Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Arkansas

Coffee shops and cafes in Independence County, AR

How Independence County, AR compares with other counties and the U.S. for coffee shops and cafes: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 36 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,552 of 2,063 scored counties
#23 of 44 scored counties in Arkansas

Listings
14
5 chain locations (36%)
Official establishments
9
All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars
Household spending a year
$47.2M
On food away from home · $3,222 a household
Spending per listing
$3.4M
9% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
9.6
13% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
38,785
+2.2% since 2020

See the coffee shops and cafes around any address in Independence County

The site report maps the coffee shops and cafes on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of Independence County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

For coffee shops and cafes, Independence County has a Groundwork market score of 36 (lower middle): #1,552 of 2,063 scored counties and #23 of 44 scored counties in Arkansas. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

At $3,222 per household (21% below the U.S. average), households in Independence County spend about $47.2M a year on food away from home. That is about $3.4M of household spending for each cafe on map listings, 9% below the U.S. figure of $3.7M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only coffee shops and cafes.

Independence County has 14 coffee shops and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. 5 of them (36%) are chain locations, against 39% across the U.S. That is 9.6 per 10,000 households, 13% below the U.S. rate of 11.0.

Official counts show 9 businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Independence County in 2023. That is one for every 1,626 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S. That count covers all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars (bakeries and dessert shops included), not only coffee shops and cafes. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $250K has gone to businesses classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Independence County. Population estimates show Independence County grew 2.2% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Independence County compares

The same measures for Arkansas and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all food away from home by the coffee shops and cafes counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.

Coffee shops and cafes in Independence County, AR compared with Arkansas and the U.S.
MeasureIndependence CountyArkansasU.S.
Listings per 10k households9.69.211.0
Spending per listing$3.4M$3.7M$3.7M
Households per official establishment (all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars)1,6262,0131,518
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+49.4%+24.3%
Population growth, 2020–2025+2.2%+3.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,222$3,400$4,070
Median household income$56,609$60,773$80,734
Groundwork market score3652

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
4 → 9All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars
Employees, 2023
63
Annual payroll, 2023
$1.1M
One-person businesses, 2023
0All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
145 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
13The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
1
Amount
$250K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Independence County, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3. These official figures cover all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars, not only coffee shops and cafes.

Population and households in Independence County

Population, 2025 estimate
38,785+2.2% since 2020
Households
14,638
Median age
39.7
Homes lived in by their owners
69%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
764 sq. mi.
People per square mile
50
Median household income
$56,609+27.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$78,952
Median home value
$142,600
Jobs located here
18,686
Daytime population
41,118Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Independence County?

These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the coffee shops and cafes on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of Independence County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Coffee shops and cafes across Arkansas

Every Arkansas market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Arkansas for coffee shops and cafes, numbered among those based in Arkansas, with Independence County marked.

Top counties in Arkansas

Counties in Arkansas ranked for coffee shops and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Saline County, AR78316.2$6.1M+7.6%#137 of 2,063
2Lonoke County, AR67238.1$4.5M+3.5%#385 of 2,063
3Benton County, AR6512411.1$3.9M+16.0%#449 of 2,063
4Hot Spring County, AR6364.9$6.4M+1.1%#493 of 2,063
5Miller County, AR6074.3$7M−0.5%#587 of 2,063
6Jefferson County, AR54135.4$5.6M−5.7%#833 of 2,063
7Cleburne County, AR5487.6$4.1M+3.9%#852 of 2,063
8Greene County, AR54168.9$3.6M+3.4%#863 of 2,063
9Logan County, AR5367.0$4.7M+2.5%#881 of 2,063
10Crawford County, AR532410.3$3.2M+4.1%#916 of 2,063
23Independence County, AR36149.6$3.4M+2.2%#1,552 of 2,063

Other business types in Independence County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many coffee shops and cafes are in Independence County, AR?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 14 coffee shops and cafes in Independence County. 5 of them (36%) are chain locations. The listings count coffee, tea, juice and bubble tea shops, and cafes. Official counts show 9 businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in 2023. The official count takes in all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars, not only coffee shops and cafes: bakeries and dessert shops are counted too.

How much do households in Independence County, AR spend on food away from home?

About $47.2M a year, or $3,222 per household. That is 21% below the U.S. average (an index of 79, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 14 coffee shops and cafes on map listings, it comes to $3.4M per cafe. That spending covers all food away from home, which coffee shops and cafes share with other businesses in the trade. It is estimated from the incomes of the 14,638 households in Independence County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Independence County, AR compare with the U.S. for coffee shops and cafes?

Independence County has 9.6 coffee shops and cafes per 10,000 households, 13% below the U.S. rate of 11.0. Spending per cafe is $3.4M, 9% below the U.S. figure of $3.7M. At the U.S. ratio of coffee shops and cafes to household spending, Independence County would have about 13, against 14 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,626 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S.

How fast is Independence County, AR growing?

Population estimates put Independence County at 38,785 people in 2025, up 2.2% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 14,638 households. Median household income in Independence County is $56,609, 30% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 27.7%, before inflation.

What is the Groundwork market score?

The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. Independence County scores 36 for coffee shops and cafes (lower middle), #1,552 of 2,063 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Independence County. It maps the coffee shops and cafes on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.

How the score works · Top markets for coffee shops and cafes · All 56 business types in Independence County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Independence County?

A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.

The button opens the report at the center of Independence County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.