Groundwork

Food and drink · Small-town market · Mississippi

Restaurants and cafes in the Cleveland, MS area

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for restaurants and cafes in the Cleveland, MS area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 13 out of 100: Low

Ranked #533 of 538 scored small-town markets
#17 of 17 scored small-town markets based in Mississippi

Listings
122
40 chain locations (33%)
Official establishments
53
−1.8% since 2019
Household spending a year
$33.2M
On food away from home · $2,790 a household
Spending per listing
$272K
27% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
102.4
7% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
28,262
−8.3% since 2020

See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the Cleveland 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 Cleveland area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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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, the Cleveland area has a Groundwork market score of 13 (low): #533 of 538 scored small-town markets and #17 of 17 scored small-town markets based in Mississippi. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.

Households in the Cleveland area spend about $33.2M a year on food away from home, or $2,790 per household, 31% below the U.S. average. That is about $272K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 27% below the U.S. figure of $371K.

There are 122 restaurants and cafes on map listings in the Cleveland area as of September 2026. Of those, 40 are chain locations, or 33%, against 34% across the U.S. That is 102.4 per 10,000 households, 7% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.

In 2023, official counts showed 53 businesses with payroll in the Cleveland area classed as restaurants and other eating places, down 1.8% from 2019. That is one for every 225 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Population estimates put the population change in the Cleveland area from 2020 to 2025 at −8.3%, against +3.1% for the U.S.

How the Cleveland area compares

The same measures for Mississippi 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 Cleveland, MS area compared with Mississippi and the U.S.
MeasureCleveland areaMississippiU.S.
Listings per 10k households102.499.6109.8
Spending per listing$272K$330K$371K
Households per official establishment225230209
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−1.8%+9.8%+6.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025−8.3%−0.1%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$2,790$3,288$4,070
Median household income$39,585$56,447$80,734
Groundwork market score1325

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
53−1.8% over the period
Employees, 2023
843
Annual payroll, 2023
$12.8M
One-person businesses, 2023
21Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
12240 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
90The 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 the Cleveland 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 Cleveland area

Population, 2025 estimate
28,262−8.3% since 2020
Households
11,915
Median age
39.0
Homes lived in by their owners
63%
Vehicles per household
1.6
Land area
877 sq. mi.
People per square mile
34
Median household income
$39,585+32.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$60,985
Median home value
$130,000
Jobs located here
10,627
Daytime population
29,215Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Cleveland area?

These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 Cleveland area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Restaurants and cafes across Mississippi

Every Mississippi market ranked →

The highest-scoring small-town markets in Mississippi for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Mississippi, with the Cleveland area marked.

Top small-town markets in Mississippi

Small-town markets in Mississippi ranked for restaurants and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Picayune, MS6318785.5$383K+5.6%#145 of 538
2Laurel, MS4425380.1$392K−1.5%#329 of 538
3Brookhaven, MS4311285.1$374K+0.5%#340 of 538
4Starkville, MS3623891.8$344K+0.8%#406 of 538
5Greenwood, MS3412888.5$323K−8.8%#426 of 538
6Tupelo, MS32557107.5$316K+0.8%#442 of 538
7Natchez, MS-LA32210101.3$286K−0.9%#445 of 538
8Oxford, MS32376156.4$228K+5.3%#448 of 538
9Columbus, MS2725795.4$326K−2.7%#476 of 538
10Greenville, MS25186108.7$263K−9.4%#484 of 538
17Cleveland, MS13122102.4$272K−8.3%#533 of 538

Other business types in the Cleveland area

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

Questions

How many restaurants and cafes are in the Cleveland, MS area?

As of September 2026, map listings count 122 restaurants and cafes in the Cleveland area. 40 of them (33%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 53 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, down 1.8% from 2019. Official counts list 21 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in the Cleveland, MS area spend on food away from home?

About $33.2M a year, or $2,790 per household. That is 31% below the U.S. average (an index of 69, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 122 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $272K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 11,915 households in the Cleveland area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Cleveland, MS area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?

The Cleveland area has 102.4 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 7% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $272K, 27% below the U.S. figure of $371K. At the U.S. ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, the Cleveland area would have about 90, against 122 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 225 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count fell 1.8% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.

How fast is the Cleveland, MS area growing?

Population estimates put the Cleveland area at 28,262 people in 2025, down 8.3% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 11,915 households. Median household income in the Cleveland area is $39,585, 51% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 32.6%, 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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 Cleveland area scores 13 for restaurants and cafes (low), #533 of 538 scored small-town markets.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Cleveland 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 Cleveland area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Cleveland 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 Cleveland 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.