Food and drink · Small-town market · California
Restaurants and cafes in the Clearlake, CA area
How the Clearlake, CA 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 60 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #170 of 538 scored small-town markets
#4 of 9 scored small-town markets based in California
- Listings
- 252
- 50 chain locations (20%)
- Official establishments
- 95
- +1.1% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $94.6M
- On food away from home · $3,513 a household
- Spending per listing
- $376K
- In line with the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 93.5
- 15% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 67,772
- −0.6% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the Clearlake 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 Clearlake 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
Household spending on food away from home in the Clearlake area comes to about $94.6M a year: $3,513 per household, 14% below the U.S. average. That works out to $376K per restaurant, in line with the U.S. figure of $371K.
There are 252 restaurants and cafes on map listings in the Clearlake area as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 20% of them, against 34% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 93.5, 15% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.
In 2023, official counts showed 95 businesses with payroll in the Clearlake area classed as restaurants and other eating places, up 1.1% from 2019. That is one for every 284 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Another 18 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $50K has gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Clearlake area.
Population estimates show the Clearlake area declined 0.6% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Clearlake area scores 60 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes, ranking #170 of 538 scored small-town markets and #4 of 9 scored small-town markets based in California.
How the Clearlake area compares
The same measures for California 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 | Clearlake area | California | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 93.5 | 128.4 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $376K | $355K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 284 | 170 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +1.1% | +3.9% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −0.6% | −0.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,513 | $4,559 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $60,621 | $99,122 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 60 | 33 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 95+1.1% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 961
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $22.3M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 18Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 25250 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 255The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $50K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Clearlake 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 Clearlake area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 67,772−0.6% since 2020
- Households
- 26,940
- Median age
- 44.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 72%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 1,255 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 54
- Median household income
- $60,621+28.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $86,306
- Median home value
- $324,300
- Jobs located here
- 15,936
- Daytime population
- 61,990Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Clearlake 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 Clearlake 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 California
Every California market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in California for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in California (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Clearlake area marked.
Top small-town markets in California
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Susanville, CA | 67 | 67 | 72.5 | $483K | −13.1% | #98 of 538 |
| 2Red Bluff, CA | 65 | 178 | 71.8 | $489K | −1.7% | #117 of 538 |
| 3Truckee-Grass Valley, CA | 62 | 444 | 103.6 | $416K | −0.4% | #149 of 538 |
| 4Clearlake, CA | 60 | 252 | 93.5 | $376K | −0.6% | #170 of 538 |
| 5Crescent City, CA | 57 | 88 | 92.4 | $388K | −4.4% | #189 of 538 |
| Gardnerville Ranchos, NV-CA | 53 | 267 | 122.7 | $351K | +0.9% | #236 of 538 |
| 6Sonora, CA | 40 | 256 | 112.8 | $347K | −4.0% | #374 of 538 |
| 7Eureka-Arcata, CA | 24 | 665 | 121.1 | $289K | −3.4% | #492 of 538 |
| 8Bishop, CA | 22 | 129 | 160.4 | $238K | −4.4% | #506 of 538 |
| 9Ukiah, CA | 20 | 523 | 150.1 | $244K | −3.5% | #516 of 538 |
Other business types in the Clearlake area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes60
- Sit-down restaurants66
- Fast food and sandwich shops73
- Pizza60
- Coffee shops and cafes36
- Bakeries and dessert shops59
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 Clearlake, CA area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 252 restaurants and cafes in the Clearlake area. 50 of them (20%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 95 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 1.1% from 2019. Official counts list 18 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Clearlake, CA area spend on food away from home?
About $94.6M a year, or $3,513 per household. That is 14% below the U.S. average (an index of 86, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 252 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $376K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 26,940 households in the Clearlake area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Clearlake, CA area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The Clearlake area has 93.5 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 15% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $376K, in line with the U.S. figure of $371K. At the U.S. ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, the Clearlake area would have about 255, against 252 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 284 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 1.1% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Clearlake, CA area growing?
Population estimates put the Clearlake area at 67,772 people in 2025, down 0.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 26,940 households. Median household income in the Clearlake area is $60,621, 25% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 28.9%, 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 Clearlake area scores 60 for restaurants and cafes (upper middle), #170 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 Clearlake 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 Clearlake area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Clearlake 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 Clearlake 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.