Food and drink · Metro area · Michigan
Restaurants and cafes in the Traverse City, MI metro area
The restaurants and cafes in the Traverse City, MI metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 31 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #332 of 387 scored metro areas
#15 of 15 scored metro areas based in Michigan
- Listings
- 891
- 183 chain locations (21%)
- Official establishments
- 329
- +2.5% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $263.4M
- On food away from home · $4,026 a household
- Spending per listing
- $296K
- 20% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 136.2
- 24% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 156,972
- +2.2% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the Traverse City metro area
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 the Traverse City metro area. 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 the Traverse City metro area is 31 (lower middle), #332 of 387 scored metro areas and #15 of 15 scored metro areas based in Michigan. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 891 restaurants and cafes in the Traverse City metro area. Chain locations make up 21% of them, against 34% across the U.S. That comes to 136.2 for every 10,000 households, 24% above the U.S. rate of 109.8.
Households in the Traverse City metro area spend about $263.4M a year on food away from home, or $4,026 per household, in line with the U.S. average. That is about $296K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 20% below the U.S. figure of $371K.
Official counts show 329 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Traverse City metro area in 2023, up 2.5% from 2019. That is one for every 199 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 24 SBA-backed loans worth $7.9M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Traverse City metro area. Population estimates show the Traverse City metro area grew 2.2% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Traverse City metro area compares
The same measures for Michigan 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 | Traverse City metro area | Michigan | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 136.2 | 91.9 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $296K | $422K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 199 | 241 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +2.5% | +4.4% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.2% | +0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $4,026 | $3,875 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $80,889 | $72,875 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 31 | 66 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 329+2.5% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 5,401
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $161.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 47Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 891183 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 710The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 24
- Amount
- $7.9M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Traverse City metro area, 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 the Traverse City metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 156,972+2.2% since 2020
- Households
- 65,429
- Median age
- 46.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 82%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 1,691 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 92
- Median household income
- $80,889+32.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $106,351
- Median home value
- $324,300
- Jobs located here
- 61,451
- Daytime population
- 155,130Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Traverse City metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 the Traverse City metro area. 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 Michigan
Every Michigan market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Michigan for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Michigan, with the Traverse City metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Michigan
| 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 |
| 15Traverse City, MI | 31 | 891 | 136.2 | $296K | +2.2% | #332 of 387 |
Other business types in the Traverse City metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes31
- Sit-down restaurants41
- Fast food and sandwich shops64
- Pizza52
- Coffee shops and cafes34
- Bakeries and dessert shops33
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 the Traverse City, MI metro area?
There are 891 restaurants and cafes on map listings in the Traverse City metro area as of September 2026. 183 of them (21%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 329 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 2.5% from 2019. Another 47 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Traverse City, MI metro area spend on food away from home?
About $263.4M a year, or $4,026 per household. That is in line with the U.S. average (an index of 99, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 891 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $296K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 65,429 households in the Traverse City metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Traverse City, MI metro area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The Traverse City metro area has 136.2 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 24% above the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $296K, 20% below the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, the Traverse City metro area would have about 710, against 891 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 199 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 2.5% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Traverse City, MI metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Traverse City metro area at 156,972 people in 2025, up 2.2% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 65,429 households. The median household income in the Traverse City metro area is $80,889 a year, in line with the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 32.6% 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. The Traverse City metro area scores 31 for restaurants and cafes (lower middle), #332 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Traverse City metro area. 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 the Traverse City metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Traverse City metro area?
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 the Traverse City metro area. 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.