Food and drink · Metro area · Georgia
Restaurants and cafes in the Athens-Clarke County, GA metro area
The restaurants and cafes in the Athens-Clarke County, GA metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 37 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #283 of 387 scored metro areas
#8 of 14 scored metro areas based in Georgia
- Listings
- 919
- 418 chain locations (45%)
- Official establishments
- 409
- +9.4% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $311.7M
- On food away from home · $3,621 a household
- Spending per listing
- $339K
- 9% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 106.7
- 3% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 224,148
- +3.9% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the Athens-Clarke County 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 Athens-Clarke County 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
At $3,621 per household (11% below the U.S. average), households in the Athens-Clarke County metro area spend about $311.7M a year on food away from home. That works out to $339K per restaurant, 9% below the U.S. figure of $371K.
The Athens-Clarke County metro area has 919 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. 418 of them (45%) are chain locations, against 34% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 106.7, 3% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.
Official counts show 409 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Athens-Clarke County metro area in 2023, up 9.4% from 2019. That is one for every 211 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Official counts list 79 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 17 SBA-backed loans worth $12.1M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Athens-Clarke County metro area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Athens-Clarke County metro area grew 3.9%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). For restaurants and cafes, the Athens-Clarke County metro area has a Groundwork market score of 37 (lower middle): #283 of 387 scored metro areas and #8 of 14 scored metro areas based in Georgia.
How the Athens-Clarke County metro area compares
The same measures for Georgia 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 | Athens-Clarke County metro area | Georgia | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 106.7 | 109.9 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $339K | $356K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 211 | 203 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +9.4% | +10.2% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.9% | +5.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,621 | $3,917 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $65,608 | $77,353 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 37 | 45 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 409+9.4% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 9,752
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $184.9M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 79Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 919418 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 841The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 17
- Amount
- $12.1M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Athens-Clarke County 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 Athens-Clarke County metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 224,148+3.9% since 2020
- Households
- 86,101
- Median age
- 36.7
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 56%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 1,025 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 215
- Median household income
- $65,608+39.0% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $94,551
- Median home value
- $310,200
- Jobs located here
- 94,787
- Daytime population
- 224,908Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Athens-Clarke County 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 Athens-Clarke County 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 Georgia
Every Georgia market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Georgia for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Georgia (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Athens-Clarke County metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Georgia
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Hinesville, GA | 68 | 239 | 79.2 | $411K | +12.6% | #75 of 387 |
| 2Gainesville, GA | 63 | 744 | 101.2 | $394K | +11.4% | #109 of 387 |
| 3Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC | 61 | 2,116 | 91.3 | $400K | +4.7% | #123 of 387 |
| 4Warner Robins, GA | 53 | 743 | 99.8 | $382K | +8.2% | #171 of 387 |
| 5Dalton, GA | 51 | 472 | 90.6 | $381K | +3.5% | #187 of 387 |
| 6Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | 51 | 26,883 | 116.2 | $366K | +5.9% | #188 of 387 |
| Chattanooga, TN-GA | 49 | 2,401 | 103.8 | $361K | +5.3% | #199 of 387 |
| 7Rome, GA | 39 | 370 | 100.4 | $350K | +2.8% | #267 of 387 |
| 8Athens-Clarke County, GA | 37 | 919 | 106.7 | $339K | +3.9% | #283 of 387 |
| 9Savannah, GA | 33 | 2,143 | 132.9 | $290K | +8.1% | #313 of 387 |
Other business types in the Athens-Clarke County metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes37
- Sit-down restaurants37
- Fast food and sandwich shops41
- Pizza34
- Coffee shops and cafes39
- Bakeries and dessert shops52
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 Athens-Clarke County, GA metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 919 restaurants and cafes in the Athens-Clarke County metro area. 418 of them (45%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 409 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 9.4% from 2019. Official counts also show 79 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Athens-Clarke County, GA metro area spend on food away from home?
About $311.7M a year, or $3,621 per household. That is 11% below the U.S. average (an index of 89, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 919 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $339K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 86,101 households in the Athens-Clarke County metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Athens-Clarke County, GA metro area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The Athens-Clarke County metro area has 106.7 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 3% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $339K, 9% below the U.S. figure of $371K. At the U.S. ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, the Athens-Clarke County metro area would have about 841, against 919 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 211 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 9.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Athens-Clarke County, GA metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Athens-Clarke County metro area at 224,148 people in 2025, up 3.9% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 86,101 households. Median household income in the Athens-Clarke County metro area is $65,608, 19% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 39.0%, 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. The Athens-Clarke County metro area scores 37 for restaurants and cafes (lower middle), #283 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 Athens-Clarke County 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 Athens-Clarke County metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Athens-Clarke County 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 Athens-Clarke County 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.