Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Georgia

Restaurants and cafes in Sumter County, GA

How Sumter 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 19 out of 100: Low

Ranked #2,306 of 2,405 scored counties
#114 of 124 scored counties in Georgia

Listings
115
46 chain locations (40%)
Official establishments
45
+21.6% since 2019
Household spending a year
$32.4M
On food away from home · $2,950 a household
Spending per listing
$282K
24% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
104.7
5% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
28,801
−2.4% since 2020

See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Sumter 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 Sumter 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

For restaurants and cafes, Sumter County has a Groundwork market score of 19 (low): #2,306 of 2,405 scored counties and #114 of 124 scored counties in Georgia. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

As of September 2026, map listings count 115 restaurants and cafes in Sumter County. 46 of them (40%) are chain locations, against 34% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 104.7, 5% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.

Household spending on food away from home in Sumter County comes to about $32.4M a year: $2,950 per household, 28% below the U.S. average. That works out to $282K per restaurant, 24% below the U.S. figure of $371K.

In 2023, official counts showed 45 businesses with payroll in Sumter County classed as restaurants and other eating places, up 21.6% from 2019. That is one for every 244 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $350K has gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Sumter County. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Sumter County declined 2.4%, against +3.1% for the U.S.

How Sumter 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.

Restaurants and cafes in Sumter County, GA compared with Georgia and the U.S.
MeasureSumter CountyGeorgiaU.S.
Listings per 10k households104.7109.9109.8
Spending per listing$282K$356K$371K
Households per official establishment244203209
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+21.6%+10.2%+6.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025−2.4%+5.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$2,950$3,917$4,070
Median household income$42,653$77,353$80,734
Groundwork market score1945

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
37 → 45+21.6% over the period
Employees, 2023
759
Annual payroll, 2023
$12.8M
One-person businesses, 2023
13Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
11546 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
87The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
1
Amount
$350K

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

Population, 2025 estimate
28,801−2.4% since 2020
Households
10,986
Median age
39.0
Homes lived in by their owners
57%
Vehicles per household
1.7
Land area
483 sq. mi.
People per square mile
60
Median household income
$42,653+16.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$68,394
Median home value
$120,200
Jobs located here
9,753
Daytime population
27,951Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

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

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Restaurants 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 Sumter County marked.

Top counties in Georgia

Counties in Georgia ranked for restaurants and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Paulding County, GA9235158.5$737K+12.7%#15 of 2,405
2Harris County, GA928061.4$713K+6.8%#16 of 2,405
3Oglethorpe County, GA902444.4$827K+10.4%#21 of 2,405
4Pike County, GA903755.1$726K+10.5%#24 of 2,405
5Effingham County, GA9015061.8$661K+14.1%#27 of 2,405
6Lee County, GA875443.9$901K+2.9%#39 of 2,405
7Monroe County, GA868681.5$496K+14.1%#55 of 2,405
8Long County, GA852134.1$958K+32.6%#57 of 2,405
9Jones County, GA834440.8$908K+2.8%#79 of 2,405
10Jasper County, GA833152.0$677K+20.2%#83 of 2,405
114Sumter County, GA19115104.7$282K−2.4%#2,306 of 2,405

Other business types in Sumter County

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

Questions

How many restaurants and cafes are in Sumter County, GA?

Sumter County has 115 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. 46 of them (40%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 45 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 21.6% from 2019. Official counts also show 13 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Sumter County, GA spend on food away from home?

About $32.4M a year, or $2,950 per household. That is 28% below the U.S. average (an index of 72, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 115 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $282K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 10,986 households in Sumter County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Sumter County, GA compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?

Sumter County has 104.7 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 5% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $282K, 24% below the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Sumter County would have about 87, against 115 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 244 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 21.6% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.

How fast is Sumter County, GA growing?

Population estimates put Sumter County at 28,801 people in 2025, down 2.4% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 10,986 households. The median household income in Sumter County is $42,653 a year, 47% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 16.3% 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. Sumter County scores 19 for restaurants and cafes (low), #2,306 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Sumter 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 Sumter 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.