Food and drink · Small-town market · Arkansas
Restaurants and cafes in the Forrest City, AR area
How the Forrest City, 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 19 out of 100: Low
Ranked #521 of 538 scored small-town markets
#14 of 14 scored small-town markets based in Arkansas
- Listings
- 89
- 39 chain locations (44%)
- Official establishments
- 30
- +20.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $21.6M
- On food away from home · $2,773 a household
- Spending per listing
- $242K
- 35% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 114.4
- 4% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 21,800
- −5.3% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the Forrest City 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 Forrest City 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
The Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes in the Forrest City area is 19 (low), #521 of 538 scored small-town markets and #14 of 14 scored small-town markets based in Arkansas. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.
As of September 2026, map listings count 89 restaurants and cafes in the Forrest City area. 39 of them (44%) are chain locations, against 34% across the U.S. That comes to 114.4 for every 10,000 households, 4% above the U.S. rate of 109.8.
At $2,773 per household (32% below the U.S. average), households in the Forrest City area spend about $21.6M a year on food away from home. That is about $242K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 35% below the U.S. figure of $371K.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Forrest City area was 30 in 2023, up 20.0% from 2019. That is one for every 259 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Population estimates put the population change in the Forrest City area from 2020 to 2025 at −5.3%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How the Forrest City 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 | Forrest City area | Arkansas | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 114.4 | 98.5 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $242K | $345K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 259 | 238 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +20.0% | +8.5% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −5.3% | +3.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $2,773 | $3,400 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $42,574 | $60,773 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 19 | 43 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 30+20.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 379
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $6.5M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 6Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 8939 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 58The 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 Forrest City 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 Forrest City area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 21,800−5.3% since 2020
- Households
- 7,783
- Median age
- 39.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 55%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 635 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 35
- Median household income
- $42,574+20.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $58,099
- Median home value
- $90,900
- Jobs located here
- 6,530
- Daytime population
- 21,343Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Forrest City 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 Forrest City 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 Forrest City 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 |
| 14Forrest City, AR | 19 | 89 | 114.4 | $242K | −5.3% | #521 of 538 |
Other business types in the Forrest City area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes19
- Sit-down restaurants17
- Fast food and sandwich shops11
- Pizza19
- Coffee shops and cafes23
- Bakeries and dessert shops25
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 Forrest City, AR area?
The Forrest City area has 89 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. 39 of them (44%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 30 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 20.0% from 2019. Another 6 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Forrest City, AR area spend on food away from home?
About $21.6M a year, or $2,773 per household. That is 32% below the U.S. average (an index of 68, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 89 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $242K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 7,783 households in the Forrest City area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Forrest City, AR area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The Forrest City area has 114.4 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 4% above the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $242K, 35% below the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, the Forrest City area would have about 58, against 89 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 259 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 20.0% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Forrest City, AR area growing?
Population estimates put the Forrest City area at 21,800 people in 2025, down 5.3% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 7,783 households. The median household income in the Forrest City area is $42,574 a year, 47% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 20.4% 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. 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 Forrest City area scores 19 for restaurants and cafes (low), #521 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 Forrest City 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 Forrest City area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Forrest City 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 Forrest City 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.