Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Colorado

Restaurants and cafes in Elbert County, CO

The restaurants and cafes in Elbert County, CO, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 97 out of 100: Very high

Ranked #2 of 2,405 scored counties
#1 of 37 scored counties in Colorado

Listings
49
14 chain locations (29%)
Official establishments
24
+20.0% since 2019
Household spending a year
$52.1M
On food away from home · $5,209 a household
Spending per listing
$1.1M
2.9 times the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
49.0
55% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
30,534
+16.5% since 2020

See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Elbert 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 Elbert County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey 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 Elbert County is 97 (very high), #2 of 2,405 scored counties and #1 of 37 scored counties in Colorado. That puts it in the top 10% of counties for restaurants and cafes.

At $5,209 per household (28% above the U.S. average), households in Elbert County spend about $52.1M a year on food away from home. Spread across 49 restaurants and cafes, that is $1.1M per restaurant, 2.9 times the U.S. figure of $371K.

Elbert County has 49 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. 14 of them (29%) are chain locations, against 34% across the U.S. That is 49.0 per 10,000 households, 55% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.

Official counts show 24 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in Elbert County in 2023, up 20.0% from 2019. That is one for every 417 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $1.7M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Elbert County. Population estimates show Elbert County grew 16.5% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Elbert County compares

The same measures for Colorado 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.

Restaurants and cafes in Elbert County, CO compared with Colorado and the U.S.
MeasureElbert CountyColoradoU.S.
Listings per 10k households49.0113.0109.8
Spending per listing$1.1M$391K$371K
Households per official establishment417204209
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+20.0%+5.6%+6.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025+16.5%+3.9%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$5,209$4,421$4,070
Median household income$132,685$95,470$80,734
Groundwork market score9764

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
20 → 24+20.0% over the period
Employees, 2023
430
Annual payroll, 2023
$9.4M
One-person businesses, 2023
16Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
4914 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
141The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
4
Amount
$1.7M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Elbert 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 Elbert County

Population, 2025 estimate
30,534+16.5% since 2020
Households
10,004
Median age
45.2
Homes lived in by their owners
95%
Vehicles per household
2.8
Land area
1,851 sq. mi.
People per square mile
15
Median household income
$132,685+33.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$161,186
Median home value
$709,800
Jobs located here
4,921
Daytime population
17,161Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Elbert 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 Elbert County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Restaurants and cafes across Colorado

Every Colorado market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Colorado for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Colorado, with Elbert County marked.

Top counties in Colorado

Counties in Colorado ranked for restaurants and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Elbert County, CO974949.0$1.1M+16.5%#2 of 2,405
2Park County, CO896976.8$578K+5.1%#33 of 2,405
3Weld County, CO8498479.2$546K+14.2%#76 of 2,405
4Douglas County, CO831,12580.4$698K+10.9%#82 of 2,405
5Broomfield County, CO7427085.0$602K+6.3%#257 of 2,405
6Adams County, CO741,69189.6$483K+6.6%#272 of 2,405
7Arapahoe County, CO622,49396.9$472K+2.8%#671 of 2,405
8Jefferson County, CO612,24092.7$516K−0.5%#707 of 2,405
9El Paso County, CO612,957101.9$418K+3.2%#723 of 2,405
10Mesa County, CO5963095.7$391K+4.4%#811 of 2,405

Other business types in Elbert County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many restaurants and cafes are in Elbert County, CO?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 49 restaurants and cafes in Elbert County. 14 of them (29%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 24 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 20.0% from 2019. Official counts also show 16 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Elbert County, CO spend on food away from home?

About $52.1M a year, or $5,209 per household. That is 28% above the U.S. average (an index of 128, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 49 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $1.1M per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 10,004 households in Elbert County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Elbert County, CO compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?

Elbert County has 49.0 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 55% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $1.1M, 2.9 times the U.S. figure of $371K. At the U.S. ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Elbert County would have about 141, against 49 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 417 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 Elbert County, CO growing?

Population estimates put Elbert County at 30,534 people in 2025, up 16.5% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 10,004 households. Median household income in Elbert County is $132,685, 64% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 33.8%, 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. Elbert County scores 97 for restaurants and cafes (very high), #2 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Elbert 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 Elbert County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Elbert 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 Elbert 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.