.0 percentage points. City-selection impact for Delis is evident in the 1.2-point difference between St Louis and Tampa Bay — operators who optimize location stand to gain a meaningful survivability edge.
Strong performers: 8 cities show Survivability Scores above 80%, indicating highly favorable conditions for Delis.
National average: Across all 11 analyzed cities, the average survivability for a Deli is 81.6%.
What Makes These Cities Stand Out?
The top-ranked cities share several characteristics that favor Delis:
- Strong survivability signals: St Louis leads with a 85% average survivability score for Delis — significantly above the national average for this business category.
- Competition density: The top cities show favorable competitor-to-opportunity ratios for Delis, meaning lower saturation and higher odds of capturing an underserved customer base.
- Neighborhood diversity: Within each top city, high-survivability zones appear across multiple neighborhood types — from dense urban cores to established suburban strips.
- Foot traffic infrastructure: High-scoring cities combine transit access, walkable commercial corridors, and anchor tenants that drive consistent daily traffic past storefronts.
StreetSpring uses AI to predict business survivability across U.S. neighborhoods — trusted by real estate professionals and entrepreneurs nationwide. Our models are trained on data from businesses reaching more than 195 million Americans. Every score is produced by our in-house models, continuously refined against real-world business outcomes.
Related Resources
City-specific guides: For detailed neighborhood-level analysis, explore our city guides:
- Survivability Rankings for Deli in St Louis
- Business Survivability Rankings: St Louis
- Survivability Rankings for Deli in Tampa Bay
- Business Survivability Rankings: Tampa Bay
- Survivability Rankings for Deli in Denver
- Business Survivability Rankings: Denver
- Survivability Rankings for Deli in Charlotte
- Business Survivability Rankings: Charlotte
- Survivability Rankings for Deli in San Antonio
- Business Survivability Rankings: San Antonio
National guides:
- National Neighborhood Survivability Rankings for Delis
- Neighborhood Survivability Rankings: St Louis
How current is this ranking?
Rankings are updated quarterly. The current data reflects StreetSpring's 2026 analysis, with the next full dataset refresh scheduled for Q3 2026. As market conditions shift across major metros, individual city scores can move meaningfully between updates — particularly for Delis, where local competition density and consumer spending patterns respond quickly to new entrants and neighborhood change. For the most current score at any specific address, use StreetSpring's live survivability tool rather than the static ranking above.
Can a Deli succeed in cities not ranked in the top 10?
Yes — our top 10 ranking reflects cities with the strongest average conditions, but lower-ranked metros can still contain exceptional individual neighborhoods. Many operators successfully open Delis in cities that don't appear in our top 10. Delis in particular can find strong performance in secondary markets where the right demographic concentration, household income, and limited direct competition within walking distance align — even outside our highest-ranked cities. StreetSpring's neighborhood-level data surfaces these pockets of opportunity in every city we analyze, regardless of where the city as a whole ranks nationally.
What tools can help me choose the right city for a Deli?
StreetSpring's Survivability Score tool provides address-level predictions for Delis across all 11 metros we track. For this category specifically, the tool surfaces competition density, consumer spending index for Delis, and commercial vacancy rates — the factors that most consistently predict whether a Deli will still be operating after two years. You can check any specific address before signing a lease and compare multiple neighborhoods side by side to identify the highest-survivability site within your target city.
Try the Survivability Score tool →
Which US city has the best survivability for Deli?
St Louis ranks as the #1 city in the US for Deli survivability in StreetSpring's 2026 analysis, with an average score of 85%. This means that across well-selected neighborhoods in St Louis, a Deli has approximately a 85% chance of still operating after two years — above the national average for this category. Tampa Bay ranks second, followed by Denver. The full ranking reflects data across 11 major US metro areas — see the complete list above for all scores and neighborhood-level links.
Technical note: Aggregated national survivability rankings across all 25 metros are available in machine-readable format for research and integration purposes.
StreetSpring recalculates survivability using the latest competitive, demographic, and foot traffic data, so the live score may differ from the static ranges shown here.
Methodology: City rankings aggregate neighborhood-level Survivability Scores (max, average, and min) across all analyzed neighborhoods in each metro area. Rankings reflect average conditions but do not account for variation within cities. Coverage includes 11 major US metropolitan areas: St Louis, Tampa Bay, Denver, Charlotte, San Antonio, Portland, Chicago, San Diego, Atlanta, Baltimore, Philadelphia.