Food and drink · County · California
Restaurants and cafes in San Diego County, CA
How San Diego County, CA compares with other counties and the U.S. for restaurants and cafes: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 39 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,651 of 2,405 scored counties
#33 of 55 scored counties in California
- Listings
- 15,547
- 4,779 chain locations (31%)
- Official establishments
- 6,900
- +4.4% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $5.5B
- On food away from home · $4,696 a household
- Spending per listing
- $354K
- 5% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 132.7
- 21% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 3,282,248
- −0.6% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in San Diego County
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 San Diego County. 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 San Diego County comes to about $5.5B a year: $4,696 per household, 15% above the U.S. average. That is about $354K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 5% below the U.S. figure of $371K.
San Diego County has 15,547 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 4,779 are chain locations, or 31%, against 34% across the U.S. That comes to 132.7 for every 10,000 households, 21% above the U.S. rate of 109.8.
In 2023, official counts showed 6,900 businesses with payroll in San Diego County classed as restaurants and other eating places, up 4.4% from 2019. That is one for every 170 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Official counts also show 1,115 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 282 SBA-backed loans worth $149.6M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in San Diego County.
Population estimates show San Diego County declined 0.6% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S. For restaurants and cafes, San Diego County has a Groundwork market score of 39 (lower middle): #1,651 of 2,405 scored counties and #33 of 55 scored counties in California.
How San Diego County 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 | San Diego County | California | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 132.7 | 128.4 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $354K | $355K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 170 | 170 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +4.4% | +3.9% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −0.6% | −0.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $4,696 | $4,559 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $106,268 | $99,122 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 39 | 33 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 6,607 → 6,900+4.4% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 133,685
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $3.9B
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 1,115Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 15,5474,779 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 14,835The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 282
- Amount
- $149.6M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in San Diego County, 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 San Diego County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 3,282,248−0.6% since 2020
- Households
- 1,171,278
- Median age
- 38.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 55%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 4,211 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 781
- Median household income
- $106,268+34.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $141,250
- Median home value
- $854,700
- Jobs located here
- 1,516,991
- Daytime population
- 3,269,716Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in San Diego County?
These figures cover the whole county. 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 San Diego County. 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 counties in California for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in California, with San Diego County marked.
Top counties in California
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Yuba County, CA | 86 | 179 | 62.5 | $606K | +8.2% | #52 of 2,405 |
| 2San Benito County, CA | 70 | 209 | 101.6 | $482K | +8.6% | #405 of 2,405 |
| 3Contra Costa County, CA | 64 | 3,869 | 93.4 | $555K | +0.3% | #585 of 2,405 |
| 4San Joaquin County, CA | 62 | 2,489 | 101.5 | $423K | +5.5% | #685 of 2,405 |
| 5Merced County, CA | 60 | 729 | 84.7 | $418K | +5.1% | #766 of 2,405 |
| 6Placer County, CA | 60 | 1,914 | 121.2 | $405K | +8.9% | #769 of 2,405 |
| 7Solano County, CA | 59 | 1,544 | 98.0 | $460K | +0.6% | #791 of 2,405 |
| 8Riverside County, CA | 59 | 7,943 | 102.4 | $422K | +5.0% | #802 of 2,405 |
| 9Madera County, CA | 58 | 450 | 99.2 | $387K | +7.4% | #849 of 2,405 |
| 10Lassen County, CA | 56 | 67 | 72.5 | $483K | −13.1% | #903 of 2,405 |
| 33San Diego County, CA | 39 | 15,547 | 132.7 | $354K | −0.6% | #1,651 of 2,405 |
Other business types in San Diego County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes39
- Sit-down restaurants39
- Fast food and sandwich shops53
- Pizza57
- Coffee shops and cafes33
- Bakeries and dessert shops43
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 San Diego County, CA?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 15,547 restaurants and cafes in San Diego County. 4,779 of them (31%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 6,900 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 4.4% from 2019. Another 1,115 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in San Diego County, CA spend on food away from home?
About $5.5B a year, or $4,696 per household. That is 15% above the U.S. average (an index of 115, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 15,547 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $354K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 1,171,278 households in San Diego County and national spending patterns by income.
How does San Diego County, CA compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
San Diego County has 132.7 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 21% above the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $354K, 5% below the U.S. figure of $371K. At the U.S. ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, San Diego County would have about 14,835, against 15,547 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 170 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 4.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is San Diego County, CA growing?
Population estimates put San Diego County at 3,282,248 people in 2025, down 0.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 1,171,278 households. Median household income in San Diego County is $106,268, 32% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 34.6%, 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. San Diego County scores 39 for restaurants and cafes (lower middle), #1,651 of 2,405 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in San Diego County. 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 San Diego County
Screening a site or an acquisition in San Diego County?
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 San Diego County. 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.