Food and drink · County · Maine
Restaurants and cafes in Knox County, ME
How Knox County, ME 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 28 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #2,109 of 2,405 scored counties
#14 of 16 scored counties in Maine
- Listings
- 288
- 29 chain locations (10%)
- Official establishments
- 108
- +0.9% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $71.1M
- On food away from home · $3,849 a household
- Spending per listing
- $247K
- 33% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 155.8
- 42% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 41,117
- +1.1% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Knox 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 Knox 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
The Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes in Knox County is 28 (lower middle), #2,109 of 2,405 scored counties and #14 of 16 scored counties in Maine. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 288 restaurants and cafes in Knox County. Chain locations make up 10% of them, against 34% across the U.S. That comes to 155.8 for every 10,000 households, 42% above the U.S. rate of 109.8.
At $3,849 per household (5% below the U.S. average), households in Knox County spend about $71.1M a year on food away from home. Spread across 288 restaurants and cafes, that is $247K per restaurant, 33% below the U.S. figure of $371K.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in Knox County was 108 in 2023, up 0.9% from 2019. That is one for every 171 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 7 SBA-backed loans worth $615K have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Knox County. Population estimates put the population change in Knox County from 2020 to 2025 at +1.1%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Knox County compares
The same measures for Maine 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 | Knox County | Maine | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 155.8 | 111.6 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $247K | $344K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 171 | 197 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +0.9% | +2.1% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.1% | +3.7% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,849 | $3,835 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $74,096 | $74,733 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 28 | 35 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 107 → 108+0.9% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,030
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $39.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 16Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 28829 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 192The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 7
- Amount
- $615K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Knox 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 Knox County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 41,117+1.1% since 2020
- Households
- 18,484
- Median age
- 49.3
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 79%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 365 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 112
- Median household income
- $74,096+28.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $99,101
- Median home value
- $324,900
- Jobs located here
- 16,342
- Daytime population
- 41,779Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Knox 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 Knox 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 Maine
Every Maine market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Maine for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Maine, with Knox County marked.
Top counties in Maine
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Sagadahoc County, ME | 72 | 123 | 74.8 | $540K | +3.4% | #336 of 2,405 |
| 2Waldo County, ME | 66 | 140 | 80.1 | $452K | +2.6% | #517 of 2,405 |
| 3Penobscot County, ME | 61 | 555 | 85.1 | $423K | +3.8% | #722 of 2,405 |
| 4Androscoggin County, ME | 59 | 380 | 80.9 | $439K | +4.8% | #800 of 2,405 |
| 5Somerset County, ME | 58 | 166 | 71.5 | $454K | +2.3% | #825 of 2,405 |
| 6Oxford County, ME | 57 | 207 | 85.7 | $398K | +4.2% | #882 of 2,405 |
| 7Kennebec County, ME | 56 | 472 | 86.9 | $415K | +3.5% | #920 of 2,405 |
| 8Aroostook County, ME | 51 | 218 | 72.8 | $449K | −0.7% | #1,121 of 2,405 |
| 9Piscataquis County, ME | 48 | 73 | 87.1 | $381K | +3.5% | #1,275 of 2,405 |
| 10York County, ME | 45 | 1,123 | 122.8 | $337K | +4.8% | #1,419 of 2,405 |
| 14Knox County, ME | 28 | 288 | 155.8 | $247K | +1.1% | #2,109 of 2,405 |
Other business types in Knox County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes28
- Sit-down restaurants27
- Fast food and sandwich shops68
- Pizza57
- Coffee shops and cafes32
- Bakeries and dessert shops27
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 Knox County, ME?
There are 288 restaurants and cafes on map listings in Knox County as of September 2026. 29 of them (10%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 108 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 0.9% from 2019. Official counts list 16 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Knox County, ME spend on food away from home?
About $71.1M a year, or $3,849 per household. That is 5% below the U.S. average (an index of 95, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 288 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $247K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 18,484 households in Knox County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Knox County, ME compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
Knox County has 155.8 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 42% above the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $247K, 33% below the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Knox County would have about 192, against 288 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 171 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 0.9% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is Knox County, ME growing?
Population estimates put Knox County at 41,117 people in 2025, up 1.1% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 18,484 households. The median household income in Knox County is $74,096 a year, 8% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 28.3% 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. Knox County scores 28 for restaurants and cafes (lower middle), #2,109 of 2,405 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Knox 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 Knox County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Knox 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 Knox 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.