Groundwork

Food and drink · Small-town market · New York

Coffee shops and cafes in the Cortland, NY area

The coffee shops and cafes in the Cortland, NY area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other small-town markets.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 40 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #370 of 529 scored small-town markets
#12 of 14 scored small-town markets based in New York

Listings
16
9 chain locations (56%)
Official establishments
23
All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars
Household spending a year
$68.3M
On food away from home · $3,595 a household
Spending per listing
$4.3M
15% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
8.4
24% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
45,850
−1.9% since 2020

See the coffee shops and cafes around any address in the Cortland 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 Cortland area. 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

At $3,595 per household (12% below the U.S. average), households in the Cortland area spend about $68.3M a year on food away from home. Spread across 16 coffee shops and cafes, that is $4.3M per cafe, 15% above the U.S. figure of $3.7M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only coffee shops and cafes.

There are 16 coffee shops and cafes on map listings in the Cortland area as of September 2026. Of those, 9 are chain locations, or 56%, against 39% across the U.S. That is 8.4 per 10,000 households, 24% below the U.S. rate of 11.0.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in the Cortland area was 23 in 2023. That is one for every 826 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 Cortland area declined 1.9%, against +3.1% for the U.S. For coffee shops and cafes, the Cortland area has a Groundwork market score of 40 (lower middle): #370 of 529 scored small-town markets and #12 of 14 scored small-town markets based in New York.

How the Cortland area compares

The same measures for New York 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 Cortland, NY area compared with New York and the U.S.
MeasureCortland areaNew YorkU.S.
Listings per 10k households8.412.211.0
Spending per listing$4.3M$3.5M$3.7M
Households per official establishment (all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars)8261,0751,518
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+17.3%+24.3%
Population growth, 2020–2025−1.9%−0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,595$4,270$4,070
Median household income$70,418$85,974$80,734
Groundwork market score4036

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
23All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars
Employees, 2023
245
Annual payroll, 2023
$5.6M
One-person businesses, 2023
0All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
169 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
18The 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 Cortland 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 Cortland area

Population, 2025 estimate
45,850−1.9% since 2020
Households
18,999
Median age
39.1
Homes lived in by their owners
66%
Vehicles per household
1.7
Land area
499 sq. mi.
People per square mile
93
Median household income
$70,418+25.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$85,337
Median home value
$162,100
Jobs located here
17,001
Daytime population
43,892Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Cortland 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.

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Coffee shops and cafes across New York

Every New York market ranked →

The highest-scoring small-town markets in New York for coffee shops and cafes, numbered among those based in New York, with the Cortland area marked.

Top small-town markets in New York

Small-town markets in New York ranked for coffee shops and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Amsterdam, NY61126.1$5.7M+1.1%#144 of 529
2Batavia, NY61187.2$5.1M+0.2%#146 of 529
3Monticello, NY61278.6$4.5M+2.7%#151 of 529
4Auburn, NY57134.1$8.7M−2.3%#187 of 529
5Corning, NY56246.1$5.8M−1.6%#201 of 529
6Gloversville, NY50167.0$5M−1.6%#261 of 529
7Massena-Ogdensburg, NY48327.7$4.5M−2.5%#283 of 529
8Plattsburgh, NY47288.3$4.4M−2.0%#295 of 529
9Hudson, NY453011.3$3.7M−2.1%#310 of 529
10Oneonta, NY453314.2$2.5M+3.8%#319 of 529
12Cortland, NY40168.4$4.3M−1.9%#370 of 529

Other business types in the Cortland area

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

Funeral services

Questions

How many coffee shops and cafes are in the Cortland, NY area?

As of September 2026, map listings count 16 coffee shops and cafes in the Cortland area. 9 of them (56%) are chain locations. The listings count coffee, tea, juice and bubble tea shops, and cafes. Official counts show 23 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 Cortland, NY area spend on food away from home?

About $68.3M a year, or $3,595 per household. That is 12% below the U.S. average (an index of 88, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 16 coffee shops and cafes on map listings, it comes to $4.3M 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 18,999 households in the Cortland area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Cortland, NY area compare with the U.S. for coffee shops and cafes?

The Cortland area has 8.4 coffee shops and cafes per 10,000 households, 24% below the U.S. rate of 11.0. Spending per cafe is $4.3M, 15% above the U.S. figure of $3.7M. At the U.S. ratio of coffee shops and cafes to household spending, the Cortland area would have about 18, against 16 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 826 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S.

How fast is the Cortland, NY area growing?

Population estimates put the Cortland area at 45,850 people in 2025, down 1.9% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 18,999 households. Median household income in the Cortland area is $70,418, 13% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 25.7%, 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. 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 Cortland area scores 40 for coffee shops and cafes (lower middle), #370 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 Cortland 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 Cortland area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Cortland area?

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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.