Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Illinois

Restaurants and cafes in Edgar County, IL

How Edgar County, IL 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 30 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #2,026 of 2,405 scored counties
#76 of 87 scored counties in Illinois

Listings
80
28 chain locations (35%)
Official establishments
30
+7.1% since 2019
Household spending a year
$25.7M
On food away from home · $3,400 a household
Spending per listing
$322K
13% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
105.7
4% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
16,323
−2.9% since 2020

See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Edgar 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 Edgar County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

Edgar County scores 30 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes, ranking #2,026 of 2,405 scored counties and #76 of 87 scored counties in Illinois. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

As of September 2026, map listings count 80 restaurants and cafes in Edgar County. 28 of them (35%) are chain locations, against 34% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 105.7, 4% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.

Households in Edgar County spend about $25.7M a year on food away from home, or $3,400 per household, 16% below the U.S. average. Spread across 80 restaurants and cafes, that is $322K per restaurant, 13% below the U.S. figure of $371K.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in Edgar County was 30 in 2023, up 7.1% from 2019. That is one for every 252 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $1M has gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Edgar County. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Edgar County declined 2.9%, against +3.1% for the U.S.

How Edgar County 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.

Restaurants and cafes in Edgar County, IL compared with Illinois and the U.S.
MeasureEdgar CountyIllinoisU.S.
Listings per 10k households105.7112.0109.8
Spending per listing$322K$376K$371K
Households per official establishment252216209
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+7.1%+3.2%+6.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025−2.9%−0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,400$4,215$4,070
Median household income$59,941$83,390$80,734
Groundwork market score3046

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
28 → 30+7.1% over the period
Employees, 2023
394
Annual payroll, 2023
$6.7M
One-person businesses, 2023
3Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
8028 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
69The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
1
Amount
$1M

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

Population, 2025 estimate
16,323−2.9% since 2020
Households
7,567
Median age
47.2
Homes lived in by their owners
73%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
623 sq. mi.
People per square mile
27
Median household income
$59,941+11.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$77,577
Median home value
$97,300
Jobs located here
6,282
Daytime population
16,315Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

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

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Restaurants and cafes across Illinois

Every Illinois market ranked →

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

Top counties in Illinois

Counties in Illinois ranked for restaurants and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Piatt County, IL775883.8$511K+0.6%#207 of 2,405
2Kendall County, IL7538985.7$563K+9.9%#239 of 2,405
3Boone County, IL7515177.6$538K+0.4%#244 of 2,405
4Woodford County, IL7311477.6$560K−0.8%#298 of 2,405
5Menard County, IL723566.9$584K−3.3%#332 of 2,405
6McHenry County, IL671,08191.9$513K+2.5%#476 of 2,405
7Moultrie County, IL654984.2$442K−0.8%#571 of 2,405
8Will County, IL642,43899.8$481K+2.2%#599 of 2,405
9Cumberland County, IL643276.6$478K−2.1%#601 of 2,405
10Monroe County, IL6213396.0$483K−0.3%#666 of 2,405
76Edgar County, IL3080105.7$322K−2.9%#2,026 of 2,405

Other business types in Edgar County

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

Questions

How many restaurants and cafes are in Edgar County, IL?

Edgar County has 80 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. 28 of them (35%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 30 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 7.1% from 2019. Another 3 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

How much do households in Edgar County, IL spend on food away from home?

About $25.7M a year, or $3,400 per household. That is 16% below the U.S. average (an index of 84, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 80 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $322K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 7,567 households in Edgar County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Edgar County, IL compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?

Edgar County has 105.7 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 4% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $322K, 13% below the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Edgar County would have about 69, against 80 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 252 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 7.1% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.

How fast is Edgar County, IL growing?

Population estimates put Edgar County at 16,323 people in 2025, down 2.9% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 7,567 households. The median household income in Edgar County is $59,941 a year, 26% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 11.7% 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. Edgar County scores 30 for restaurants and cafes (lower middle), #2,026 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Edgar 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 Edgar 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.