Food and drink · Small-town market · Arkansas
Restaurants and cafes in the Camden, AR area
How the Camden, AR area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for restaurants and cafes: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 47 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #289 of 538 scored small-town markets
#5 of 14 scored small-town markets based in Arkansas
- Listings
- 86
- 34 chain locations (40%)
- Official establishments
- 32
- +3.2% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $31.8M
- On food away from home · $3,081 a household
- Spending per listing
- $370K
- In line with the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 83.4
- 24% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 26,363
- −3.6% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the Camden 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 Camden 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
Households in the Camden area spend about $31.8M a year on food away from home, or $3,081 per household, 24% below the U.S. average. That is about $370K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, in line with the U.S. figure of $371K.
The Camden area has 86 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 40% of them, against 34% across the U.S. That is 83.4 per 10,000 households, 24% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Camden area was 32 in 2023, up 3.2% from 2019. That is one for every 322 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Official counts also show 12 one-person businesses without payroll.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Camden area declined 3.6%, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes in the Camden area is 47 (lower middle), #289 of 538 scored small-town markets and #5 of 14 scored small-town markets based in Arkansas.
How the Camden area compares
The same measures for Arkansas 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 | Camden area | Arkansas | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 83.4 | 98.5 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $370K | $345K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 322 | 238 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +3.2% | +8.5% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −3.6% | +3.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,081 | $3,400 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $51,429 | $60,773 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 47 | 43 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 32+3.2% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 475
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $7.9M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 12Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 8634 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 86The 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 Camden 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 Camden area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 26,363−3.6% since 2020
- Households
- 10,314
- Median age
- 44.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 74%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 1,361 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 20
- Median household income
- $51,429+38.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $67,257
- Median home value
- $104,500
- Jobs located here
- 10,630
- Daytime population
- 26,023Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Camden 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 restaurants and cafes on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Camden 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 Arkansas
Every Arkansas market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Arkansas for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Arkansas, with the Camden area marked.
Top small-town markets in Arkansas
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Malvern, AR | 74 | 67 | 54.4 | $577K | +1.1% | #54 of 538 |
| 2Harrison, AR | 59 | 151 | 81.4 | $385K | +2.4% | #177 of 538 |
| 3Paragould, AR | 53 | 161 | 89.5 | $359K | +3.4% | #234 of 538 |
| 4Russellville, AR | 52 | 284 | 86.9 | $373K | +1.6% | #242 of 538 |
| 5Camden, AR | 47 | 86 | 83.4 | $370K | −3.6% | #289 of 538 |
| 6Batesville, AR | 47 | 136 | 92.9 | $347K | +2.2% | #293 of 538 |
| 7Searcy, AR | 47 | 279 | 94.2 | $335K | +4.2% | #297 of 538 |
| 8Mountain Home, AR | 45 | 171 | 88.4 | $343K | +3.1% | #320 of 538 |
| 9Pine Bluff, AR | 40 | 230 | 85.3 | $357K | −5.6% | #373 of 538 |
| 10Blytheville, AR | 25 | 153 | 99.0 | $323K | −6.7% | #482 of 538 |
Other business types in the Camden area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes47
- Sit-down restaurants43
- Fast food and sandwich shops42
- Pizza40
- Coffee shops and cafes
- Bakeries and dessert shops45
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 Camden, AR area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 86 restaurants and cafes in the Camden area. 34 of them (40%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 32 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 3.2% from 2019. Another 12 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Camden, AR area spend on food away from home?
About $31.8M a year, or $3,081 per household. That is 24% below the U.S. average (an index of 76, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 86 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $370K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 10,314 households in the Camden area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Camden, AR area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The Camden area has 83.4 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 24% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $370K, in line with the U.S. figure of $371K. The count on map listings matches the U.S. ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 322 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 3.2% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Camden, AR area growing?
Population estimates put the Camden area at 26,363 people in 2025, down 3.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 10,314 households. Median household income in the Camden area is $51,429, 36% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 38.2%, 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. 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 Camden area scores 47 for restaurants and cafes (lower middle), #289 of 538 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Camden 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 Camden area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Camden 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 Camden 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.