NAICS 44-45

Retail Trade in San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX

Metro Market Score 52.3 (Challenging), ranked #165 of 378 metros. 6,233 establishments, 121,666 jobs.

Metro Market Score 52.3

Favorable 0-35

Moderate 35-48

Challenging 48-60

Difficult 60+

Challenging

ⓘ Lower is better. Relative to national retail trade average.

💰High-Cost Market

San Antonio-New Braunfels stands out for high retail trade labor costs. Wage competitiveness hits 87.3 (above the 70th percentile of metros), and year-over-year wage pressure at 66.8 signals continued increases. Plan for higher payroll if entering this market.

Industry Concentration

38.1

LQ: 1.09

Rank #144 of 378 metros

Wage Competitiveness

87.3

$42,950 avg wage

Growth Trend

↑ 74.9

Employment growth index

Rank #96 of 378 metros

Wage Pressure

66.8

YoY wage change index

6,233 Retail Trade Firms in San Antonio-New Braunfels

6,233

Establishments

+0.5% YoY

121,666

Total Employment

+0.7% YoY

$42,950

Average Annual Wage

+1.0% YoY

1.09

Location Quotient

Above national avg

Within Texas

#14 of 25

retail trade metros in state

Texas state rank

#17 of 51

for retail trade entry risk

vs State Median

+1.8

worse than median (50.5)

San Antonio-New Braunfels vs Texas Statewide

How this metro's retail trade market compares to Texas overall. The state ranks #17/51 for entry risk.

Measure	San Antonio-New Braunfels	TX Statewide
Overall Score	52.3 Challenging	41.6 Moderate
Score Type	Metro Market Score	Entry Risk Score
Rank	#165 of 378 metros	#17 of 51 states

Metro and state scores use different methodologies (metro has 4 QCEW-based metrics; state adds BDS survival and momentum data). Direct score comparisons are approximate.

Other Industries in San Antonio-New Braunfels

Construction 49.4 Real Estate and Rental and Leasing 49.6 Other Services 50.5 Information 51.0 Accommodation and Food Services 57.2 Finance and Insurance 72.0

Retail Trade in Other Texas Metros

Laredo 34.6 #22/378 Brownsville-Harlingen 37.2 #33/378 Longview 42.7 #66/378 Midland 43.1 #70/378 Waco 43.5 #75/378 Eagle Pass 45.7 #88/378 College Station-Bryan 46.7 #96/378 Corpus Christi 47.9 #108/378 Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands 48.7 #117/378 Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos 48.8 #119/378

+ 14 more metros. View all in Texas →

Retail Trade Metros With Similar Conditions

Metros within 5 points of San Antonio-New Braunfels's 52.3 score. Useful when comparing markets with comparable entry profiles.

Wildwood-The Villages, FL 52.1 #164/378 Winchester, VA 52.4 #166/378 Texarkana, TX 52.4 #167/378 Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL 52.0 #163/378 Lewiston, ID 52.5 #168/378 Ann Arbor, MI 52.6 #169/378 Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA 52.7 #170/378 Twin Falls, ID 51.8 #162/378 Portland-South Portland, ME 52.7 #171/378 Lincoln, NE 52.8 #172/378

Retail Trade in States Bordering Texas

State-level entry risk for retail trade in adjacent states. Use this to weigh cross-border options.

New Mexico 39.9 #11/51 Oklahoma 46.3 #35/51 Arkansas 51.8 #44/51 Louisiana 52.3 #46/51

Browse Retail Trade in Other States

State-level entry risk reports for retail trade across all 51 markets, sorted by rank.

About Metro Market Score: A weighted composite of industry concentration (25%), wage competitiveness (25%), wage pressure (20%), and employment growth trend (30%). Lower scores indicate more favorable conditions. For San Antonio-New Braunfels's retail trade sector, the wage competitiveness component (87.3) has the strongest pull on the composite. Metro scores use QCEW data only (no BDS survival data at metro level). Read full methodology →

Data Sources

Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW), Bureau of Labor Statistics. MSA-level establishment counts, employment, wages, and location quotients for the San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX MSA area.

Data period: 2024. Last updated: April 2026.

Metro Market Assessment