Food and drink · County · Georgia
Restaurants and cafes in Rockdale County, GA
How Rockdale County, GA 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 51 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #1,148 of 2,405 scored counties
#61 of 124 scored counties in Georgia
- Listings
- 343
- 158 chain locations (46%)
- Official establishments
- 178
- −1.1% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $131.6M
- On food away from home · $3,820 a household
- Spending per listing
- $384K
- 3% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 99.6
- 9% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 98,416
- +5.2% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Rockdale 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 Rockdale 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
As of September 2026, map listings count 343 restaurants and cafes in Rockdale County. Of those, 158 are chain locations, or 46%, against 34% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 99.6, 9% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.
Household spending on food away from home in Rockdale County comes to about $131.6M a year: $3,820 per household, 6% below the U.S. average. That is about $384K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 3% above the U.S. figure of $371K.
In 2023, official counts showed 178 businesses with payroll in Rockdale County classed as restaurants and other eating places, down 1.1% from 2019. That is one for every 193 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Official counts also show 58 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 9 SBA-backed loans worth $6.7M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Rockdale County.
Population estimates show Rockdale County grew 5.2% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes in Rockdale County is 51 (upper middle), #1,148 of 2,405 scored counties and #61 of 124 scored counties in Georgia.
How Rockdale County 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 | Rockdale County | Georgia | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 99.6 | 109.9 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $384K | $356K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 193 | 203 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −1.1% | +10.2% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +5.2% | +5.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,820 | $3,917 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $77,247 | $77,353 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 51 | 45 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 180 → 178−1.1% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 4,373
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $86.1M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 58Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 343158 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 355The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 9
- Amount
- $6.7M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Rockdale 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 Rockdale County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 98,416+5.2% since 2020
- Households
- 34,437
- Median age
- 39.8
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 70%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 130 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 734
- Median household income
- $77,247+28.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $100,790
- Median home value
- $292,900
- Jobs located here
- 36,965
- Daytime population
- 90,739Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Rockdale 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 Rockdale 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 Georgia
Every Georgia market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Georgia for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Georgia, with Rockdale County marked.
Top counties in Georgia
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Paulding County, GA | 92 | 351 | 58.5 | $737K | +12.7% | #15 of 2,405 |
| 2Harris County, GA | 92 | 80 | 61.4 | $713K | +6.8% | #16 of 2,405 |
| 3Oglethorpe County, GA | 90 | 24 | 44.4 | $827K | +10.4% | #21 of 2,405 |
| 4Pike County, GA | 90 | 37 | 55.1 | $726K | +10.5% | #24 of 2,405 |
| 5Effingham County, GA | 90 | 150 | 61.8 | $661K | +14.1% | #27 of 2,405 |
| 6Lee County, GA | 87 | 54 | 43.9 | $901K | +2.9% | #39 of 2,405 |
| 7Monroe County, GA | 86 | 86 | 81.5 | $496K | +14.1% | #55 of 2,405 |
| 8Long County, GA | 85 | 21 | 34.1 | $958K | +32.6% | #57 of 2,405 |
| 9Jones County, GA | 83 | 44 | 40.8 | $908K | +2.8% | #79 of 2,405 |
| 10Jasper County, GA | 83 | 31 | 52.0 | $677K | +20.2% | #83 of 2,405 |
| 61Rockdale County, GA | 51 | 343 | 99.6 | $384K | +5.2% | #1,148 of 2,405 |
Other business types in Rockdale County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes51
- Sit-down restaurants47
- Fast food and sandwich shops42
- Pizza60
- Coffee shops and cafes76
- Bakeries and dessert shops57
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 Rockdale County, GA?
Rockdale County has 343 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. 158 of them (46%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 178 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, down 1.1% from 2019. Another 58 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in Rockdale County, GA spend on food away from home?
About $131.6M a year, or $3,820 per household. That is 6% below the U.S. average (an index of 94, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 343 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $384K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 34,437 households in Rockdale County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Rockdale County, GA compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
Rockdale County has 99.6 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 9% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $384K, 3% above the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Rockdale County would have about 355, against 343 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 193 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count fell 1.1% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is Rockdale County, GA growing?
Population estimates put Rockdale County at 98,416 people in 2025, up 5.2% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 34,437 households. The median household income in Rockdale County is $77,247 a year, 4% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 28.3% from the 2015–2019 survey, 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. Rockdale County scores 51 for restaurants and cafes (upper middle), #1,148 of 2,405 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Rockdale 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 Rockdale County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Rockdale 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 Rockdale 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.