Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Indiana

Restaurants and cafes in Madison County, IN

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for restaurants and cafes in Madison County, IN, set against other counties and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 62 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #680 of 2,405 scored counties
#37 of 86 scored counties in Indiana

Listings
421
185 chain locations (44%)
Official establishments
192
+11.0% since 2019
Household spending a year
$184.8M
On food away from home · $3,459 a household
Spending per listing
$439K
18% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
78.8
28% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
135,088
+3.8% since 2020

See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Madison 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 Madison 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

Map listings as of September 2026 show 421 restaurants and cafes in Madison County. Chain locations make up 44% of them, against 34% across the U.S. That comes to 78.8 for every 10,000 households, 28% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.

Household spending on food away from home in Madison County comes to about $184.8M a year: $3,459 per household, 15% below the U.S. average. That is about $439K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 18% above the U.S. figure of $371K.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in Madison County was 192 in 2023, up 11.0% from 2019. That is one for every 278 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Official counts list 38 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 12 SBA-backed loans worth $4.4M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Madison County.

Population estimates put the population change in Madison County from 2020 to 2025 at +3.8%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes in Madison County is 62 (upper middle), #680 of 2,405 scored counties and #37 of 86 scored counties in Indiana.

How Madison County 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.

Restaurants and cafes in Madison County, IN compared with Indiana and the U.S.
MeasureMadison CountyIndianaU.S.
Listings per 10k households78.892.4109.8
Spending per listing$439K$412K$371K
Households per official establishment278235209
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+11.0%+7.3%+6.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025+3.8%+2.7%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,459$3,802$4,070
Median household income$63,037$71,957$80,734
Groundwork market score6262

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
173 → 192+11.0% over the period
Employees, 2023
3,826
Annual payroll, 2023
$70.5M
One-person businesses, 2023
38Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
421185 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
499The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
12
Amount
$4.4M

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

Population, 2025 estimate
135,088+3.8% since 2020
Households
53,429
Median age
41.6
Homes lived in by their owners
70%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
452 sq. mi.
People per square mile
292
Median household income
$63,037+27.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$81,039
Median home value
$161,300
Jobs located here
39,528
Daytime population
114,511Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

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

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Restaurants and cafes across Indiana

Every Indiana market ranked →

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

Top counties in Indiana

Counties in Indiana ranked for restaurants and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Hancock County, IN8822968.4$646K+13.5%#36 of 2,405
2Warrick County, IN8417168.0$634K+4.4%#68 of 2,405
3Morgan County, IN8319669.3$579K+4.4%#92 of 2,405
4Boone County, IN7827696.0$515K+13.5%#177 of 2,405
5Harrison County, IN7710165.2$575K+1.9%#194 of 2,405
6Lawrence County, IN7511057.5$615K+1.2%#231 of 2,405
7Newton County, IN743561.1$573K+2.9%#259 of 2,405
8Hamilton County, IN741,26992.5$560K+10.9%#261 of 2,405
9Hendricks County, IN7454981.8$558K+10.2%#262 of 2,405
10LaGrange County, IN7411186.1$465K+1.9%#277 of 2,405
37Madison County, IN6242178.8$439K+3.8%#680 of 2,405

Other business types in Madison County

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

Questions

How many restaurants and cafes are in Madison County, IN?

There are 421 restaurants and cafes on map listings in Madison County as of September 2026. 185 of them (44%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 192 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 11.0% from 2019. Official counts also show 38 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Madison County, IN spend on food away from home?

About $184.8M a year, or $3,459 per household. That is 15% below the U.S. average (an index of 85, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 421 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $439K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 53,429 households in Madison County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Madison County, IN compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?

Madison County has 78.8 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 28% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $439K, 18% above the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Madison County would have about 499, against 421 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 278 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 11.0% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.

How fast is Madison County, IN growing?

Population estimates put Madison County at 135,088 people in 2025, up 3.8% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 53,429 households. The median household income in Madison County is $63,037 a year, 22% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 27.3% 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. Madison County scores 62 for restaurants and cafes (upper middle), #680 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Madison 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 Madison 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.