Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Florida

Restaurants and cafes in Hamilton County, FL

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

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 49 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,248 of 2,405 scored counties
#46 of 65 scored counties in Florida

Listings
35
15 chain locations (43%)
Official establishments
9
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$12.1M
On food away from home · $2,824 a household
Spending per listing
$345K
7% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
81.8
26% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
14,180
+3.3% since 2020

See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Hamilton 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 Hamilton 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

Households in Hamilton County spend about $12.1M a year on food away from home, or $2,824 per household, 31% below the U.S. average. Spread across 35 restaurants and cafes, that is $345K per restaurant, 7% below the U.S. figure of $371K.

Hamilton County has 35 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 15 are chain locations, or 43%, against 34% across the U.S. That comes to 81.8 for every 10,000 households, 26% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.

Official counts show 9 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in Hamilton County in 2023. That is one for every 476 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Another 3 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

Population estimates put the population change in Hamilton County from 2020 to 2025 at +3.3%, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). Hamilton County scores 49 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes, ranking #1,248 of 2,405 scored counties and #46 of 65 scored counties in Florida.

How Hamilton County compares

The same measures for Florida 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 Hamilton County, FL compared with Florida and the U.S.
MeasureHamilton CountyFloridaU.S.
Listings per 10k households81.8112.4109.8
Spending per listing$345K$342K$371K
Households per official establishment476223209
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+11.6%+6.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025+3.3%+8.7%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$2,824$3,841$4,070
Median household income$50,144$74,568$80,734
Groundwork market score4946

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
10 → 9
Employees, 2023
116
Annual payroll, 2023
$1.8M
One-person businesses, 2023
3Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
3515 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
33The 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 Hamilton 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 Hamilton County

Population, 2025 estimate
14,180+3.3% since 2020
Households
4,281
Median age
40.4
Homes lived in by their owners
80%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
514 sq. mi.
People per square mile
26
Median household income
$50,144+30.0% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$58,597
Median home value
$111,200
Jobs located here
2,582
Daytime population
11,652Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

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

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Restaurants and cafes across Florida

Every Florida market ranked →

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

Top counties in Florida

Counties in Florida ranked for restaurants and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Sumter County, FL9033747.9$782K+21.1%#22 of 2,405
2Santa Rosa County, FL8655276.0$548K+11.7%#53 of 2,405
3Gilchrist County, FL824360.1$581K+14.5%#106 of 2,405
4Flagler County, FL8239074.2$523K+21.0%#112 of 2,405
5Wakulla County, FL8210078.5$486K+12.3%#113 of 2,405
6Union County, FL802251.0$664K+5.2%#132 of 2,405
7Clay County, FL7967780.9$499K+9.4%#157 of 2,405
8Pasco County, FL781,85078.3$477K+19.1%#184 of 2,405
9Glades County, FL772453.3$572K+9.9%#195 of 2,405
10Charlotte County, FL7770377.6$463K+15.5%#209 of 2,405
46Hamilton County, FL493581.8$345K+3.3%#1,248 of 2,405

Other business types in Hamilton County

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

Questions

How many restaurants and cafes are in Hamilton County, FL?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 35 restaurants and cafes in Hamilton County. 15 of them (43%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 9 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023. Official counts list 3 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Hamilton County, FL spend on food away from home?

About $12.1M a year, or $2,824 per household. That is 31% below the U.S. average (an index of 69, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 35 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $345K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 4,281 households in Hamilton County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Hamilton County, FL compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?

Hamilton County has 81.8 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 26% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $345K, 7% below the U.S. figure of $371K. At the U.S. ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Hamilton County would have about 33, against 35 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 476 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S.

How fast is Hamilton County, FL growing?

Population estimates put Hamilton County at 14,180 people in 2025, up 3.3% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 4,281 households. Median household income in Hamilton County is $50,144, 38% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 30.0%, 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. Hamilton County scores 49 for restaurants and cafes (lower middle), #1,248 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Hamilton 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 Hamilton 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.