Food and drink · County · Iowa
Restaurants and cafes in Monroe County, IA
The restaurants and cafes in Monroe County, IA, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.
Groundwork market score
Not scored
Counties under 10,000 people aren’t scored, since a few businesses can swing their figures.
- Listings
- 30
- 9 chain locations (30%)
- Official establishments
- 12
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $11.2M
- On food away from home · $3,617 a household
- Spending per listing
- $372K
- In line with the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 97.1
- 12% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 7,406
- −2.5% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Monroe 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 Monroe County. 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 30 restaurants and cafes in Monroe County. Of those, 9 are chain locations, or 30%, against 34% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 97.1, 12% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.
Households in Monroe County spend about $11.2M a year on food away from home, or $3,617 per household, 11% below the U.S. average. That is about $372K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, in line with the U.S. figure of $371K.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in Monroe County was 12 in 2023. That is one for every 257 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S.
Population estimates show Monroe County declined 2.5% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S. Counties under 10,000 people aren’t given a market score, since a few businesses can swing their figures.
How Monroe County compares
The same measures for Iowa 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 | Monroe County | Iowa | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 97.1 | 103.1 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $372K | $377K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 257 | 245 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +3.4% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −2.5% | +1.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,617 | $3,880 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $70,996 | $75,059 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | Not scored | 57 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 12 → 12
- Employees, 2023
- 136
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $1.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 0Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 309 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 30The 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 Monroe 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 Monroe County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 7,406−2.5% since 2020
- Households
- 3,089
- Median age
- 42.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 81%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.2
- Land area
- 434 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 17
- Median household income
- $70,996
- Average household income
- $82,641
- Median home value
- $156,300
- Jobs located here
- 2,848
- Daytime population
- 6,622Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Monroe 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 Monroe County. 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 Iowa
Every Iowa market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Iowa for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Iowa, with Monroe County marked.
Top counties in Iowa
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Warren County, IA | 87 | 168 | 81.2 | $535K | +9.0% | #46 of 2,405 |
| 2Benton County, IA | 84 | 57 | 55.9 | $734K | +1.8% | #66 of 2,405 |
| 3Madison County, IA | 81 | 57 | 85.1 | $490K | +3.8% | #127 of 2,405 |
| 4Dallas County, IA | 80 | 401 | 94.4 | $504K | +17.8% | #142 of 2,405 |
| 5Mills County, IA | 78 | 47 | 87.1 | $489K | +2.6% | #181 of 2,405 |
| 6Boone County, IA | 76 | 83 | 75.9 | $528K | +0.4% | #220 of 2,405 |
| 7Butler County, IA | 74 | 34 | 58.0 | $648K | −2.0% | #255 of 2,405 |
| 8Buchanan County, IA | 73 | 61 | 73.9 | $510K | +1.3% | #308 of 2,405 |
| 9Grundy County, IA | 73 | 42 | 82.1 | $493K | +0.2% | #315 of 2,405 |
| 10Hancock County, IA | 70 | 24 | 51.4 | $693K | −2.2% | #389 of 2,405 |
| Monroe County, IA | Not scored | 30 | 97.1 | $372K | −2.5% |
Other business types in Monroe County
None has a Groundwork market score here. Counties under 10,000 people aren’t scored, since a few businesses can swing their figures.
Food and drink
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 Monroe County, IA?
There are 30 restaurants and cafes on map listings in Monroe County as of September 2026. 9 of them (30%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 12 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023.
How much do households in Monroe County, IA spend on food away from home?
About $11.2M a year, or $3,617 per household. That is 11% below the U.S. average (an index of 89, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 30 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $372K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 3,089 households in Monroe County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Monroe County, IA compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
Monroe County has 97.1 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 12% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $372K, in line with the U.S. figure of $371K. The count on map listings matches the U.S. ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 257 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S.
How fast is Monroe County, IA growing?
Population estimates put Monroe County at 7,406 people in 2025, down 2.5% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 3,089 households. The median household income in Monroe County is $70,996 a year, 12% below 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 score leaves out counties under 10,000 people, where a handful of businesses would swing it.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Monroe 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 Monroe County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Monroe 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 Monroe 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.