Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Kentucky

Coffee shops and cafes in Hardin County, KY

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

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 59 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #657 of 2,063 scored counties
#25 of 53 scored counties in Kentucky

Listings
41
19 chain locations (46%)
Official establishments
16
All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars
Household spending a year
$160.2M
On food away from home · $3,591 a household
Spending per listing
$3.9M
6% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
9.2
16% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
113,482
+2.4% since 2020

See the coffee shops and cafes around any address in Hardin 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 Hardin 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

Map listings as of September 2026 show 41 coffee shops and cafes in Hardin County. 19 of them (46%) are chain locations, against 39% across the U.S. That is 9.2 per 10,000 households, 16% below the U.S. rate of 11.0.

Household spending on food away from home in Hardin County comes to about $160.2M a year: $3,591 per household, 12% below the U.S. average. That works out to $3.9M per cafe, 6% 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.

Official counts show 16 businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Hardin County in 2023. That is one for every 2,789 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. Official counts also show 6 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $1.4M has gone to businesses classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Hardin County.

Population estimates put the population change in Hardin County from 2020 to 2025 at +2.4%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for coffee shops and cafes in Hardin County is 59 (upper middle), #657 of 2,063 scored counties and #25 of 53 scored counties in Kentucky.

How Hardin County compares

The same measures for Kentucky 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 Hardin County, KY compared with Kentucky and the U.S.
MeasureHardin CountyKentuckyU.S.
Listings per 10k households9.27.411.0
Spending per listing$3.9M$4.7M$3.7M
Households per official establishment (all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars)2,7892,9791,518
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+30.4%+24.3%
Population growth, 2020–2025+2.4%+2.2%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,591$3,489$4,070
Median household income$67,647$63,726$80,734
Groundwork market score5967

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
10 → 16All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars
Employees, 2023
217
Annual payroll, 2023
$3.6M
One-person businesses, 2023
6All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
4119 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
43The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
1
Amount
$1.4M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Hardin 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 Hardin County

Population, 2025 estimate
113,482+2.4% since 2020
Households
44,622
Median age
38.7
Homes lived in by their owners
63%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
624 sq. mi.
People per square mile
179
Median household income
$67,647+24.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$93,596
Median home value
$225,800
Jobs located here
42,829
Daytime population
107,983Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Hardin 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 Hardin 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 Kentucky

Every Kentucky market ranked →

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

Top counties in Kentucky

Counties in Kentucky ranked for coffee shops and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Bullitt County, KY89144.4$8.8M+5.0%#23 of 2,063
2Scott County, KY87146.2$6.6M+8.2%#41 of 2,063
3Oldham County, KY86166.9$7.2M+4.9%#46 of 2,063
4Woodford County, KY8076.5$6.2M+3.7%#106 of 2,063
5Boone County, KY80418.0$5.4M+6.5%#109 of 2,063
6Kenton County, KY77477.0$5.7M+3.9%#155 of 2,063
7Nelson County, KY76136.8$5.2M+4.8%#175 of 2,063
8Jessamine County, KY75126.0$6.3M+7.8%#186 of 2,063
9Shelby County, KY75137.0$5.6M+6.2%#190 of 2,063
10Madison County, KY72297.8$4.4M+9.4%#257 of 2,063
25Hardin County, KY59419.2$3.9M+2.4%#657 of 2,063

Other business types in Hardin County

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

Questions

How many coffee shops and cafes are in Hardin County, KY?

There are 41 coffee shops and cafes on map listings in Hardin County as of September 2026. 19 of them (46%) are chain locations. The listings count coffee, tea, juice and bubble tea shops, and cafes. Official counts show 16 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. Another 6 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

How much do households in Hardin County, KY spend on food away from home?

About $160.2M a year, or $3,591 per household. That is 12% below the U.S. average (an index of 88, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 41 coffee shops and cafes on map listings, it comes to $3.9M 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 44,622 households in Hardin County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Hardin County has 9.2 coffee shops and cafes per 10,000 households, 16% below the U.S. rate of 11.0. Spending per cafe is $3.9M, 6% above the U.S. figure of $3.7M. At the national ratio of coffee shops and cafes to household spending, Hardin County would have about 43, against 41 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,789 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S.

How fast is Hardin County, KY growing?

Population estimates put Hardin County at 113,482 people in 2025, up 2.4% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 44,622 households. The median household income in Hardin County is $67,647 a year, 16% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 24.4% 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. Hardin County scores 59 for coffee shops and cafes (upper middle), #657 of 2,063 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Hardin 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 Hardin 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.