Food and drink · Metro area · Arkansas
Restaurants and cafes in the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR metro area
The restaurants and cafes in the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 46 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #216 of 387 scored metro areas
#2 of 5 scored metro areas based in Arkansas
- Listings
- 3,063
- 1,358 chain locations (44%)
- Official establishments
- 1,379
- +9.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $1.1B
- On food away from home · $3,597 a household
- Spending per listing
- $366K
- In line with the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 98.3
- 10% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 777,607
- +3.8% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway 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 Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway 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 3,063 restaurants and cafes in the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway metro area. Chain locations make up 44% of them, against 34% across the U.S. That is 98.3 per 10,000 households, 10% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.
At $3,597 per household (12% below the U.S. average), households in the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway metro area spend about $1.1B a year on food away from home. That is about $366K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, in line with the U.S. figure of $371K.
Official counts show 1,379 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway metro area in 2023, up 9.0% from 2019. That is one for every 226 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Official counts list 305 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 25 SBA-backed loans worth $11.1M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway metro area.
Population estimates put the population change in the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway metro area from 2020 to 2025 at +3.8%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). For restaurants and cafes, the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway metro area has a Groundwork market score of 46 (lower middle): #216 of 387 scored metro areas and #2 of 5 scored metro areas based in Arkansas.
How the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway metro 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 | Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway metro area | Arkansas | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 98.3 | 98.5 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $366K | $345K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 226 | 238 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +9.0% | +8.5% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.8% | +3.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,597 | $3,400 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $67,154 | $60,773 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 46 | 43 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 1,379+9.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 28,156
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $590.1M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 305Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 3,0631,358 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 3,022The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 25
- Amount
- $11.1M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway 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 Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 777,607+3.8% since 2020
- Households
- 311,547
- Median age
- 38.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 64%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 4,084 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 186
- Median household income
- $67,154+22.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $92,342
- Median home value
- $214,100
- Jobs located here
- 361,659
- Daytime population
- 794,293Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway 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 Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway 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 Arkansas
Every Arkansas market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Arkansas for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Arkansas (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Arkansas
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR | 54 | 2,405 | 111.6 | $360K | +13.1% | #167 of 387 |
| 2Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR | 46 | 3,063 | 98.3 | $366K | +3.8% | #216 of 387 |
| Memphis, TN-MS-AR | 35 | 5,489 | 105.0 | $346K | −0.3% | #295 of 387 |
| 3Fort Smith, AR-OK | 30 | 942 | 103.5 | $317K | +3.1% | #336 of 387 |
| 4Jonesboro, AR | 27 | 571 | 107.3 | $309K | +3.6% | #343 of 387 |
| Texarkana, TX-AR | 17 | 616 | 109.5 | $296K | −0.4% | #378 of 387 |
| 5Hot Springs, AR | 9 | 504 | 115.4 | $280K | −0.6% | #386 of 387 |
Other business types in the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes46
- Sit-down restaurants42
- Fast food and sandwich shops39
- Pizza40
- Coffee shops and cafes58
- Bakeries and dessert shops49
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 Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR metro area?
The Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway metro area has 3,063 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. 1,358 of them (44%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 1,379 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 9.0% from 2019. Official counts also show 305 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR metro area spend on food away from home?
About $1.1B a year, or $3,597 per household. That is 12% below the U.S. average (an index of 88, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 3,063 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $366K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 311,547 households in the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR metro area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway metro area has 98.3 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 10% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $366K, in line with the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway metro area would have about 3,022, against 3,063 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 226 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 Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway metro area at 777,607 people in 2025, up 3.8% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 311,547 households. The median household income in the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway metro area is $67,154 a year, 17% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 22.7% 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 Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway metro area scores 46 for restaurants and cafes (lower middle), #216 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 Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway 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 Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway 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 Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway 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.