Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Kansas

Restaurants and cafes in Jefferson County, KS

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

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 78 out of 100: High

Ranked #174 of 2,405 scored counties
#3 of 38 scored counties in Kansas

Listings
55
15 chain locations (27%)
Official establishments
15
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$30M
On food away from home · $4,054 a household
Spending per listing
$546K
47% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
74.2
32% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
18,296
−0.2% since 2020

See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Jefferson 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 Jefferson 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

For restaurants and cafes, Jefferson County has a Groundwork market score of 78 (high): #174 of 2,405 scored counties and #3 of 38 scored counties in Kansas. That puts it in the top 10% of counties for restaurants and cafes.

As of September 2026, map listings count 55 restaurants and cafes in Jefferson County. Chain locations make up 27% of them, against 34% across the U.S. That is 74.2 per 10,000 households, 32% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.

Household spending on food away from home in Jefferson County comes to about $30M a year: $4,054 per household, in line with the U.S. average. That is about $546K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 47% above the U.S. figure of $371K.

In 2023, official counts showed 15 businesses with payroll in Jefferson County classed as restaurants and other eating places. That is one for every 494 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $396K have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Jefferson County. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Jefferson County declined 0.2%, against +3.1% for the U.S.

How Jefferson County compares

The same measures for Kansas 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 Jefferson County, KS compared with Kansas and the U.S.
MeasureJefferson CountyKansasU.S.
Listings per 10k households74.298.4109.8
Spending per listing$546K$397K$371K
Households per official establishment494229209
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+6.6%+6.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025−0.2%+1.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$4,054$3,910$4,070
Median household income$81,278$74,275$80,734
Groundwork market score7858

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
15 → 15
Employees, 2023
149
Annual payroll, 2023
$2.4M
One-person businesses, 2023
0Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
5515 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
81The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
4
Amount
$396K

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

Population, 2025 estimate
18,296−0.2% since 2020
Households
7,412
Median age
43.8
Homes lived in by their owners
86%
Vehicles per household
2.4
Land area
533 sq. mi.
People per square mile
34
Median household income
$81,278+25.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$100,809
Median home value
$216,900
Jobs located here
4,013
Daytime population
13,090Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Jefferson 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 Jefferson 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 Kansas

Every Kansas market ranked →

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

Top counties in Kansas

Counties in Kansas ranked for restaurants and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Miami County, KS849770.6$597K+5.9%#70 of 2,405
2Leavenworth County, KS8123076.2$557K+3.2%#121 of 2,405
3Jefferson County, KS785574.2$546K−0.2%#174 of 2,405
4Pottawatomie County, KS787377.8$544K+6.9%#175 of 2,405
5Butler County, KS7420078.9$510K+3.1%#268 of 2,405
6Johnson County, KS712,37295.1$514K+4.2%#369 of 2,405
7Jackson County, KS684181.8$461K+1.5%#454 of 2,405
8Dickinson County, KS636783.6$436K+1.4%#640 of 2,405
9Osage County, KS615179.3$460K−0.3%#715 of 2,405
10Franklin County, KS569389.3$416K+1.1%#919 of 2,405

Other business types in Jefferson County

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

Questions

How many restaurants and cafes are in Jefferson County, KS?

Jefferson County has 55 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. 15 of them (27%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 15 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023.

How much do households in Jefferson County, KS spend on food away from home?

About $30M a year, or $4,054 per household. That is in line with the U.S. average (an index of 100, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 55 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $546K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 7,412 households in Jefferson County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Jefferson County, KS compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?

Jefferson County has 74.2 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 32% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $546K, 47% above the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Jefferson County would have about 81, against 55 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 494 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S.

How fast is Jefferson County, KS growing?

Population estimates put Jefferson County at 18,296 people in 2025, down 0.2% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 7,412 households. The median household income in Jefferson County is $81,278 a year, in line with the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 25.3% 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. Jefferson County scores 78 for restaurants and cafes (high), #174 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Jefferson 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 Jefferson 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.