Food and drink · Small-town market · Indiana
Restaurants and cafes in the Decatur, IN area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for restaurants and cafes in the Decatur, IN area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 81 out of 100: High
Ranked #24 of 538 scored small-town markets
#3 of 25 scored small-town markets based in Indiana
- Listings
- 82
- 35 chain locations (43%)
- Official establishments
- 43
- +2.4% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $44M
- On food away from home · $3,549 a household
- Spending per listing
- $537K
- 45% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 66.1
- 40% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 36,650
- +2.2% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the Decatur 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 Decatur 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
The Decatur area scores 81 (high) on the Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes, ranking #24 of 538 scored small-town markets and #3 of 25 scored small-town markets based in Indiana. That puts it in the top 10% of small-town markets for restaurants and cafes.
Households in the Decatur area spend about $44M a year on food away from home, or $3,549 per household, 13% below the U.S. average. That works out to $537K per restaurant, 45% above the U.S. figure of $371K.
There are 82 restaurants and cafes on map listings in the Decatur area as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 43% of them, against 34% across the U.S. That is 66.1 per 10,000 households, 40% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.
Official counts show 43 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Decatur area in 2023, up 2.4% from 2019. That is one for every 288 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Decatur area grew 2.2%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Decatur area compares
The same measures for Indiana 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 | Decatur area | Indiana | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 66.1 | 92.4 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $537K | $412K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 288 | 235 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +2.4% | +7.3% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.2% | +2.7% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,549 | $3,802 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $65,289 | $71,957 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 81 | 62 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 43+2.4% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 785
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $11.9M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 8Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 8235 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 119The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Decatur 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 Decatur area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 36,650+2.2% since 2020
- Households
- 12,401
- Median age
- 35.0
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 83%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 339 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 107
- Median household income
- $65,289+24.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $82,576
- Median home value
- $178,400
- Jobs located here
- 13,315
- Daytime population
- 33,956Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Decatur area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 Decatur 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 Indiana
Every Indiana market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Indiana for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Indiana, with the Decatur area marked.
Top small-town markets in Indiana
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Greencastle, IN | 85 | 113 | 79.9 | $472K | +3.2% | #13 of 538 |
| 2Bedford, IN | 84 | 110 | 57.5 | $615K | +1.2% | #16 of 538 |
| 3Decatur, IN | 81 | 82 | 66.1 | $537K | +2.2% | #24 of 538 |
| 4Kendallville, IN | 79 | 140 | 77.0 | $475K | +1.0% | #31 of 538 |
| 5Washington, IN | 79 | 95 | 80.4 | $452K | +2.5% | #34 of 538 |
| 6Huntington, IN | 76 | 117 | 76.0 | $467K | +1.6% | #45 of 538 |
| 7New Castle, IN | 72 | 144 | 77.2 | $443K | +0.5% | #66 of 538 |
| 8Crawfordsville, IN | 72 | 131 | 84.0 | $439K | +2.7% | #68 of 538 |
| 9Greensburg, IN | 68 | 89 | 83.1 | $453K | +0.4% | #89 of 538 |
| 10Auburn, IN | 68 | 153 | 89.5 | $414K | +2.9% | #92 of 538 |
Other business types in the Decatur area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes81
- Sit-down restaurants75
- Fast food and sandwich shops81
- Pizza52
- Coffee shops and cafes62
- Bakeries and dessert shops65
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 Decatur, IN area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 82 restaurants and cafes in the Decatur area. 35 of them (43%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 43 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 2.4% from 2019. Another 8 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Decatur, IN area spend on food away from home?
About $44M a year, or $3,549 per household. That is 13% below the U.S. average (an index of 87, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 82 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $537K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 12,401 households in the Decatur area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Decatur, IN area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The Decatur area has 66.1 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 40% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $537K, 45% above the U.S. figure of $371K. At the U.S. ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, the Decatur area would have about 119, against 82 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 288 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 2.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Decatur, IN area growing?
Population estimates put the Decatur area at 36,650 people in 2025, up 2.2% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 12,401 households. Median household income in the Decatur area is $65,289, 19% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 24.4%, 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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 Decatur area scores 81 for restaurants and cafes (high), #24 of 538 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Decatur 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 Decatur area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Decatur 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 Decatur 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.