Food and drink · Small-town market · Michigan
Coffee shops and cafes in the Houghton, MI area
The coffee shops and cafes in the Houghton, MI area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other small-town markets.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 45 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #318 of 529 scored small-town markets
#13 of 18 scored small-town markets based in Michigan
- Listings
- 18
- 2 chain locations (11%)
- Official establishments
- 8
- All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars
- Household spending a year
- $53.6M
- On food away from home · $3,475 a household
- Spending per listing
- $3M
- 20% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 11.7
- 6% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 40,028
- +1.8% since 2020
See the coffee shops and cafes around any address in the Houghton 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 Houghton 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
Households in the Houghton area spend about $53.6M a year on food away from home, or $3,475 per household, 15% below the U.S. average. Spread across 18 coffee shops and cafes, that is $3M per cafe, 20% below the U.S. figure of $3.7M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only coffee shops and cafes.
The Houghton area has 18 coffee shops and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 2 are chain locations, or 11%, against 39% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 11.7, 6% above the U.S. rate of 11.0.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in the Houghton area was 8 in 2023. That is one for every 1,930 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.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Houghton area grew 1.8%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Houghton area scores 45 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for coffee shops and cafes, ranking #318 of 529 scored small-town markets and #13 of 18 scored small-town markets based in Michigan.
How the Houghton area compares
The same measures for Michigan 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 | Houghton area | Michigan | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 11.7 | 9.4 | 11.0 |
| Spending per listing | $3M | $4.1M | $3.7M |
| Households per official establishment (all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars) | 1,930 | 2,391 | 1,518 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +12.2% | +24.3% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.8% | +0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,475 | $3,875 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $58,128 | $72,875 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 45 | 61 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 8All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars
- Employees, 2023
- 54
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $847K
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 0All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 182 chain locations
- 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 Houghton 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 Houghton area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 40,028+1.8% since 2020
- Households
- 15,440
- Median age
- 37.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 73%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 1,549 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 26
- Median household income
- $58,128+31.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $80,984
- Median home value
- $160,800
- Jobs located here
- 12,154
- Daytime population
- 38,592Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Houghton 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 Houghton 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 Michigan
Every Michigan market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Michigan for coffee shops and cafes, numbered among those based in Michigan (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Houghton area marked.
Top small-town markets in Michigan
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Holland, MI | 74 | 42 | 9.2 | $4.4M | +2.1% | #34 of 529 |
| 2Coldwater, MI | 72 | 13 | 7.7 | $4.5M | +2.5% | #47 of 529 |
| 3Hillsdale, MI | 68 | 13 | 7.3 | $4.8M | 0.0% | #71 of 529 |
| Marinette, WI-MI | 66 | 21 | 7.1 | $4.8M | +0.3% | #92 of 529 |
| 4Owosso, MI | 63 | 21 | 7.5 | $4.8M | −0.4% | #121 of 529 |
| 5Adrian, MI | 61 | 35 | 9.0 | $4.1M | −1.6% | #153 of 529 |
| 6Iron Mountain, MI-WI | 59 | 9 | 6.4 | $5.4M | +0.4% | #170 of 529 |
| 7Alma, MI | 53 | 15 | 10.2 | $3.4M | −1.1% | #236 of 529 |
| 8Sturgis, MI | 52 | 21 | 8.9 | $3.9M | +0.1% | #245 of 529 |
| 9Alpena, MI | 50 | 12 | 9.2 | $3.5M | −0.1% | #266 of 529 |
| 13Houghton, MI | 45 | 18 | 11.7 | $3M | +1.8% | #318 of 529 |
Other business types in the Houghton area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes36
- Sit-down restaurants40
- Fast food and sandwich shops70
- Pizza51
- Coffee shops and cafes45
- Bakeries and dessert shops32
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 Houghton, MI area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 18 coffee shops and cafes in the Houghton area. 2 of them (11%) are chain locations. The listings count coffee, tea, juice and bubble tea shops, and cafes. Official counts show 8 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 the Houghton, MI area spend on food away from home?
About $53.6M a year, or $3,475 per household. That is 15% below the U.S. average (an index of 85, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 18 coffee shops and cafes on map listings, it comes to $3M 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 15,440 households in the Houghton area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Houghton, MI area compare with the U.S. for coffee shops and cafes?
The Houghton area has 11.7 coffee shops and cafes per 10,000 households, 6% above the U.S. rate of 11.0. Spending per cafe is $3M, 20% below the U.S. figure of $3.7M. At the U.S. ratio of coffee shops and cafes to household spending, the Houghton area would have about 15, against 18 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,930 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S.
How fast is the Houghton, MI area growing?
Population estimates put the Houghton area at 40,028 people in 2025, up 1.8% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 15,440 households. Median household income in the Houghton area is $58,128, 28% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 31.5%, 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 Houghton area scores 45 for coffee shops and cafes (lower middle), #318 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 Houghton 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 Houghton area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Houghton 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 Houghton 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.