Groundwork

Food and drink · Metro area · Ohio

Pizza places in the Columbus, OH metro area

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for pizza places in the Columbus, OH metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 47 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #221 of 387 scored metro areas
#2 of 12 scored metro areas based in Ohio

Listings
878
486 chain locations (55%)
Official establishments
1,932
All limited-service restaurants · +6.3% since 2019
Household spending a year
$3.6B
On food away from home · $4,172 a household
Spending per listing
$4.1M
19% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
10.2
27% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
2,242,028
+4.7% since 2020

See the pizza places around any address in the Columbus metro area

The site report maps the pizza places 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 Columbus metro 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

As of September 2026, map listings count 878 pizza places in the Columbus metro area. 486 of them (55%) are chain locations, against 58% across the U.S. That is 10.2 per 10,000 households, 27% above the U.S. rate of 8.0.

Households in the Columbus metro area spend about $3.6B a year on food away from home, or $4,172 per household, 3% above the U.S. average. That is about $4.1M of household spending for each pizza place on map listings, 19% below the U.S. figure of $5.1M. That spending covers all food away from home, which pizza places share with other businesses in the trade.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in the Columbus metro area was 1,932 in 2023, up 6.3% from 2019. That is one for every 448 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S. The official count takes in all limited-service restaurants, not only pizza places: fast food and sandwich shops are counted too. Official counts list 396 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 93 SBA-backed loans worth $32.8M have gone to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in the Columbus metro area.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Columbus metro area grew 4.7%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). For pizza places, the Columbus metro area has a Groundwork market score of 47 (lower middle): #221 of 387 scored metro areas and #2 of 12 scored metro areas based in Ohio.

How the Columbus metro area compares

The same measures for Ohio and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all food away from home by the pizza places counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.

Pizza in Columbus, OH metro area compared with Ohio and the U.S.
MeasureColumbus metro areaOhioU.S.
Listings per 10k households10.29.68.0
Spending per listing$4.1M$4M$5.1M
Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants)448467478
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+6.3%+7.0%+6.1%
Population growth, 2020–2025+4.7%+0.9%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$4,172$3,829$4,070
Median household income$81,945$71,389$80,734
Groundwork market score4724

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
1,932All limited-service restaurants · +6.3% over the period
Employees, 2023
39,789
Annual payroll, 2023
$764.2M
One-person businesses, 2023
396All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
878486 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
710The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
93
Amount
$32.8M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in the Columbus 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 limited-service restaurants, not only pizza places.

Population and households in the Columbus metro area

Population, 2025 estimate
2,242,028+4.7% since 2020
Households
864,663
Median age
38.1
Homes lived in by their owners
61%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
4,798 sq. mi.
People per square mile
454
Median household income
$81,945+25.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$110,942
Median home value
$300,800
Jobs located here
1,129,650
Daytime population
2,268,069Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Columbus 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 pizza places on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of the Columbus metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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The highest-scoring metro areas in Ohio for pizza places, numbered among those based in Ohio (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Columbus metro area marked.

Top metro areas in Ohio

Metro areas in Ohio ranked for pizza places by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN547258.0$5.1M+2.7%#160 of 387
2Columbus, OH4787810.2$4.1M+4.7%#221 of 387
3Dayton-Kettering-Beavercreek, OH363088.9$4.3M+1.5%#298 of 387
4Cleveland, OH348098.7$4.4M−0.8%#312 of 387
5Akron, OH312879.7$4M0.0%#329 of 387
6Springfield, OH31508.9$3.9M−0.4%#331 of 387
7Mansfield, OH28489.6$3.5M−0.1%#349 of 387
8Toledo, OH252359.2$4M−1.0%#356 of 387
9Canton-Massillon, OH2116810.1$3.6M−0.2%#367 of 387
Weirton-Steubenville, WV-OH216112.3$2.7M−3.6%#370 of 387

Other business types in the Columbus metro area

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

Questions

How many pizza places are in the Columbus, OH metro area?

The Columbus metro area has 878 pizza places on map listings as of September 2026. 486 of them (55%) are chain locations. The listings count pizza restaurants. Official counts show 1,932 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in 2023, up 6.3% from 2019. That count covers all limited-service restaurants (fast food and sandwich shops included), not only pizza places. Official counts also show 396 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in the Columbus, OH metro area spend on food away from home?

About $3.6B a year, or $4,172 per household. That is 3% above the U.S. average (an index of 103, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 878 pizza places on map listings, it comes to $4.1M per pizza place. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only pizza places. It is estimated from the incomes of the 864,663 households in the Columbus metro area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Columbus, OH metro area compare with the U.S. for pizza places?

The Columbus metro area has 10.2 pizza places per 10,000 households, 27% above the U.S. rate of 8.0. Spending per pizza place is $4.1M, 19% below the U.S. figure of $5.1M. At the national ratio of pizza places to household spending, the Columbus metro area would have about 710, against 878 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 448 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S. The official count rose 6.3% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.1% for the U.S.

How fast is the Columbus, OH metro area growing?

Population estimates put the Columbus metro area at 2,242,028 people in 2025, up 4.7% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 864,663 households. The median household income in the Columbus metro area is $81,945 a year, in line with the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 25.8% from the 2015–2019 survey, 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 Columbus metro area scores 47 for pizza places (lower middle), #221 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 Columbus metro area. It maps the pizza places 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 pizza places · All 56 business types in the Columbus metro area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Columbus 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 Columbus 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.