Food and drink · Metro area · Illinois
Restaurants and cafes in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area
How the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for restaurants and cafes: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 47 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #210 of 387 scored metro areas
#4 of 8 scored metro areas based in Illinois
- Listings
- 42,241
- 13,894 chain locations (33%)
- Official establishments
- 17,823
- +3.8% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $16.1B
- On food away from home · $4,421 a household
- Spending per listing
- $381K
- 3% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 115.9
- 6% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 9,434,123
- 0.0% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 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
Map listings as of September 2026 show 42,241 restaurants and cafes in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area. Chain locations make up 33% of them, against 34% across the U.S. That comes to 115.9 for every 10,000 households, 6% above the U.S. rate of 109.8.
Households in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area spend about $16.1B a year on food away from home, or $4,421 per household, 9% above the U.S. average. That works out to $381K per restaurant, 3% above the U.S. figure of $371K.
In 2023, official counts showed 17,823 businesses with payroll in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area classed as restaurants and other eating places, up 3.8% from 2019. That is one for every 204 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Official counts also show 4,414 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 945 SBA-backed loans worth $545.2M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area held about level, against +3.1% for the U.S. For restaurants and cafes, the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area has a Groundwork market score of 47 (lower middle): #210 of 387 scored metro areas and #4 of 8 scored metro areas based in Illinois.
How the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area compares
The same measures for Illinois 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 | Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area | Illinois | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 115.9 | 112.0 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $381K | $376K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 204 | 216 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +3.8% | +3.2% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | 0.0% | −0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $4,421 | $4,215 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $90,887 | $83,390 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 47 | 46 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 17,823+3.8% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 319,059
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $8.5B
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 4,414Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 42,24113,894 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 43,449The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 945
- Amount
- $545.2M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 9,434,1230.0% since 2020
- Households
- 3,643,783
- Median age
- 39.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 66%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.6
- Land area
- 6,923 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 1,354
- Median household income
- $90,887
- Average household income
- $125,950
- Median home value
- $323,000
- Jobs located here
- 4,599,202
- Daytime population
- 9,509,530Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 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 Illinois
Every Illinois market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Illinois for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Illinois (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Illinois
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Bloomington, IL | 66 | 674 | 96.0 | $423K | +0.1% | #87 of 387 |
| St. Louis, MO-IL | 64 | 11,274 | 97.2 | $423K | −0.2% | #103 of 387 |
| 2Peoria, IL | 55 | 1,519 | 98.7 | $390K | −1.3% | #155 of 387 |
| 3Rockford, IL | 52 | 1,260 | 93.0 | $397K | −0.3% | #178 of 387 |
| 4Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN | 47 | 42,241 | 115.9 | $381K | 0.0% | #210 of 387 |
| 5Kankakee, IL | 45 | 412 | 100.5 | $382K | −1.7% | #219 of 387 |
| 6Decatur, IL | 43 | 416 | 95.7 | $369K | −4.3% | #239 of 387 |
| 7Springfield, IL | 38 | 973 | 108.1 | $364K | −1.2% | #273 of 387 |
| Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL | 35 | 1,753 | 108.4 | $353K | −0.9% | #293 of 387 |
| 8Champaign-Urbana, IL | 34 | 1,035 | 105.4 | $353K | +1.5% | #303 of 387 |
Other business types in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes47
- Sit-down restaurants43
- Fast food and sandwich shops53
- Pizza52
- Coffee shops and cafes52
- Bakeries and dessert shops44
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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area?
There are 42,241 restaurants and cafes on map listings in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area as of September 2026. 13,894 of them (33%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 17,823 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 3.8% from 2019. Another 4,414 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area spend on food away from home?
About $16.1B a year, or $4,421 per household. That is 9% above the U.S. average (an index of 109, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 42,241 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $381K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 3,643,783 households in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area has 115.9 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 6% above the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $381K, 3% above the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area would have about 43,449, against 42,241 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 204 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 3.8% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area at 9,434,123 people in 2025, unchanged since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 3,643,783 households. The median household income in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area is $90,887 a year, 13% above the U.S. median of $80,734.
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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area scores 47 for restaurants and cafes (lower middle), #210 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 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.