Food and drink · Metro area · Alabama
Restaurants and cafes in the Decatur, AL metro area
The restaurants and cafes in the Decatur, AL metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 71 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #52 of 387 scored metro areas
#2 of 12 scored metro areas based in Alabama
- Listings
- 498
- 211 chain locations (42%)
- Official establishments
- 230
- +9.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $223.9M
- On food away from home · $3,572 a household
- Spending per listing
- $450K
- 21% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 79.5
- 28% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 160,326
- +2.5% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the Decatur metro area
The site report maps the restaurants 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 Decatur 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
As of September 2026, map listings count 498 restaurants and cafes in the Decatur metro area. Chain locations make up 42% of them, against 34% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 79.5, 28% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.
Households in the Decatur metro area spend about $223.9M a year on food away from home, or $3,572 per household, 12% below the U.S. average. That works out to $450K per restaurant, 21% above the U.S. figure of $371K.
In 2023, official counts showed 230 businesses with payroll in the Decatur metro area classed as restaurants and other eating places, up 9.0% from 2019. That is one for every 272 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Another 67 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Decatur metro area grew 2.5%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). For restaurants and cafes, the Decatur metro area has a Groundwork market score of 71 (upper middle): #52 of 387 scored metro areas and #2 of 12 scored metro areas based in Alabama. That puts it in the top quarter of metro areas.
How the Decatur metro area compares
The same measures for Alabama and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all food away from home by the restaurants 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 | Decatur metro area | Alabama | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 79.5 | 92.0 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $450K | $382K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 272 | 246 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +9.0% | +7.4% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.5% | +3.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,572 | $3,519 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $68,116 | $63,999 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 71 | 59 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 230+9.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 4,583
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $89.7M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 67Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 498211 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 604The 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 restaurants and other eating places in the Decatur 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.
Population and households in the Decatur metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 160,326+2.5% since 2020
- Households
- 62,667
- Median age
- 41.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 75%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 1,270 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 124
- Median household income
- $68,116+35.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $87,472
- Median home value
- $202,500
- Jobs located here
- 58,542
- Daytime population
- 149,857Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Decatur 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 restaurants and cafes on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Decatur metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardRestaurants and cafes across Alabama
Every Alabama market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Alabama for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Alabama, with the Decatur metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Alabama
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Huntsville, AL | 77 | 2,055 | 99.8 | $413K | +12.5% | #33 of 387 |
| 2Decatur, AL | 71 | 498 | 79.5 | $450K | +2.5% | #52 of 387 |
| 3Tuscaloosa, AL | 65 | 860 | 81.4 | $423K | +2.9% | #93 of 387 |
| 4Birmingham, AL | 51 | 4,531 | 97.4 | $385K | +1.4% | #185 of 387 |
| 5Florence-Muscle Shoals, AL | 48 | 558 | 87.8 | $386K | +3.5% | #203 of 387 |
| 6Montgomery, AL | 44 | 1,408 | 93.0 | $375K | +0.9% | #230 of 387 |
| 7Auburn-Opelika, AL | 43 | 725 | 94.6 | $371K | +7.1% | #238 of 387 |
| 8Mobile, AL | 38 | 1,545 | 95.6 | $352K | −0.7% | #275 of 387 |
| 9Daphne-Fairhope-Foley, AL | 37 | 1,282 | 130.1 | $297K | +14.8% | #285 of 387 |
| 10Gadsden, AL | 35 | 333 | 84.5 | $371K | +0.4% | #290 of 387 |
Other business types in the Decatur metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes71
- Sit-down restaurants62
- Fast food and sandwich shops49
- Pizza55
- Coffee shops and cafes67
- Bakeries and dessert shops60
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 restaurants and cafes are in the Decatur, AL metro area?
The Decatur metro area has 498 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. 211 of them (42%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 230 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 9.0% from 2019. Official counts list 67 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Decatur, AL metro area spend on food away from home?
About $223.9M a year, or $3,572 per household. That is 12% below the U.S. average (an index of 88, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 498 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $450K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 62,667 households in the Decatur metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Decatur, AL metro area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The Decatur metro area has 79.5 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 28% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $450K, 21% above the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, the Decatur metro area would have about 604, against 498 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 272 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 9.0% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Decatur, AL metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Decatur metro area at 160,326 people in 2025, up 2.5% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 62,667 households. The median household income in the Decatur metro area is $68,116 a year, 16% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 35.1% 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 Decatur metro area scores 71 for restaurants and cafes (upper middle), #52 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 Decatur metro area. It maps the restaurants 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 restaurants and cafes · All 56 business types in the Decatur metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Decatur 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 Decatur 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.