Market rankings · Michigan

Restaurants and cafes in Michigan

Every metro area, small-town market and county in Michigan, ranked by the Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes, with competitor counts and household spending for each.

Listings: 37,452; 13,319 chain locations (36%)
Official establishments: 16,941; +4.4% since 2019
Household spending a year: $15.8B; On food away from home
Listings per 10k households: 91.9; 16% below the U.S.
Spending per listing: $422K; 14% above the U.S.
Rank among states: #8 of 51; Market score 66 · Upper middle

A site report maps the restaurants and cafes on map listings around any address in Michigan by name and distance, and the spending within reach.

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

There are 37,452 restaurants and cafes on map listings in Michigan as of September 2026. Of those, 13,319 are chain locations, or 36%, against 34% across the U.S. That comes to 91.9 for every 10,000 households, 16% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.

Household spending on food away from home in Michigan comes to about $15.8B a year: $3,875 per household, 5% below the U.S. average. That is about $422K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 14% above the U.S. figure of $371K.

Official counts show 16,941 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in Michigan in 2023, up 4.4% from 2019. That is one for every 241 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Across the U.S., the count rose 6.0% over the same years. Since fiscal 2022, 993 SBA-backed loans worth $407.1M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Michigan.

Among the 50 states and DC, Michigan ranks #8 for restaurants and cafes, with a Groundwork market score of 66 (upper middle). Of the 16 scored metro areas in or partly in Michigan, the Monroe metro area scores highest (79). Of the 19 scored small-town markets in or partly in Michigan, the Holland area scores highest (86).

Every market in Michigan for restaurants and cafes

Download the ranking (CSV)

Numbered by Groundwork market score among the markets based in Michigan, highest first; the U.S. rank compares each market with every other of its kind. A metro area that crosses a state line is listed in each state it reaches, and numbered only in the state its page is under. How the score works.

Metro areas

Metro areas reaching Michigan, ranked for restaurants and cafes by Groundwork market score
Market	Score	Listings	Per 10k households	Spending per listing	Population growth	U.S. rank
1Monroe, MI	79	460	73.0	$542K	+0.7%	#17 of 387
2Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI	79	3,903	88.6	$462K	+2.8%	#20 of 387
3Midland, MI	77	269	76.9	$525K	+0.3%	#27 of 387
4Jackson, MI	70	462	73.9	$495K	−0.4%	#58 of 387
5Lansing-East Lansing, MI	66	1,743	89.8	$424K	+1.4%	#86 of 387
6Flint, MI	64	1,282	76.6	$461K	−1.1%	#100 of 387
7Ann Arbor, MI	64	1,491	99.0	$446K	−0.4%	#102 of 387
8Bay City, MI	61	350	77.6	$447K	−1.6%	#119 of 387
9Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI	61	16,792	94.9	$424K	+0.1%	#120 of 387
10Muskegon-Norton Shores, MI	60	569	84.0	$415K	+1.8%	#127 of 387
11Kalamazoo-Portage, MI	59	1,022	95.4	$408K	+0.8%	#134 of 387
12Battle Creek, MI	56	461	86.4	$407K	−0.6%	#147 of 387
13Saginaw, MI	52	660	84.7	$413K	−1.1%	#176 of 387
South Bend-Mishawaka, IN-MI	51	1,204	93.7	$395K	+0.1%	#184 of 387
14Niles, MI	31	674	105.3	$349K	−1.3%	#325 of 387
15Traverse City, MI	31	891	136.2	$296K	+2.2%	#332 of 387

Small-town markets

Small-town markets reaching Michigan, ranked for restaurants and cafes by Groundwork market score
Market	Score	Listings	Per 10k households	Spending per listing	Population growth	U.S. rank
1Holland, MI	86	367	80.6	$501K	+2.1%	#8 of 538
2Hillsdale, MI	78	114	63.8	$549K	0.0%	#35 of 538
3Coldwater, MI	77	122	72.2	$477K	+2.5%	#41 of 538
4Owosso, MI	76	185	65.8	$546K	−0.4%	#42 of 538
5Alma, MI	71	99	67.0	$517K	−1.1%	#72 of 538
6Sturgis, MI	70	172	72.8	$480K	+0.1%	#80 of 538
7Big Rapids, MI	69	128	76.6	$435K	+4.7%	#84 of 538
8Adrian, MI	65	327	84.1	$436K	−1.6%	#120 of 538
9Escanaba, MI	54	145	90.8	$372K	−0.8%	#223 of 538
10Marquette, MI	54	276	97.7	$359K	+2.3%	#225 of 538
11Ludington, MI	52	124	96.9	$370K	0.0%	#243 of 538
12Cadillac, MI	52	189	96.4	$356K	+2.0%	#247 of 538
13Alpena, MI	49	116	89.1	$365K	−0.1%	#266 of 538
14Iron Mountain, MI-WI	42	143	101.4	$343K	+0.4%	#353 of 538
Marinette, WI-MI	40	319	108.5	$314K	+0.3%	#377 of 538
15Mount Pleasant, MI	38	239	95.9	$344K	+0.3%	#390 of 538
16Houghton, MI	36	176	114.0	$305K	+1.8%	#407 of 538
17Sault Ste. Marie, MI	30	157	111.5	$302K	−1.9%	#457 of 538
18Petoskey, MI	27	320	210.7	$192K	−1.0%	#479 of 538

Counties

Counties in Michigan, ranked for restaurants and cafes by Groundwork market score
Market	Score	Listings	Per 10k households	Spending per listing	Population growth	U.S. rank
1Barry County, MI	83	113	46.2	$847K	+2.2%	#80 of 2,405
2Clinton County, MI	83	169	53.4	$797K	+1.6%	#81 of 2,405
3Ottawa County, MI	82	832	74.7	$575K	+3.9%	#107 of 2,405
4Cass County, MI	79	98	46.2	$822K	+0.2%	#144 of 2,405
5Kalkaska County, MI	78	44	56.5	$612K	+4.3%	#170 of 2,405
6Livingston County, MI	77	575	75.2	$625K	+1.7%	#190 of 2,405
7Lapeer County, MI	76	216	62.0	$627K	+1.0%	#217 of 2,405
8Newaygo County, MI	75	113	57.5	$602K	+3.1%	#235 of 2,405
9Monroe County, MI	73	460	73.0	$542K	+0.7%	#302 of 2,405
10Montcalm County, MI	73	166	67.7	$511K	+4.1%	#307 of 2,405
11Allegan County, MI	73	367	80.6	$501K	+2.1%	#312 of 2,405
12Osceola County, MI	71	49	52.4	$635K	+2.7%	#358 of 2,405
13Gladwin County, MI	70	59	52.3	$628K	+2.8%	#392 of 2,405
14Ionia County, MI	69	151	64.7	$572K	−0.5%	#419 of 2,405
15Midland County, MI	69	269	76.9	$525K	+0.3%	#423 of 2,405
16Lake County, MI	69	32	61.7	$482K	+9.1%	#430 of 2,405
17Hillsdale County, MI	68	114	63.8	$549K	0.0%	#445 of 2,405
18Tuscola County, MI	67	119	55.4	$612K	−1.2%	#468 of 2,405
19St. Clair County, MI	67	507	74.8	$501K	+0.1%	#478 of 2,405
20Alcona County, MI	66	36	67.9	$480K	+3.7%	#510 of 2,405
21Shiawassee County, MI	65	185	65.8	$546K	−0.4%	#539 of 2,405
22Missaukee County, MI	65	43	72.8	$473K	+1.4%	#561 of 2,405
23Jackson County, MI	64	462	73.9	$495K	−0.4%	#595 of 2,405
24Branch County, MI	64	122	72.2	$477K	+2.5%	#602 of 2,405
25Gratiot County, MI	61	99	67.0	$517K	−1.1%	#706 of 2,405

Show all 83 counties

Counties in Michigan, ranked for restaurants and cafes by Groundwork market score, continued
Market	Score	Listings	Per 10k households	Spending per listing	Population growth	U.S. rank
26Eaton County, MI	61	369	81.2	$482K	+0.4%	#708 of 2,405
27Macomb County, MI	59	3,019	84.2	$470K	+0.7%	#787 of 2,405
28St. Joseph County, MI	58	172	72.8	$480K	+0.1%	#823 of 2,405
29Mecosta County, MI	58	128	76.6	$435K	+4.7%	#828 of 2,405
30Oakland County, MI	57	5,532	104.3	$443K	+1.2%	#868 of 2,405
31Genesee County, MI	56	1,282	76.6	$461K	−1.1%	#907 of 2,405
32Washtenaw County, MI	56	1,491	99.0	$446K	−0.4%	#912 of 2,405
33Presque Isle County, MI	55	54	81.1	$416K	+1.0%	#960 of 2,405
34Kent County, MI	55	2,641	102.9	$400K	+2.5%	#970 of 2,405
35Antrim County, MI	55	120	108.1	$346K	+5.3%	#990 of 2,405
36Bay County, MI	54	350	77.6	$447K	−1.6%	#997 of 2,405
37Muskegon County, MI	54	569	84.0	$415K	+1.8%	#1,008 of 2,405
38Kalamazoo County, MI	54	1,022	95.4	$408K	+0.8%	#1,011 of 2,405
39Lenawee County, MI	53	327	84.1	$436K	−1.6%	#1,042 of 2,405
40Sanilac County, MI	52	141	80.5	$423K	−1.0%	#1,089 of 2,405
41Calhoun County, MI	51	461	86.4	$407K	−0.6%	#1,137 of 2,405
42Van Buren County, MI	51	274	89.5	$407K	+0.7%	#1,138 of 2,405
43Saginaw County, MI	47	660	84.7	$413K	−1.1%	#1,303 of 2,405
44Iron County, MI	46	46	82.9	$385K	+1.1%	#1,349 of 2,405
45Oceana County, MI	45	106	101.7	$340K	+1.7%	#1,417 of 2,405
46Manistee County, MI	45	116	109.8	$320K	+2.3%	#1,426 of 2,405
47Arenac County, MI	43	55	83.9	$391K	+0.5%	#1,485 of 2,405
48Delta County, MI	43	145	90.8	$372K	−0.8%	#1,491 of 2,405
49Marquette County, MI	43	276	97.7	$359K	+2.3%	#1,494 of 2,405
50Ingham County, MI	43	1,205	102.9	$354K	+1.7%	#1,496 of 2,405
51Menominee County, MI	42	90	86.9	$379K	−2.2%	#1,524 of 2,405
52Mason County, MI	42	124	96.9	$370K	0.0%	#1,528 of 2,405
53Clare County, MI	40	98	78.3	$390K	+2.3%	#1,601 of 2,405
54Benzie County, MI	40	90	116.8	$326K	+3.1%	#1,627 of 2,405
55Alpena County, MI	39	116	89.1	$365K	−0.1%	#1,645 of 2,405
56Wayne County, MI	38	6,943	99.1	$360K	−1.1%	#1,691 of 2,405
57Dickinson County, MI	37	116	97.4	$357K	−0.3%	#1,736 of 2,405
58Berrien County, MI	36	674	105.3	$349K	−1.3%	#1,776 of 2,405
59Otsego County, MI	36	143	127.3	$289K	+3.8%	#1,799 of 2,405
60Leelanau County, MI	35	184	190.8	$240K	+3.0%	#1,851 of 2,405
61Wexford County, MI	33	146	106.6	$321K	+2.3%	#1,914 of 2,405
62Roscommon County, MI	33	118	101.9	$321K	+1.9%	#1,915 of 2,405
63Crawford County, MI	33	64	102.7	$314K	+5.7%	#1,917 of 2,405
64Grand Traverse County, MI	33	573	142.2	$285K	+1.4%	#1,926 of 2,405
65Isabella County, MI	31	239	95.9	$344K	+0.3%	#1,971 of 2,405
66Cheboygan County, MI	30	113	101.3	$343K	+0.9%	#2,015 of 2,405
67Gogebic County, MI	30	65	93.0	$343K	−0.4%	#2,017 of 2,405
68Houghton County, MI	30	159	111.1	$313K	+1.6%	#2,029 of 2,405
69Charlevoix County, MI	29	172	140.2	$282K	0.0%	#2,077 of 2,405
70Ogemaw County, MI	28	86	91.8	$347K	+1.6%	#2,088 of 2,405
71Huron County, MI	27	130	91.9	$363K	−2.7%	#2,117 of 2,405
72Chippewa County, MI	25	157	111.5	$302K	−1.9%	#2,185 of 2,405
73Iosco County, MI	24	132	112.7	$274K	+0.3%	#2,213 of 2,405
74Emmet County, MI	24	320	210.7	$192K	−1.0%	#2,216 of 2,405
75Mackinac County, MI	23	141	271.2	$127K	+3.8%	#2,243 of 2,405
Montmorency County, MI	Not scored	45	91.4	$331K	+7.3%
Alger County, MI	Not scored	67	189.7	$174K	−2.3%
Oscoda County, MI	Not scored	25	66.0	$452K	+6.0%
Baraga County, MI	Not scored	34	99.0	$325K	+0.3%
Schoolcraft County, MI	Not scored	44	113.1	$294K	+1.7%
Luce County, MI	Not scored	29	118.1	$263K	−1.1%
Ontonagon County, MI	Not scored	37	117.5	$262K	+0.4%
Keweenaw County, MI	Not scored	17	149.8	$226K	+6.2%

Markets with fewer than 5 restaurants and cafes on map listings, and counties under 10,000 people, aren’t scored; they’re listed last in each table.

Questions

How many restaurants and cafes are in Michigan?

As of September 2026, map listings count 37,452 restaurants and cafes in Michigan. 13,319 of them (36%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 16,941 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 4.4% from 2019. Official counts list 3,556 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Michigan spend on food away from home?

About $15.8B a year, or $3,875 per household. That is 5% below the U.S. average (an index of 95, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 37,452 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $422K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 4,076,369 households in Michigan and national spending patterns by income.

How does Michigan compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?

Michigan has 91.9 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 16% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $422K, 14% above the U.S. figure of $371K. At the U.S. ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Michigan would have about 42,601, against 37,452 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 241 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 4.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.

Which market in Michigan has the highest market score for restaurants and cafes?

Among 16 scored metro areas in or partly in Michigan, the Monroe metro area scores highest, at 79 (high). Among 19 scored small-town markets in or partly in Michigan, the Holland area scores highest, at 86 (high). Among 75 scored counties in Michigan, Barry County scores highest, at 83 (high). Scores compare each market with others of its kind across the U.S.

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. Michigan scores 66 for restaurants and cafes (upper middle), #8 of the 50 states and DC.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Michigan. 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.

Sit-down restaurants19,197 listings
Fast food and sandwich shops5,209 listings
Pizza3,376 listings
Coffee shops and cafes3,819 listings
Bakeries and dessert shops3,652 listings

Screening a site or an acquisition in Michigan?

A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.

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