Food and drink · Small-town market · Illinois
Coffee shops and cafes in the Pontiac, IL area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for coffee shops and cafes in the Pontiac, IL area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 67 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #81 of 529 scored small-town markets
#6 of 20 scored small-town markets based in Illinois
- Listings
- 12
- 1 chain location (8%)
- Official establishments
- 4
- All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars
- Household spending a year
- $55.6M
- On food away from home · $3,804 a household
- Spending per listing
- $4.6M
- 25% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 8.2
- 25% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 35,057
- −2.1% since 2020
See the coffee shops and cafes around any address in the Pontiac area
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 the Pontiac area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
Map listings as of September 2026 show 12 coffee shops and cafes in the Pontiac area. One of them (8%) is a chain location, against 39% across the U.S. That comes to 8.2 for every 10,000 households, 25% below the U.S. rate of 11.0.
At $3,804 per household (7% below the U.S. average), households in the Pontiac area spend about $55.6M a year on food away from home. That works out to $4.6M per cafe, 25% above the U.S. figure of $3.7M. That spending covers all food away from home, which coffee shops and cafes share with other businesses in the trade.
In 2023, official counts showed 4 businesses with payroll in the Pontiac area classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars. That is one for every 3,654 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S. The official count takes in all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars, not only coffee shops and cafes: bakeries and dessert shops are counted too.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Pontiac area declined 2.1%, against +3.1% for the U.S. For coffee shops and cafes, the Pontiac area has a Groundwork market score of 67 (upper middle): #81 of 529 scored small-town markets and #6 of 20 scored small-town markets based in Illinois. That puts it in the top quarter of small-town markets.
How the Pontiac area compares
The same measures for Illinois 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.
| Measure | Pontiac area | Illinois | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 8.2 | 10.3 | 11.0 |
| Spending per listing | $4.6M | $4.1M | $3.7M |
| Households per official establishment (all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars) | 3,654 | 1,881 | 1,518 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +22.5% | +24.3% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −2.1% | −0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,804 | $4,215 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $73,790 | $83,390 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 67 | 57 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 4All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars
- Employees, 2023
- 50
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $529K
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 0All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 121 chain location
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 15The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in the Pontiac area, 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 the Pontiac area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 35,057−2.1% since 2020
- Households
- 14,615
- Median age
- 41.3
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 74%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 1,044 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 34
- Median household income
- $73,790+33.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $91,317
- Median home value
- $142,200
- Jobs located here
- 12,813
- Daytime population
- 32,838Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Pontiac area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 the Pontiac area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardCoffee shops and cafes across Illinois
Every Illinois market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Illinois for coffee shops and cafes, numbered among those based in Illinois, with the Pontiac area marked.
Top small-town markets in Illinois
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Rochelle, IL | 80 | 14 | 6.7 | $5.9M | −0.7% | #9 of 529 |
| 2Effingham, IL | 76 | 10 | 5.5 | $7M | −0.9% | #20 of 529 |
| 3Charleston-Mattoon, IL | 68 | 11 | 5.3 | $6.3M | −1.0% | #68 of 529 |
| 4Dixon, IL | 68 | 9 | 6.7 | $5.5M | −3.4% | #70 of 529 |
| 5Mount Vernon, IL | 67 | 9 | 6.1 | $5.7M | −2.3% | #78 of 529 |
| 6Pontiac, IL | 67 | 12 | 8.2 | $4.6M | −2.1% | #81 of 529 |
| 7Marion-Herrin, IL | 67 | 23 | 7.9 | $4.6M | +0.2% | #82 of 529 |
| 8Freeport, IL | 62 | 9 | 4.6 | $7.5M | −3.0% | #126 of 529 |
| 9Ottawa, IL | 57 | 58 | 9.4 | $4M | −1.6% | #193 of 529 |
| 10Danville, IL | 55 | 17 | 5.7 | $5.9M | −3.7% | #212 of 529 |
Other business types in the Pontiac area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes53
- Sit-down restaurants48
- Fast food and sandwich shops56
- Pizza42
- Coffee shops and cafes67
- Bakeries and dessert shops74
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many coffee shops and cafes are in the Pontiac, IL area?
There are 12 coffee shops and cafes on map listings in the Pontiac area as of September 2026. One of them (8%) is a chain location. The listings count coffee, tea, juice and bubble tea shops, and cafes. Official counts show 4 businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in 2023. That count covers all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars (bakeries and dessert shops included), not only coffee shops and cafes.
How much do households in the Pontiac, IL area spend on food away from home?
About $55.6M a year, or $3,804 per household. That is 7% below the U.S. average (an index of 93, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 12 coffee shops and cafes on map listings, it comes to $4.6M per cafe. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only coffee shops and cafes. It is estimated from the incomes of the 14,615 households in the Pontiac area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Pontiac, IL area compare with the U.S. for coffee shops and cafes?
The Pontiac area has 8.2 coffee shops and cafes per 10,000 households, 25% below the U.S. rate of 11.0. Spending per cafe is $4.6M, 25% above the U.S. figure of $3.7M. At the national ratio of coffee shops and cafes to household spending, the Pontiac area would have about 15, against 12 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 3,654 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S.
How fast is the Pontiac, IL area growing?
Population estimates put the Pontiac area at 35,057 people in 2025, down 2.1% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 14,615 households. The median household income in the Pontiac area is $73,790 a year, 9% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 33.8% from the 2015–2019 survey, 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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. The Pontiac area scores 67 for coffee shops and cafes (upper middle), #81 of 529 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Pontiac area. 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 the Pontiac area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Pontiac area?
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 the Pontiac area. 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.