Romance Bookstore Update: December 2025
There was a 137% increase in physical romance bookstores worldwide in 2025, growing from 92 to 218 stores.
2025 has come to a close and it’s time to see where we’re at in terms of growth for romance bookstores this year. As expected, December was a slower month with just 6 new physical store openings. However, we saw triple-digit growth over the year!
Have you heard about the Insider version of the Romance Bookstore Directory?
It’s a new benefit for my annual paid subscribers.
Overview
According to my research, there are now 218 physical romance bookstores in 11 countries around the world, 150 (or 69%) of which are in the United States.
If we also include online and pop-up romance bookstores, the total number of stores grows to 366 (258 or 70% of which are in the United States).
Growth of Physical Stores
In 2025, there was a net increase of 126 physical romance bookstores worldwide (131 have opened, 5 have closed).
In the United States, specifically, there was a net increase of 85 physical romance bookstores in 2025 (87 opened, 2 closed).
In 2025, the number of physical romance bookstores worldwide increased 137%, growing from 92 to 218 stores.
The three-year growth rate from 2023 to 2025 for physical romance bookstores worldwide is 558%, growing from 33 to 218 stores.
Growth Rates
Worldwide
2022: 10 stores
2023: 32 stores, 230% increase
2024: 92 stores, 179% increase
2025: 218 stores, 137% increase
3-Year Growth Rate from 2023 to 2025: 561%
United States
2022: 5 stores
2023: 18 stores, 260% increase
2024: 65 stores, 261% increase
2025: 150 stores, 131% increase
3-Year Growth Rate from 2023 to 2025: 733%
These detailed updates are a benefit for paid subscribers (only US$5/month or US$50/year). Everyone can see the high-level numbers before the paywall, but you’ll need to subscribe for all the juicy details…including a list of all the upcoming romance bookstore openings! 🗓️
There are now 401 bookstores in the directory (including Coming Soon)—27 were added in December.
The following is a breakdown of bookstores by type: Physical, Online, Pop-up, and Coming Soon along with a list of ALL the recently added and updated stores in each category! This includes some new charts as well. 📊
📌 Please note that these categories overlap—a store can categorized as multiple types. For example, a bookstore can be online and have pop-ups, with a physical location coming soon.