Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Iowa

Coffee shops and cafes in Clayton County, IA

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for coffee shops and cafes in Clayton County, IA, set against other counties and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 26 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,859 of 2,063 scored counties
#54 of 63 scored counties in Iowa

Listings
11
0 chain locations (0%)
Official establishments
5
All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars
Household spending a year
$26.9M
On food away from home · $3,583 a household
Spending per listing
$2.4M
34% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
14.6
33% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
16,845
−1.1% since 2020

See the coffee shops and cafes around any address in Clayton 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 Clayton 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, Clayton County has a Groundwork market score of 26 (lower middle): #1,859 of 2,063 scored counties and #54 of 63 scored counties in Iowa. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

Map listings as of September 2026 show 11 coffee shops and cafes in Clayton County. None of them are chain locations, against 39% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 14.6, 33% above the U.S. rate of 11.0.

At $3,583 per household (12% below the U.S. average), households in Clayton County spend about $26.9M a year on food away from home. That works out to $2.4M per cafe, 34% below 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.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Clayton County was 5 in 2023. That is one for every 1,502 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 Clayton County declined 1.1%, against +3.1% for the U.S.

How Clayton County compares

The same measures for Iowa 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 Clayton County, IA compared with Iowa and the U.S.
MeasureClayton CountyIowaU.S.
Listings per 10k households14.611.811.0
Spending per listing$2.4M$3.3M$3.7M
Households per official establishment (all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars)1,5021,7021,518
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+51.3%+24.3%
Population growth, 2020–2025−1.1%+1.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,583$3,880$4,070
Median household income$67,242$75,059$80,734
Groundwork market score2640

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
5All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars
Employees, 2023
10
Annual payroll, 2023
$152K
One-person businesses, 2023
0All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
110 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
7The 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 Clayton 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 Clayton County

Population, 2025 estimate
16,845−1.1% since 2020
Households
7,509
Median age
46.9
Homes lived in by their owners
78%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
779 sq. mi.
People per square mile
22
Median household income
$67,242+26.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$86,441
Median home value
$168,500
Jobs located here
6,129
Daytime population
14,966Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Clayton 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 Clayton 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 Iowa

Every Iowa market ranked →

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

Top counties in Iowa

Counties in Iowa ranked for coffee shops and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Dallas County, IA685011.8$4M+17.8%#368 of 2,063
2Marshall County, IA6763.9$9.4M−0.5%#370 of 2,063
3Benton County, IA6665.9$7M+1.8%#396 of 2,063
4Warren County, IA612713.1$3.3M+9.0%#584 of 2,063
5Washington County, IA59910.0$3.8M+0.6%#661 of 2,063
6Grundy County, IA5759.8$4.1M+0.2%#732 of 2,063
7Webster County, IA56127.8$4.5M−0.4%#765 of 2,063
8Pottawattamie County, IA55369.6$3.9M−0.7%#816 of 2,063
9Allamakee County, IA5458.4$4.3M+1.2%#848 of 2,063
10Buchanan County, IA5489.7$3.9M+1.3%#857 of 2,063
54Clayton County, IA261114.6$2.4M−1.1%#1,859 of 2,063

Other business types in Clayton County

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

Questions

How many coffee shops and cafes are in Clayton County, IA?

There are 11 coffee shops and cafes on map listings in Clayton County as of September 2026. None of them are chain locations. The listings count coffee, tea, juice and bubble tea shops, and cafes. Official counts show 5 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 Clayton County, IA spend on food away from home?

About $26.9M a year, or $3,583 per household. That is 12% below the U.S. average (an index of 88, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 11 coffee shops and cafes on map listings, it comes to $2.4M 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 7,509 households in Clayton County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Clayton County has 14.6 coffee shops and cafes per 10,000 households, 33% above the U.S. rate of 11.0. Spending per cafe is $2.4M, 34% below the U.S. figure of $3.7M. At the national ratio of coffee shops and cafes to household spending, Clayton County would have about 7, against 11 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,502 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S.

How fast is Clayton County, IA growing?

Population estimates put Clayton County at 16,845 people in 2025, down 1.1% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 7,509 households. The median household income in Clayton County is $67,242 a year, 17% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 26.5% 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. 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. Clayton County scores 26 for coffee shops and cafes (lower middle), #1,859 of 2,063 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Clayton 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 Clayton County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Clayton 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 Clayton 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.