Food and drink · Small-town market · Tennessee
Coffee shops and cafes in the Athens, TN area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for coffee shops and cafes in the Athens, TN area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 66 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #95 of 529 scored small-town markets
#7 of 17 scored small-town markets based in Tennessee
- Listings
- 20
- 6 chain locations (30%)
- Official establishments
- 11
- All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars
- Household spending a year
- $88.7M
- On food away from home · $3,353 a household
- Spending per listing
- $4.4M
- 20% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 7.6
- 31% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 71,590
- +8.2% since 2020
See the coffee shops and cafes around any address in the Athens 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 Athens 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
Household spending on food away from home in the Athens area comes to about $88.7M a year: $3,353 per household, 18% below the U.S. average. That works out to $4.4M per cafe, 20% above the U.S. figure of $3.7M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only coffee shops and cafes.
The Athens area has 20 coffee shops and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 6 are chain locations, or 30%, against 39% across the U.S. That comes to 7.6 for every 10,000 households, 31% below the U.S. rate of 11.0.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in the Athens area was 11 in 2023. That is one for every 2,405 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. Another 3 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
Population estimates put the population change in the Athens area from 2020 to 2025 at +8.2%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). For coffee shops and cafes, the Athens area has a Groundwork market score of 66 (upper middle): #95 of 529 scored small-town markets and #7 of 17 scored small-town markets based in Tennessee. That puts it in the top quarter of small-town markets.
How the Athens area compares
The same measures for Tennessee 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 | Athens area | Tennessee | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 7.6 | 9.3 | 11.0 |
| Spending per listing | $4.4M | $4M | $3.7M |
| Households per official establishment (all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars) | 2,405 | 1,869 | 1,518 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +62.3% | +24.3% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +8.2% | +5.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,353 | $3,670 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $61,438 | $69,595 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 66 | 59 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 11All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars
- Employees, 2023
- 141
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $1.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 3All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 206 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 24The 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 Athens 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 Athens area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 71,590+8.2% since 2020
- Households
- 26,453
- Median age
- 43.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 77%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.2
- Land area
- 625 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 109
- Median household income
- $61,438
- Average household income
- $81,180
- Median home value
- $205,300
- Jobs located here
- 19,824
- Daytime population
- 61,141Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Athens 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 Athens 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 Tennessee
Every Tennessee market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Tennessee for coffee shops and cafes, numbered among those based in Tennessee, with the Athens area marked.
Top small-town markets in Tennessee
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Fayetteville, TN | 78 | 10 | 6.7 | $5.1M | +4.3% | #14 of 529 |
| 2Crossville, TN | 75 | 18 | 6.4 | $5M | +8.0% | #27 of 529 |
| 3Shelbyville, TN | 74 | 16 | 8.2 | $4.3M | +9.7% | #36 of 529 |
| 4Lewisburg, TN | 72 | 11 | 8.1 | $4.5M | +10.5% | #46 of 529 |
| 5Greeneville, TN | 67 | 19 | 6.7 | $4.7M | +5.0% | #79 of 529 |
| 6McMinnville, TN | 66 | 7 | 4.3 | $7.3M | +6.5% | #87 of 529 |
| 7Athens, TN | 66 | 20 | 7.6 | $4.4M | +8.2% | #95 of 529 |
| 8Winchester, TN | 61 | 15 | 8.6 | $4M | +6.4% | #154 of 529 |
| 9Dyersburg, TN | 56 | 10 | 6.8 | $4.8M | −1.1% | #204 of 529 |
| 10Newport, TN | 56 | 10 | 6.4 | $4.5M | +5.1% | #205 of 529 |
Other business types in the Athens area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes80
- Sit-down restaurants80
- Fast food and sandwich shops60
- Pizza69
- Coffee shops and cafes66
- Bakeries and dessert shops73
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 Athens, TN area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 20 coffee shops and cafes in the Athens area. 6 of them (30%) are chain locations. The listings count coffee, tea, juice and bubble tea shops, and cafes. Official counts show 11 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. Official counts list 3 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Athens, TN area spend on food away from home?
About $88.7M a year, or $3,353 per household. That is 18% below the U.S. average (an index of 82, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 20 coffee shops and cafes on map listings, it comes to $4.4M 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 26,453 households in the Athens area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Athens, TN area compare with the U.S. for coffee shops and cafes?
The Athens area has 7.6 coffee shops and cafes per 10,000 households, 31% below the U.S. rate of 11.0. Spending per cafe is $4.4M, 20% above the U.S. figure of $3.7M. At the U.S. ratio of coffee shops and cafes to household spending, the Athens area would have about 24, against 20 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,405 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S.
How fast is the Athens, TN area growing?
Population estimates put the Athens area at 71,590 people in 2025, up 8.2% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 26,453 households. Median household income in the Athens area is $61,438, 24% below the U.S. median of $80,734.
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 Athens area scores 66 for coffee shops and cafes (upper middle), #95 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 Athens 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 Athens area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Athens 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 Athens 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.