Food and drink · Small-town market · Missouri
Restaurants and cafes in the Branson, MO area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for restaurants and cafes in the Branson, MO area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 20 out of 100: Low
Ranked #520 of 538 scored small-town markets
#16 of 17 scored small-town markets based in Missouri
- Listings
- 556
- 205 chain locations (37%)
- Official establishments
- 191
- +7.9% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $75.9M
- On food away from home · $3,330 a household
- Spending per listing
- $136K
- 63% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 244.0
- 2.2 times the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 57,001
- +1.7% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the Branson 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 Branson 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
For restaurants and cafes, the Branson area has a Groundwork market score of 20 (low): #520 of 538 scored small-town markets and #16 of 17 scored small-town markets based in Missouri. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 556 restaurants and cafes in the Branson area. Chain locations make up 37% of them, against 34% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 244.0, 2.2 times the U.S. rate of 109.8.
At $3,330 per household (18% below the U.S. average), households in the Branson area spend about $75.9M a year on food away from home. That is about $136K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 63% below the U.S. figure of $371K.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Branson area was 191 in 2023, up 7.9% from 2019. That is one for every 119 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 15 SBA-backed loans worth $5.3M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Branson area. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Branson area grew 1.7%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Branson area compares
The same measures for Missouri 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 | Branson area | Missouri | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 244.0 | 98.6 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $136K | $385K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 119 | 235 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +7.9% | +6.2% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.7% | +1.9% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,330 | $3,799 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $56,497 | $70,702 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 20 | 54 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 191+7.9% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 4,152
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $101.5M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 29Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 556205 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 205The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 15
- Amount
- $5.3M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Branson 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 Branson area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 57,001+1.7% since 2020
- Households
- 22,788
- Median age
- 43.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 67%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 632 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 89
- Median household income
- $56,497+22.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $78,677
- Median home value
- $218,800
- Jobs located here
- 27,574
- Daytime population
- 57,828Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Branson 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 Branson 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 Missouri
Every Missouri market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Missouri for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Missouri (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Branson area marked.
Top small-town markets in Missouri
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Warrensburg, MO | 80 | 180 | 85.4 | $418K | +4.9% | #30 of 538 |
| 2Mexico, MO | 69 | 63 | 68.3 | $485K | −1.0% | #82 of 538 |
| 3Sedalia, MO | 66 | 145 | 85.3 | $395K | +2.9% | #113 of 538 |
| 4Kirksville, MO | 53 | 97 | 93.0 | $364K | +1.9% | #233 of 538 |
| 5Farmington, MO | 52 | 218 | 87.8 | $378K | +2.1% | #241 of 538 |
| Quincy, IL-MO | 52 | 304 | 97.7 | $363K | −2.0% | #246 of 538 |
| 6Lebanon, MO | 50 | 138 | 94.8 | $333K | +2.5% | #263 of 538 |
| 7Hannibal, MO | 48 | 137 | 89.6 | $382K | +0.4% | #274 of 538 |
| 8Sikeston, MO | 47 | 176 | 88.8 | $376K | −0.3% | #288 of 538 |
| 9Moberly, MO | 44 | 85 | 91.9 | $351K | +0.2% | #334 of 538 |
| 16Branson, MO | 20 | 556 | 244.0 | $136K | +1.7% | #520 of 538 |
Other business types in the Branson area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes20
- Sit-down restaurants20
- Fast food and sandwich shops23
- Pizza22
- Coffee shops and cafes20
- Bakeries and dessert shops20
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 Branson, MO area?
There are 556 restaurants and cafes on map listings in the Branson area as of September 2026. 205 of them (37%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 191 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 7.9% from 2019. Official counts list 29 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Branson, MO area spend on food away from home?
About $75.9M a year, or $3,330 per household. That is 18% below the U.S. average (an index of 82, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 556 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $136K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 22,788 households in the Branson area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Branson, MO area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The Branson area has 244.0 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 2.2 times the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $136K, 63% below the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, the Branson area would have about 205, against 556 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 119 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 7.9% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Branson, MO area growing?
Population estimates put the Branson area at 57,001 people in 2025, up 1.7% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 22,788 households. The median household income in the Branson area is $56,497 a year, 30% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 22.7% 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. 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 Branson area scores 20 for restaurants and cafes (low), #520 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 Branson 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 Branson area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Branson 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 Branson 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.