Food and drink · Metro area · New York
Coffee shops and cafes in the Ithaca, NY metro area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for coffee shops and cafes in the Ithaca, NY metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 21 out of 100: Low
Ranked #379 of 387 scored metro areas
#13 of 13 scored metro areas based in New York
- Listings
- 68
- 16 chain locations (24%)
- Official establishments
- 37
- All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars · +8.8% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $169.6M
- On food away from home · $3,919 a household
- Spending per listing
- $2.5M
- 33% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 15.7
- 43% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 104,047
- −1.4% since 2020
See the coffee shops and cafes around any address in the Ithaca metro 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 Ithaca metro 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
The Ithaca metro area scores 21 (low) on the Groundwork market score for coffee shops and cafes, ranking #379 of 387 scored metro areas and #13 of 13 scored metro areas based in New York. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
Household spending on food away from home in the Ithaca metro area comes to about $169.6M a year: $3,919 per household, 4% below the U.S. average. Spread across 68 coffee shops and cafes, that is $2.5M per cafe, 33% below the U.S. figure of $3.7M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only coffee shops and cafes.
There are 68 coffee shops and cafes on map listings in the Ithaca metro area as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 24% of them, against 39% across the U.S. That is 15.7 per 10,000 households, 43% above the U.S. rate of 11.0.
In 2023, official counts showed 37 businesses with payroll in the Ithaca metro area classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars, up 8.8% from 2019. That is one for every 1,169 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. Population estimates put the population change in the Ithaca metro area from 2020 to 2025 at −1.4%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How the Ithaca metro 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.
| Measure | Ithaca metro area | New York | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 15.7 | 12.2 | 11.0 |
| Spending per listing | $2.5M | $3.5M | $3.7M |
| Households per official establishment (all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars) | 1,169 | 1,075 | 1,518 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +8.8% | +17.3% | +24.3% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −1.4% | −0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,919 | $4,270 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $74,024 | $85,974 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 21 | 36 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 37All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars · +8.8% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 537
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $15.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 3All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 6816 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 46The 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 Ithaca metro 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 Ithaca metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 104,047−1.4% since 2020
- Households
- 43,263
- Median age
- 36.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 54%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.6
- Land area
- 475 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 220
- Median household income
- $74,024+22.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $102,718
- Median home value
- $290,900
- Jobs located here
- 46,926
- Daytime population
- 111,478Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Ithaca metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 Ithaca metro 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 New York
Every New York market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in New York for coffee shops and cafes, numbered among those based in New York, with the Ithaca metro area marked.
Top metro areas in New York
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY | 55 | 374 | 9.8 | $4.3M | +1.9% | #151 of 387 |
| 2Kiryas Joel-Poughkeepsie-Newburgh, NY | 54 | 277 | 10.9 | $4.1M | +3.0% | #162 of 387 |
| 3Elmira, NY | 48 | 21 | 6.0 | $5.8M | −3.9% | #207 of 387 |
| 4Rochester, NY | 46 | 424 | 9.5 | $4.1M | −0.7% | #224 of 387 |
| 5Glens Falls, NY | 41 | 46 | 8.4 | $4.5M | −1.9% | #266 of 387 |
| 6New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | 41 | 9,208 | 12.5 | $3.7M | +0.6% | #269 of 387 |
| 7Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY | 39 | 516 | 10.3 | $3.7M | −0.8% | #280 of 387 |
| 8Binghamton, NY | 38 | 84 | 8.2 | $4.3M | −1.3% | #290 of 387 |
| 9Utica-Rome, NY | 38 | 108 | 8.9 | $4.1M | −2.0% | #291 of 387 |
| 10Syracuse, NY | 37 | 262 | 9.7 | $4M | −1.3% | #297 of 387 |
| 13Ithaca, NY | 21 | 68 | 15.7 | $2.5M | −1.4% | #379 of 387 |
Other business types in the Ithaca metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes35
- Sit-down restaurants29
- Fast food and sandwich shops73
- Pizza52
- Coffee shops and cafes21
- Bakeries and dessert shops26
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 Ithaca, NY metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 68 coffee shops and cafes in the Ithaca metro area. 16 of them (24%) are chain locations. The listings count coffee, tea, juice and bubble tea shops, and cafes. Official counts show 37 businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in 2023, up 8.8% from 2019. 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 list 3 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Ithaca, NY metro area spend on food away from home?
About $169.6M a year, or $3,919 per household. That is 4% below the U.S. average (an index of 96, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 68 coffee shops and cafes on map listings, it comes to $2.5M 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 43,263 households in the Ithaca metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Ithaca, NY metro area compare with the U.S. for coffee shops and cafes?
The Ithaca metro area has 15.7 coffee shops and cafes per 10,000 households, 43% above the U.S. rate of 11.0. Spending per cafe is $2.5M, 33% below the U.S. figure of $3.7M. At the U.S. ratio of coffee shops and cafes to household spending, the Ithaca metro area would have about 46, against 68 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,169 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S. The official count rose 8.8% from 2019 to 2023, against +24.3% for the U.S.
How fast is the Ithaca, NY metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Ithaca metro area at 104,047 people in 2025, down 1.4% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 43,263 households. Median household income in the Ithaca metro area is $74,024, 8% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 22.9%, 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. The Ithaca metro area scores 21 for coffee shops and cafes (low), #379 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Ithaca metro 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 Ithaca metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Ithaca metro 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 Ithaca metro 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.