Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Virginia

Coffee shops and cafes in Norfolk city, VA

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for coffee shops and cafes in Norfolk city, VA, set against other counties and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 34 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,613 of 2,063 scored counties
#74 of 88 scored counties in Virginia

Listings
109
43 chain locations (39%)
Official establishments
51
All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars · +27.5% since 2019
Household spending a year
$339.3M
On food away from home · $3,573 a household
Spending per listing
$3.1M
16% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
11.5
5% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
231,013
−2.9% since 2020

See the coffee shops and cafes around any address in Norfolk city

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 Norfolk city. 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

For coffee shops and cafes, Norfolk city has a Groundwork market score of 34 (lower middle): #1,613 of 2,063 scored counties and #74 of 88 scored counties in Virginia. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

At $3,573 per household (12% below the U.S. average), households in Norfolk city spend about $339.3M a year on food away from home. Spread across 109 coffee shops and cafes, that is $3.1M per cafe, 16% below the U.S. figure of $3.7M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only coffee shops and cafes.

Norfolk city has 109 coffee shops and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 43 are chain locations, or 39%, against 39% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 11.5, 5% above the U.S. rate of 11.0.

In 2023, official counts showed 51 businesses with payroll in Norfolk city classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars, up 27.5% from 2019. That is one for every 1,862 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. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $125K has gone to businesses classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Norfolk city. Population estimates put the population change in Norfolk city from 2020 to 2025 at −2.9%, against +3.1% for the U.S.

How Norfolk city compares

The same measures for Virginia 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 Norfolk city, VA compared with Virginia and the U.S.
MeasureNorfolk cityVirginiaU.S.
Listings per 10k households11.58.611.0
Spending per listing$3.1M$5.1M$3.7M
Households per official establishment (all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars)1,8622,2201,518
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+27.5%+21.1%+24.3%
Population growth, 2020–2025−2.9%+2.8%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,573$4,372$4,070
Median household income$66,109$93,170$80,734
Groundwork market score3484

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
40 → 51All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars · +27.5% over the period
Employees, 2023
492
Annual payroll, 2023
$9.7M
One-person businesses, 2023
9All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
10943 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
92The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
1
Amount
$125K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Norfolk city, 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 Norfolk city

Population, 2025 estimate
231,013−2.9% since 2020
Households
94,965
Median age
35.1
Homes lived in by their owners
46%
Vehicles per household
1.6
Land area
53 sq. mi.
People per square mile
4,385
Median household income
$66,109+28.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$91,610
Median home value
$289,900
Jobs located here
130,869
Daytime population
273,887Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Norfolk city?

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 Norfolk city. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Coffee shops and cafes across Virginia

Every Virginia market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Virginia for coffee shops and cafes, numbered among those based in Virginia, with Norfolk city marked.

Top counties in Virginia

Counties in Virginia ranked for coffee shops and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Goochland County, VA9865.8$8.7M+17.4%#1 of 2,063
2King George County, VA9654.9$9.7M+10.5%#2 of 2,063
3Stafford County, VA95326.1$8.7M+8.3%#3 of 2,063
4Frederick County, VA94174.8$9.2M+8.8%#4 of 2,063
5New Kent County, VA9455.4$8.9M+21.2%#5 of 2,063
6Caroline County, VA9354.2$9.7M+11.3%#6 of 2,063
7Chesterfield County, VA93765.4$8.3M+8.7%#8 of 2,063
8Orange County, VA9385.4$8M+10.1%#10 of 2,063
9Spotsylvania County, VA92275.1$9.1M+10.5%#15 of 2,063
10Suffolk city, VA91246.3$6.6M+10.4%#18 of 2,063
74Norfolk city, VA3410911.5$3.1M−2.9%#1,613 of 2,063

Other business types in Norfolk city

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

Questions

How many coffee shops and cafes are in Norfolk city, VA?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 109 coffee shops and cafes in Norfolk city. 43 of them (39%) are chain locations. The listings count coffee, tea, juice and bubble tea shops, and cafes. Official counts show 51 businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in 2023, up 27.5% 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 also show 9 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Norfolk city, VA spend on food away from home?

About $339.3M a year, or $3,573 per household. That is 12% below the U.S. average (an index of 88, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 109 coffee shops and cafes on map listings, it comes to $3.1M 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 94,965 households in Norfolk city and national spending patterns by income.

How does Norfolk city, VA compare with the U.S. for coffee shops and cafes?

Norfolk city has 11.5 coffee shops and cafes per 10,000 households, 5% above the U.S. rate of 11.0. Spending per cafe is $3.1M, 16% below the U.S. figure of $3.7M. At the U.S. ratio of coffee shops and cafes to household spending, Norfolk city would have about 92, against 109 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,862 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S. The official count rose 27.5% from 2019 to 2023, against +24.3% for the U.S.

How fast is Norfolk city, VA growing?

Population estimates put Norfolk city at 231,013 people in 2025, down 2.9% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 94,965 households. Median household income in Norfolk city is $66,109, 18% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 28.1%, 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. Norfolk city scores 34 for coffee shops and cafes (lower middle), #1,613 of 2,063 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Norfolk city. 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 Norfolk city

Screening a site or an acquisition in Norfolk city?

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 Norfolk city. 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.